Agenda item - Written questions from Councillors.

A list of the written questions submitted by Members has been included in the agenda papers.  This will be repeated along with the written answers received and will be taken as read as part of an addendum circulated separately at the meeting.

69.1         The Mayor reminded the Council that written questions from Members and the replies from the appropriate Councillor were now taken as read by reference to the list included in the addendum which had been circulated as detailed below:

 

(a)         Councillor Brown

 

69.2    “Figures supplied by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) show that the number of people volunteering in libraries increased nationally from 23,397 in the year to the end of March 2012 to 33,808 in 2013. How many people currently volunteer in Brighton and Hove’s public libraries?”

           

Reply from Councillor Bowden, Chair of the Economic Development & Culture Committee.

 

69.3    “2011/12: 21 individual volunteers;

2012/13: 21 individual volunteers; and

2013/14: 51 individual volunteers to date.”

 

 

(b)              Councillor A. Norman

 

69.4    “Does the Council have any plans to take part in the Royal British Legion’s Centenary Poppy Campaign?”

 

Reply from Councillor Jarrett, Chair of the Adult Care & Health Committee.

 

69.5    “As part of the city’s four year World War 1 commemoration programme, the council will be supporting the Royal British Legion’s Centenary Poppy Campaign and supplying every school with a pack of 1000 poppy seeds. Schools have given an overwhelmingly positive response to the idea, which will support their plans for a four year educational programme about WW1, particularly focusing on the stories and sacrifice of Brighton & Hove residents and the part the city played during the conflict. A field of Poppies will be planted in the city as part of the wider programme that also includes:

 

·               An EU-funded programme, ‘The Great War - Between the Lines’ delivered by The Royal Pavilion & Museums

·               Performances of The Winslow Boy, The Accrington Pals and Not About Heroes

·               A D Day musical concert

·               Armed Forces Day events

·               Commemorative interfaith services

·               A Seafront exhibition, Dr Brighton’s War

 

Further information and a full calendar of events can be found at www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/ww1”

 

 

(c)               Councillor Mitchell

 

69.6    “Given the continuing chaotic recycling and refuse collection services and the fact that it has comer to light that the Green Administration is, after all, making special productivity payments to Cityclean staff, can the Leader of the Council provide the following information;

 

a)            A month by month breakdown of the separate costs of the refuse and recycling services from April 2012 including all elements such as use of agency staff, additional vehicle hire, special productivity payments and additional payments for week-end working.

 

b)            Can he state the separate, total numbers of refuse and recycling staff and how many of these staff have worked in the separate services on Saturdays since Christmas?

 

c)             What are the terms for the payment of the £1,200 productivity payments?”

           

Reply from Councillor J. Kitcat, Leader of the Council.

 

69.7    a)      “The cost data you have requested is included in the addendum long with this answer. Payment for weekend working is done in line with the council’s new agreement on allowances which followed the recent extensive and difficult negotiations.

 

You will see a spreadsheet showing the monthly expenditure for the CityClean refuse and recycling service between April 2012 and December 2013 – split by expenditure type. There are two tables, one for Refuse collection costs, and the other for Recycling collection costs. Please note that there are some significant monthly variations in costs which can at times be due to the profile/timing of payments and recharges relating to vehicle costs. A separate table contains the vehicle hire Costs.

 

b)      There are in total 59 Refuse staff. 11 staff worked on the three Saturdays after Christmas and New Year (up to and including 11/01/14). 17 payments of £130 per Saturday were made. This means some of these staff worked more than one Saturday and were paid the sum for each Saturday worked.

 

There are in total 50 Recycling staff. 16 staff worked on the three Saturdays after Christmas and New Year (up to and including 11/01/14). 39 payments of £130 per Saturday were made. This means some of these staff worked more than one Saturday and were paid the sum for each Saturday worked.

 

c)      These are not productivity payments. The new allowance framework negotiated after Policy & Resources Committee’s decision in January 2013, allows for one-off payments in exceptional circumstances - such as to recognise extra effort being made by our staff. Such one-off ex-gratia payments are made at the discretion of the service manager. Under the terms of the agreement, this payment is not affected by whether crews chose to work the Saturdays after Christmas and New Year Bank Holidays. Working these Saturdays is not contractual and therefore voluntary.

 

The payment is £1200, paid in two parts, in December and March, to reflect the planned bedding in period for the new rounds over six months. The round reorganisation at City Clean is the biggest and most complex change to the service for many years.”

 

 

(d)              Councillor Pissaridou

 

69.8    “If the Council’s lead spokesperson on Transport will provide a breakdown of the cost of installing and maintaining a “light touch” parking scheme, detailing how the cot is attributed to each aspect of the scheme and what revenue, from whatever source, funds such a scheme, where parking is restricted for two hours a day between the hours on 10-11am am and 7-8pm every day.

 

In addition, if he will also confirm how much parking permits cost and how many have been sold in the existing light touch schemes across the City.”

 

Reply from Councillor Davey, Lead Member for Transport.

 

69.9    “The cost of installing and maintaining a “light touch” parking scheme varies depending on the size of the scheme and how many roads are involved. However, it is important to note that lining and signing implementation, maintenance costs and enforcement costs would be approximately the same as a full scheme as the lining and signing requirements are virtually the same and zones receive similar levels of enforcement. Zone W receives 1 visit per day as does neighbouring Zone R and Zone U receives 3 visits per weeks, like Zone T.

 

The main difference is that Pay and Display machines are an essential initial cost for full schemes although the Council is working towards pay by phone which will reduce and, in some cases, remove the need for Pay & Display machines. There is no Pay and Display income or costs for light touch schemes.

 

In terms of revenue, the income of the current light touch schemes is approximately £20,000 (which is approximately 60% take up of available resident permits) and £50,000 (which is approx 80% take up of available resident permits) for Area U (St Luke’s) and Area W (Westbourne West) respectively. This is based on a light touch resident permit cost of £55 for a 6 month permit or £90 for an annual permit compared to a full scheme which is £40 for a 3 month permit or £120 for an annual permit.

 

As advised there is no Pay & Display in light touch zones but, in addition to  resident permits, we will also receive income from Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs), suspensions, visitor permits and school permits. The income from each zone is not ring fenced to the individual zone but instead goes into the central fund which funds items such as the direct cost of providing our services, sustainable transport initiatives and concessionary travel across the city. On average fewer Penalty Charge Notices are issued in light touch schemes; in 2012/13 just over 2,000 PCNs wereissued resulting in income of approximately £73,000.”

 

 

(e)               Councillor Janio

 

69.10  “Could the Leader of the Council explain the measures being taken towards ensuring that Individual Electoral Registration is on schedule across the city, given that it was not possible to cross check a high percentage of the electoral roll in several wards e.g. 25% of voters in St. Peters & North Laine?”

 

Reply from Councillor J. Kitcat, Leader of the Council.

 

69.11  “I am grateful for the opportunity to mention the progress which is being made in preparing for Individual Electoral Registration (IER). 

 

It is the duty of the Electoral Registration Officer, Penny Thompson to ensure that electoral registers are complete and accurate, and it is the council’s duty to ensure that she has sufficient resources to carry out her statutory duties regarding electoral registration.

                    

The national transition to IER is being led by Cabinet Office (CO) with support and guidance from the Electoral Commission (EC).

 

The Confirmation Dry Run in summer 2013 – an exercise where our electoral register was matched with DWP records - did indeed show that the number of electors who would automatically transfer to the new system would be lower in Brighton & Hove than in other parts of Great Britain. 

 

Electoral Services have analysed those results, along with other customer data, to build a demographic profile of our registration area.  They have also developed a public engagement plan which addresses how to engage those who are less likely to be confirmed by data-matching, and those who are less likely to be registered at all.   There are plans in place to:

 

·               contact residents directly, for example through writing to residents;

·               to work with partners, such as the Universities, to communicate IER messages;

·               and to use local media and advertising to promote IER.

 

The exercise over the summer also gave staff a good opportunity to rehearse the benefits of carrying our further data matching with local records, which improved the overall matching score.

 

The Cabinet Office has been monitoring our preparations for IER.  Electoral Services have kept up to date with the activities required by the CO, and have been entering the details on the CO’s “readiness portal”. 

 

The Electoral Commission has set Performance Standards for IER, and they are satisfied that the ERO’s Implementation Plan, Risk Register and Public Engagement Strategy, meet those standards.  The plans demonstrate that the ERO “has an understanding of the particular challenges in her registration area and that she has targeted priorities for engaging with residents to best respond to the challenges.”

 

In the coming months, Electoral Services will be recruiting additional staff, and will be training staff in the IER processes.   They will be firming up arrangements with suppliers, such as print bureaus and election software companies.   They will also review and monitor their plans on a regular basis, to ensure that they are keeping to schedule.”

 

 

(f)                 Councillor G. Theobald

 

69.12  “Given the Administration’s new found but belated enthusiasm for exploring alternative models of Council service delivery, will the Leader of the Council commit today to bidding for funding under the Government’s new Delivering Differently Challenge fund which provides support and cash for councils wishing to create mutual and social enterprises?”

 

            Reply from Councillor J. Kitcat, Leader of the Council

 

69.13  “I have asked officers to consider options for bidding to the Delivering Differently Challenge now that the details of the scheme have been released.  It is very a challenging timetable but officers have agreed to look at assessing whether we can find a proposal which may have been developed previously for other bids and could fit the scheme criteria.  This could include the use of smart technology, for example by using innovative systems to improving access to parking in the city and thereby also reducing unnecessary traffic congestion.  But there may be others.  That said, I recognise the teams best able to make a submission are heavily loaded and that we need to be realistic about what is possible within the timeframe.”

 

 

(g)              Councillor Brown

 

69.14  “Can we have confirmation that the Hove Open Bowls Tournament will be held as usual this July?”

 

Reply from Councillor Bowden, Chair of the Economic Development & Culture Committee.

 

69.15  “The decision on whether the Hove Bowls Tournament takes place does not rest with the council. It is an event that the organisers agree with Hove and Kingsway Bowling Club to use their facilities. The organiser’s web site is advertising the tournament to take place from the 21^st to the 26^th of July 2014.”