Agenda item

F Jump introduced the report to members and ran through the highlights.
The provisional outturn for 2017/18 is subject to the external audit process and the report has been to Cabinet, Audit and the other overview and scrutiny committees.
In relation to capital programme, there is a slippage of £1.2 million and an underspend of £111k.
Under employees, there is a £36k overspend with a pressure of £150k in Building Control due to resource issues but this is offset by savings of £120k in Clean, Safe and Green were performance has been maintained despite recruitment issues.
There is an overachievement of income of £264k due to an increase in planning applications submitted and the increase in the set national fees has produced an overachievement of £240k. An additional income of £190k has come from an incentive payment from the Alternative Financial Model. There has been a reduction in income of £125k in commercial waste because of an on-going loss of customers.
F Jump referred to section 6 of the report and explained that slippage is expenditure that was expected in 2017/18 but will be spent in 2018/19. Variance is expenditure occurred that is more or less than what was planned for.

Councillor Bateman asked F Jump to provide more information and background to the commercial waste problems.
D Austin said the department has carried out some analysis on this topic. Most of the lost customers are businesses that have relocated or have stopped operating. Larger waste management companies have been able to undercut the council but the department is actively looking to resolve the issue.

Councillor Timmis asked why there is so much effort put into residential recycling but it is not the same for businesses. For example, there is no food waste recycling for bars and restaurants.
D Austin said it was a fair comment and it has been looked at and a previous scheme provided a limited paper and cardboard collection. There needs to be a strategy and it needs to be properly costed and funded. The issue is that the income from recycling is dropping.

Councillor Timmis asked if the decision by China to no longer accept recycling from Europe has affected the market.
D Austin said that China was a large market particularly for plastic recycling. The ban started on 1^st January 2018 but it has had a bigger impact on mixed paper recycling. The paper collected in Dacorum is exported to India. It used to be £80 a tonne but this has now dropped to £10.
Councillor Timmis said that as we become more aware of the dangers of plastic, paper is becoming a popular solution.

Councillor Ransley asked about the recycling cost of glass.
D Austin said it had been poor for some time but it is important to look at it in relation to the disposal costs. Current landfill cost is £100 per tonne. It is still economically beneficial to recycle glass.

Councillor Hicks asked why glass can’t be recycled from bars and sports clubs.
D Austin said there is an on-going strategy to ensure the collection is able to be funded long term.

Councillor Riddick referred to page 6, paragraph 4.1 and the overspend on employees. He said that this has been on the agenda for three years and the recurrent theme is the excessive cost of agency staff and the difficulty to recruit.
He asked why there was an overachievement of income in the planning department but not within building control – are they not parallel?
J Doe said that building control was a difficult area and the department is heavily reliant on agency staff. Many established staff members left before Christmas and these positions haven’t been filled despite being advertised. There is a limited number of professionals in a competitive market so agencies can demand high hourly rates. The Council has about 60% of the market share in building control but the pay scales cannot compete with private companies.
The underachievement of income is due to losing business to the private sector. The Council cannot make a profit out of the service and must balance the books over a three year rolling cycle. Solutions to this problem are being explored but they cannot be discussed in a public meeting. Currently, there are three trainees on a two year training programme so the department is trying to ‘grow its own’

Councillor Riddick asked if the trainees were held under ‘golden handcuffs’ once they qualified.
J Doe said that there is a requirement to repay the course fees if they leave the council within a certain time period.

Councillor Birnie asked if the council could pool their resources with other councils.
J Doe said this could be an option.

Councillor Anderson said that a part 2 discussion on the issue had been scheduled on the work programme for later in the year.

Councillor Fisher asked why recruitment was difficult in the Clean, Safe and Green department and if there was a risk to performance.
S Coultas said there was an industry wide skills shortage. The department are also growing their own and there is currently an apprentice in the department. The salaries do not attract the right candidates as a high standard of qualification is required. There are some good summer temps starting which hopefully can be turned into permanent positions.

Councillor Riddick referred to page 7 and the £450k slippage at Tring Swimming Pool. He said this was alarming as the project hasn’t even started.
F Jump reminded members that slippage referred to expenditure that has been delayed.

Councillor Anderson asked what the cause of the slippage is in Gadebridge Park.
D Austin said it is due to the delays in the opening of the Splash Park. Wet weather has led to issues with the ground which has delayed opening.

Councillor S Hearn queried the division between the provision of services and the financial considerations and which one takes the lead.
F Jump said it was a difficult question but ultimately the decision lays with members and what services they want to provide.
Councillor Marshall said she concurred with that comment. The policy decision is made by members on a case by case basis.

Councillor Anderson said he was pleased to see a variance of just £75k under. This is a tiny percentage of the actual turnover and congratulated all involved.

Outcome

That the Strategic Planning and Environment Overview and Scrutiny Committee approve the report.