BOROUGH OF
CREWE AND NANTWICH
COUNCIL
MEETING
28TH
NOVEMBER 2007
1.
APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
2.
MINUTES
To approve as a correct record the Minutes of
the Council Meeting held on 10th October 2007.
(2)
3. PUBLIC
QUESTION TIME
To consider questions and petitions
received in accordance with the Question Time Procedure [Procedure
Rule No. 31(2)] and to consider any supplementary
questions.
4. MAYOR’S
COMMUNICATIONS AND CIVIC ACTIVITIES
To receive the Mayor’s Communications
and a resumé of Civic life in the Borough since the last Council
meeting. (4)
(Note: At this point in the
proceedings the Council will be invited to sit as a Committee of
the Full Council.)
5.
DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
Members to declare any personal or
prejudicial interests which they have in any item of business on
the agenda, the nature of the interest, and, if necessary, to leave
the meeting prior to discussion of that item.
Members who also serve as County, Town
or Parish Councillors are reminded of the need to make declarations
in respect of any item which directly concerns the business of the
appropriate authority.
Declarations are a personal matter for each
Member to decide. Whilst Officers will advise on the Code of
Conduct and its interpretation, the decision to declare, or not, is
the responsibility of the Member, based on the particular
circumstances.
6.
CONSIDERATION OF ANY SCRUTINY COMMITTEE REPORTS
AND RECOMMENDATIONS
To consider any recommendations or
reports from the Scrutiny Committees.
7. NOTICE
OF MOTION
To consider the following Notice of
Motion submitted by Councillor Arthur Moran, in accordance with
Procedure Rule No. 7(1).
“That this Council recognises both the
corporate and individual benefits which can be obtained from Member
Development and seeks to reaffirm its commitment to the North-West
Charter on Elected Member Development by the signing of a
Memorandum of Understanding.”
(Memorandum of
Understanding)
MATTERS REQUIRING A DECISION
BY COUNCIL
8.
2007-2012 Revenue Strategy
At its meeting held on 15th
November 2007, the Board considered the report of Councillor John
Hatfield, Portfolio Holder for Finance.
The report presented Members with amendments
to the Medium-Term Financial Strategy for 2007-2012 and set out the
financial impacts of delivery of the Council’s existing key policy
commitments in terms of revenue spending and the capacity to fund
these.
The Board recommends –
(a)
That the up-dated Revenue Strategy 2007-2012 be approved;
(b) That
the 2008/09 budget preparations be guided by the September retail
prices increase and the medium-term financial position by an
allowance for inflation; and
(c) That
proposals for savings and any requests for growth be brought
forward to enable examination of alternative budget proposals, with
the principle of sustainability taken into account.
The report of the Portfolio Holder, as
submitted to Board, together with the Revenue Strategy, is
attached. (8)
9.
Capital Investment Strategy 2007-2012
At its meeting held on 15th
November 2007, the Board considered the report of Councillor John
Hatfield, Portfolio Holder for Finance.
The report contained details of the up-dated
Capital Strategy for 2007-2012 and included a review of the
resources allocated to existing projects which were underway, and
also to new proposals which had been scored and ranked using the
Council’s scoring framework.
The Board recommends –
(a)
That the Capital Investment Strategy 2007-2012 be approved; and
(b)
That the Capital Programme be amended to include the changes
recommended in the Strategy.
The report of the Portfolio Holder, as
submitted to Board, together with the Capital Strategy, is
attached. (9)
10. Licensing Act 2003
– Statement of Licensing Policy
At its meeting held on 15th
November 2007, the Board considered the report of Councillor John
Dwyer, Portfolio Holder for Safer Communities.
The Licensing Act 2003 came into force in 2005
when the licensing of the sale of alcohol was transferred to the
Borough Council. At its meeting on 5th January
2005, the Council approved a policy document known as the
“Statement of Licensing Policy”. Under the terms of the
Licensing Act, the Council must review and renew the policy
document at intervals of no more than three
years.
The Board approved the revised draft Policy
for consultation at its meeting on 20th September
2007 and, following the consultation period, considered the
Statement of Licensing Policy.
The Board recommends – That the
Statement of Licensing Policy be approved.
The report of the Portfolio Holder, as
submitted to Board, together with the Statement of Licensing
Policy, is attached. (10)
11. Tax Base for
Council Tax and Discount for Second Homes
At its meeting held on 15th
November 2007, the Board considered the report of Councillor John
Hatfield, Portfolio Holder for Finance.
The report contained details of the Council
Tax Base calculation for the forthcoming financial year, together
with the tax base for each parish and Nantwich Town
Council. It also provided information on the level of discount
on second homes for determination.
The Board recommends to Council, that, subject
to Cheshire County Council continuing with the agreement on second
homes taxation sharing –
(a) The discount for
second homes, at 25% be approved;
(b) The Tax Base for
the whole Borough, as set out in Appendix A1 of the report
submitted, be approved;
(c) The Tax Base for
the parishes and Nantwich Town Council, as set out in Appendix A2
of the report submitted, be approved;
(d) That the Crime
and Disorder Reduction Partnership be asked to allocate a
proportion of the additional funding from the Second Homes Taxation
Sharing Agreement with the County Council, to enable signage and
implementation of the Designated Public Places Order throughout the
Borough; and
(e) That in the
event of the agreement not continuing, the above be substituted
with (A) 50% discount; (B) Appendix B1 and (C), Appendix B2
respectively.
The report of the Portfolio Holder, as
submitted to Board, is attached. (11)
12. Asset Management
Action Plan
At its meeting held on 15th
November 2007, the Board considered the report of Councillor John
Hatfield, Portfolio Holder for Finance.
The report recommended actions to deliver the
Asset Management Plan, a draft of which was approved by the Board
in July 2007, and included the outcomes of the asset condition
surveys, which gave reliable data to assist in planning the future
maintenance programme for the Council’s buildings.
The Board recommends – That the Asset
Management Plan, together with Appendices 1 and 2, attached to the
report, be approved.
The report of the Portfolio Holder, as
submitted to Board, is attached, together with the Asset Management
Plan. (12)
13. Parliamentary
Polling Districts and Polling Places Review
The Electoral Commission required the Council
to conduct a review of its Parliamentary Polling Districts and
Polling Places. At its meeting held on 20th
September 2007, the Board approved the process for
consultation.
At its meeting held on 15th
November, the Board considered the report of Councillor Margaret
Simon, Portfolio Holder for Customers which detailed draft
proposals for consideration and recommendation to Council.
The Board recommends – That the
proposals, as detailed in the report, be approved subject to the
following:
(a) That, in respect
of Polling District 1CA1, Option 8(b) as detailed in the report be
adopted; and
(b) That, in respect
of electors from Haughton and Spurstow, the Polling Place be
amended to Bunbury Jubilee Pavilion.
The report of the Portfolio Holder, as submitted to Board, is
attached. (13)
14. Scheme of
Delegation – Planning Decisions
The current Scheme of Delegation and decisions
delegated to the Borough Planning Officer was approved at Council
on 7th January 2004 and came into effect on
1st March 2004. That scheme was introduced as a response
to the Government’s Best Value target that 90% of decisions on
planning applications should be made by Officers.
Subsequent to that, the level of delegation
has increased, but the Council is still not meeting the
target; during the period April 2007 to September 2007, the
figure was 87.1%.
At its meeting held on 15th
November 2007, the Development Control Committee considered the
report of the Development Control Manager which proposed amendments
to the Planning Scheme of Delegation and recommends -
That the amended Scheme of Delegation (Option
2) as recommended by the Development Control Committee (as
amended at the Development Control Committee meeting) and set out
in Appendix 1 attached to the report, be approved.
The report of the Development Control Manager
is attached (14.1)
together with a copy of the report submitted to the Development
Control Committee meeting. (14.2)
15. Post Office
Closures
The Government has announced proposed
compulsory compensated closure of up to 2,500 branches of Post
Offices, with the introduction of Outreach service points to
mitigate the impact.
Council is invited to debate the position and
express its views to inform the Council’s response to the
consultation.
The report of the Executive Director (Treasury
and Corporate Support) will follow under separate cover.
16. BOARD REPORT AND
QUESTIONS TO THE BOARD AND COMMITTEE
CHAIRS