To receive an oral report at the meeting from the Leader (and Cabinet) on the business of the Executive or on any topic or subject that it is felt should be brought to the attention of the Council.
In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 10 (Leader’s Time):
(a) The Leader (and Cabinet) shall have up to 15 minutes to make within this report any statements that they wish on any topic or subject that they feel should be drawn to the attention of the Council.
(b) The Leader (or their nominee) of the Major Opposition Group (Labour Group) shall be allowed up to 10 minutes to respond.
(c) The Leader (or their nominee) of the Other Opposition Group (UKIP Group) shall be allowed up to 5 minutes to respond.
(d) The Leader of the Council shall be allowed up to 5 minutes to exercise a right of reply (or 25% of the time given to the Opposition Group Leaders, whichever is the greatest).
Minutes:
The Leader of the Council, Councillor P A Watkins, included the following matters in his report:
(a) The impact of the Comprehensive Spending Review and Autumn Statement for the Council:
· That the Council had anticipated the removal of the Revenue Support Grant by 2019-2020, which had been reduced for the last 5 years. This combined with announcements relating to business rates and New Homes Bonus meant that the Council would have to be self-sufficient by 2020.
· That the Council would be able to retain the revenue from business rates although it was not yet clear what formula would be used to distribute the revenue between the tiers of local government. Local Authorities would also be given powers to cut local business rates, although they wouldn’t be able to raise them without the consent of local businesses unless they had an elected mayor.
· There were discussions on whether the distribution of New Homes Bonus would be changed to support upper tier social care costs. Currently, Dover District Council retained 80% of the New Homes Bonus with the remaining 20% going to Kent County Council.
· That an additional 2% Council Tax Rise would be permitted to fund social care costs.
· The announcement of £12 billion allocated to Local Growth Funds distributed via the Local Enterprise Partnerships. The Council had successfully bid for Local Growth Funds in the past.
· The government would increase the local government Disabled Facilities Grants by £500 million.
· The announcement of 400,000 new homes and the expansion of schemes to support people buying their own homes. To encourage house building there would be reforms to the planning system, particularly in relation to brownfield sites.
· The allocation of £250 million to deal with Operation Stack, including the Dover Traffic Assessment Project (TAP).
· The expansion of the number of Enterprise Zones with a new North Kent Enterprise Zone linked to Ebbsfleet Garden City.
· The 20% reduction in the Department for Communities and Local Government paybill.
· £75 million for emergency services communication systems.
(b) A meeting of Kent Leaders was held on Tuesday 24 November 2015 to discuss the Government’s devolution agenda and the opportunities it presented for local authorities in Kent. The devolution agenda presented the opportunity for local authorities to take on additional powers and responsibilities from Government as well as enabling the sharing of powers between the County Council and District Councils.
There would be further discussions over the devolution agenda and the governance models to deliver it, with Kent authorities divided into 3 or 4 zones. The East Kent zone would consist of Ashford Borough Council, Canterbury City Council, Dover District Council, Shepway District Council and Thanet District Council. One option to be considered was the combined authority model with an elected mayor. It was important that the Council worked to shape the devolution agenda rather than be shaped by it.
(c) The proposals for the South Kent Coast Health and Wellbeing Board to take on a direct commissioning role. This was supported by all the parties involved, including the Clinical Commissioning Group and Kent County Council.
(d) That preparation for the acceptance of Syrian Refugees was progressing and that the Council would be ready to accept the first 2-3 families in a month time.
The Leader of the Main Opposition Labour Group, Councillor M R Eddy, included the following matters in his report:
(a) That the outcome of the Comprehensive Spending Review and the Autumn Statement was that Dover District Council would be worse off with rich areas winning and poor areas losing.
(b) To welcome news that the police budget was not being cut.
(c) To question how rapid the 2 brigades of rapid reaction forces would be if they were not ready until 2025.
(d) That sum of the additional funding for health had been taken from other health bodies and that it would have to be bid for.
(e) That the removal of the Revenue Support Grant by 2020 meant that the Council would have to fund all of its existing services and that it was unlikely the business sector would support rises in business rates.
(f) His concerns that with the break-up of the old health authority 15 years ago it was being recreated through the amalgamation of the smaller replacement bodies and that within a few years there would be only 2 Clinical Commissioning Groups – one for East Kent and one for West Kent.
(g) To welcome the Government’s announcement of funding to deal with Operation Stack and note that the amount allocated was greater than that estimated as necessary by the Leader of Kent County Council.
(h) That while funding for Troubled Families was continuing at roughly the same level it was still lower than the amount per family provided when the programme was launched.
(i) To express concern that the devolution agenda had given such an important role to the business sector but had no involvement from the Trade Unions and the Charity Sector in the future shape of local government. He agreed that the Council must engage with the devolution agenda to shape it.
(j) To welcome the progress in respect of the preparatory arrangements for the district to receive its first Syrian Refugees and the proposed changes to the Health and Wellbeing Board.
The Leader of the Other Opposition Labour Group, Councillor A F Richardson, included the following matters in his report:
(a) To emphasise the importance of tackling the deficit and improving the state of public finances. In particular, he welcomed the increase in defence spending but noted that there was a lot of work to do to restore the nation’s defences.
(b) To question whether the district was able to afford to cut the level of business rates in the district under the new powers proposed by the Government.
(c) To express his deep concern over the future of Dover District Council as a service provider.
(d) To point out that private sector land banking and developers trying to get out of providing social housing was the biggest obstacle to housing growth and not, as in his view the Government saw it, the planning department. To emphasise that the public sector had a role in providing truly affordable social housing.
(e) To welcome the funding for Operation Stack but to appeal for more variable speed limits and gantries for the operation of the Traffic Assessment Project (TAP) due its impact on western Dover.
(f) To acknowledge the opportunities that the devolution agenda could bring to Kent if there was a cross-party consensus but to raise concerns that the proposed major role of the business community could see a democratic deficit arise.
The Leader of the Council elected to forego his right of reply.