Agenda, decisions and minutes

To confirm the minutes of the previous meetings of the council (17 April and 15 May 2019).

The minutes of the meeting held on 17 April and 15 May 2019 were agreed by the Members present and then signed by the Mayor.

The minutes of the meeting held on 17 April and 15 May 2019 were agreed by the Members present and then signed by the Mayor.

To receive any declarations of interest

There were no declarations of interest.

There were no declarations of interest.

To consider questions (if any) by members of the public of which the appropriate notice has been given to the Assistant Director (Corporate and Contracted Services)

There was no public participation.

There was no public participation.

To receive announcements and business brought forward by the Mayor, Leader, and Members of the Cabinet or the Chief Executive.

4.1       By the Mayor:

4.2       By the Chief Executive:

4.3       By the Group Leaders:  Any apologies for absence

4.4       Council Leader and Members of the Cabinet:

4.1       By the Mayor:

The Mayor highlighted two recent events he had been to;

The Armed Forces Day on 29^th June, and The Freedom Parade at RAF Halton on 30^th June.

He said there would be several events this year to support his Charity, Sunnyside Rural Trust, and asked that as many people as possible support this very worthwhile Charity.

4.2       By the Chief Executive:

None.

4.3       By the Group Leaders:

Councillor Williams confirmed that apologies had been received from Councillors Anderson, Chapman, Elliot, Imarni, Oguchi, and Independent Member Councillor Maddern.

Councillor Tindall confirmed that apologies had been received from Councillors Bowden, Hollinghurst, Link and Symington.

4.4       Council Leader and Members of the Cabinet:

(Full details are in the minutes under Announcements of the Leader and Cabinet).

4.1       By the Mayor:

The Mayor highlighted two recent events he had been to;

The Armed Forces Day on 29^th June, and The Freedom Parade at RAF Halton on 30^th June.

He said there would be several events this year to support his Charity, Sunnyside Rural Trust, and asked that as many people as possible support this very worthwhile Charity.

4.2       By the Chief Executive:

None.

4.3       By the Group Leaders:

Councillor Williams confirmed that apologies had been received from Councillors Anderson, Chapman, Elliot, Imarni, Oguchi, and Independent Member Councillor Maddern.

Councillor Tindall confirmed that apologies had been received from Councillors Bowden, Hollinghurst, Link and Symington.

4.4       Council Leader and Members of the Cabinet:

Councillor Williams, Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Corporate and Contracted Services

The Portfolio Holder said he had a couple of things to report.

Firstly he expressed his disappointment with the decision made by the CCG and West Herts at the meeting on 11 July to proceed with the significant investment in the Watford site and the continued centralisation of services in Watford, leaving little or no prospect of investment in the Hemel Hempstead site or little investment in the St Albans site. He said Dacorum’s view had remained consistent the last few years and to plough hundreds of millions of pounds in to the Watford site to serve the communities of West Hertfordshire doesn’t give the residents of Dacorum the best outcome in terms of health provision going forward. He said although he appreciated that the CCG and West Herts Trust were in a difficult position, they felt the decision was the wrong thing to do so he wanted the objection to that process noted.

The works on the Berkhamsted multi-storey car park commenced formally on the 17 June and is expected to be completed by January 2020. The Moor temporary car park has re-opened but is due for routine maintenance and will be closed 23 July – 5 August.

Following the Councils £1.9m investment in the refurbishment of Tring swimming pool, it re-opened at the end of May in a ceremony conducted by the Mayor of Tring along with a family fun day.

Councillor Pringle highlighted the alarming rise in food banks. She referred to the relocation of Dacorum’s food bank and asked if the Portfolio Holder could guarantee that the new premises will be of the same capacity or greater than the current premises, and that the food bank will be fully supported for future needs. Councillor Williams advised he had met with the Chief Executive of DENS twice in the past few months regarding the relocation of their service and they’re very happy with the move as the current site needs redevelopment. He gave reassurance that we would fully support them and will work alongside them to ensure their requirements are met. Councillor Pringle then asked if the Portfolio Holder agreed that the rise in food bank use was alarming and suggested reviewing the forecasts to ensure we  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

The following motion proposed by Councillor Tindall and seconded by Councillor Williams, was unanimously supported:

A.        

To assist and inform the development of the new Corporate Plan for 2020 – 2025, which will outline the council’s vision and priorities for the next five years, this Council notes that –

1.         The overwhelming weight of scientific evidence pointing to dangerous man-made climate change in terms of CO2 Global Warming, loss of habitat for wildlife leading to a dramatic drop in bio-diversity, alarming consequences of the accumulation of plastic waste across the planet and the continuing unsustainable depletion of natural resources. The harmful effect that such climate change and other human impact on the planet is increasingly feeding back into our lives, eco-systems, erratic rainfall and poor air quality.

2.         The Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5C published by the IPCC in October 2018 which describes the enormous harm that a 2C average rise in global temperatures is likely to cause, and advises that limiting global warming to 1.5C may still be possible with ambitious action from national and sub-national authorities, civil society and the private sector.

3.         Local residents have been actively involved in environmental initiatives and have organised into campaign groups looking to influence all levels of government policy. DBC recognises that this is a reflection of their concerns about climate change and loss of biodiversity.

4.         UK Central Government has announced a target for net zero emissions of greenhouse gas by 2050 for the UK, and Council recognises that if this is to be achieved, immediate action and progress in advance of that schedule is required at all levels of government.

5.         Dacorum Borough Council has been working on environmental issues, based upon the "Nottingham Declaration” endorsed by Council in 2000 and in continuing to improve recycling rates.

6.         District authorities are well placed to lead the vanguard in reducing carbon emissions and protecting biodiversity, as their responsibility for planning policies and housing stock opens up a range of sustainable transport, buildings, household and commercial/community waste and energy opportunities.

7.         This Council has control over local policies and services, the Local Plan and particularly the specification of the housing stock.

B.        

In recognition of the factors noted above the Council resolves to –

1.         Join other councils at all levels of Local Government in declaring a climate emergency that requires urgent planning and action, and commits to work towards reducing carbon emissions across the full range of council activities to net zero by the end of budget year 2029/30, this to include the production of a strategy and action plan to make the activities of Dacorum Borough Council carbon neutral by 2030 in accordance with the IPCC recommendation

2.         Evaluate all practical means to reduce then impact of council services on the environment as soon as possible.

3.         Work with the established groups of Hertfordshire Public Sector Organisations to review their services and implement measures to reduce their impact on the environment and climate breakdown.

4.         Urge the  ...  view the full decision text for item 5.

The following motion was proposed by Councillor Tindall and seconded by Councillor Williams:

CLIMATE CHANGE MOTION TO DACORUM BOROUGH COUNCIL

A

To assist and inform the development of the new Corporate Plan for 2020 – 2025, which will outline the council’s vision and priorities for the next five years, this Council notes that –

1. The overwhelming weight of scientific evidence pointing to dangerous man-made climate change in terms of CO2 Global Warming, loss of habitat for wildlife leading to a dramatic drop in bio-diversity, alarming consequences of the accumulation of plastic waste across the planet and the continuing unsustainable depletion of natural resources. The harmful effect that such climate change and other human impact on the planet is increasingly feeding back into our lives, eco-systems, erratic rainfall and poor air quality.

2. The Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5C published by the IPCC in October 2018 which describes the enormous harm that a 2C average rise in global temperatures is likely to cause, and advises that limiting global warming to 1.5C may still be possible with ambitious action from national and sub-national authorities, civil society and the private sector.

3. Local residents have been actively involved in environmental initiatives and have organised into campaign groups looking to influence all levels of government policy. DBC recognises that this is a reflection of their concerns about climate change and loss of biodiversity.

4. UK Central Government has announced a target for net zero emissions of greenhouse gas by 2050 for the UK, and Council recognises that if this is to be achieved, immediate action and progress in advance of that schedule is required at all levels of government.

5. Dacorum Borough Council has been working on environmental issues, based upon the "Nottingham Declaration” endorsed by Council in 2000 and in continuing to improve recycling rates.

6. District authorities are well placed to lead the vanguard in reducing carbon emissions and protecting biodiversity, as their responsibility for planning policies and housing stock opens up a range of sustainable transport, buildings, household and commercial/community waste and energy opportunities.

7. This Council has control over local policies and services, the Local Plan and particularly the specification of the housing stock.

B.

In recognition of the factors noted above the Council resolves to –

1. Join other councils at all levels of Local Government in declaring a climate emergency that requires urgent planning and action, and commits to work towards reducing carbon emissions across the full range of council activities to net zero by the end of budget year 2029/30, this to include the production of a strategy and action plan to make the activities of Dacorum Borough Council carbon neutral by 2030 in accordance with the IPCC recommendation

2. Evaluate all practical means to reduce then impact of council services on the environment as soon as possible.

3. Work with the established groups of Hertfordshire Public Sector Organisations to review their services and implement measures to reduce their impact on the environment and climate breakdown.

4. Urge the two Dacorum Members of Parliament to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

To consider questions (if any) by members of the Council of which the appropriate notice has been given to the Solicitor to the Council.

None.

None.

To consider any business referred from the previous meeting

None.

None.

To consider the following referrals from Cabinet:

8.1       CA/048/19       21 May 2019   Vehicle Repair Shop

Resolved:

That the following be approved:

21 May 2019

8.1  CA/048/19   Vehicle Repair Shop

Decision

That Council approve the additional capital funds required of £60k as outlined in the report to Cabinet in paragraph 3.

The following referrals from Cabinet on 21 May 2019 were agreed:

8.1       CA/048/19       Vehicle Repair Shop

Decision

That Cabinet recommend Council approve the additional capital funds required of £60k as outlined in the report to Cabinet in paragraph 3.

None.

None.

None.

To consider the following changes to committee membership:

The appointment of Councillor Nigel Nutkins to the Standards Committee.

The following changes to committee membership were agreed:

Appointment of Councillor Nigel Nutkins to the Standards Committee.

Appointment of Councillor Alex Bhinder as Dacorum’s Representative on the Hertfordshire Health Scrutiny Committee.

The following changes to committee membership were agreed:

Appointment of Councillor Nigel Nutkins to the Standards Committee.

Appointment of Councillor Alex Bhinder as Dacorum’s Representative on the Hertfordshire Health Scrutiny Committee.

None.

None.

None.