Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Brake, Clarke, Hamilton and Kemp.

To approve the record of the meeting held on 20 June 2024.

The record of the meeting held on 20 June 2024 was agreed by the Committee and signed by the Chairperson as correct.

The Chairperson will announce any late items which do not appear on the main agenda but which he has agreed should be considered by reason of special circumstances to be specified in the report.

There were none.

Members are invited to disclose any Disclosable Pecuniary Interests or Other Significant Interests in accordance with the Member Code of Conduct. Guidance on this is set out in agenda item 4.

Disclosable pecuniary interests (DPI)

There were none.

Other significant Interests (OSI)

There were none.

Other Interests

There were none.

This report presents a consultation document in the preparation of the new Medway Local Plan. The consultation document sets out proposals for potential growth across Medway and policies to manage development. The Local Plan has implications for our residents, environment and businesses. The Council is seeking to gather comments from a broad range of people and interests in helping to draft the new plan. 

Discussion:

The Assistant Director, Culture and Community introduced the report which set out three broad options for growth in Medway and policies to manage development. A presentation which outlined the Local Plan proposals and next steps following the completion of the consultation was provided to the Committee. Members thanked officers for the work undertaken.

The following issues were discussed:

Digital – it was noted that the Local Plan referred to all new major developments having fast broadband connectivity (page 223 of the agenda pack refers), it was suggested that all developments regardless of size should be provided with access to fast broadband connectivity. The Chief Planning Officer noted the feedback from the Committee.

Utilities and Infrastructure – it was asked whether Medway had the necessary infrastructure to ensure the electricity and water supply to support the growth in homes and employment. The Chief Planning Officer explained the Council was working with Southern Water. In relation to electricity supply the Council would also explore other options such as use of the river Medway, waste to energy and the data processing centre proposed at Kingsnorth as well as other possible options regarding power and energy production.

In response to queries relating to road traffic, the Chief Planning Officer reported that the Council was holding regular meetings with National Highways to consider congestion issues in relation to the strategic road network and was also completing work on a Strategic Transport Assessment that would inform capacity of roads in Medway and the mitigation needed to support the growth proposed.

Members raised concerns regarding the potential for flooding in some areas when greenfield sites were developed. The Chief Planning Officer replied that it was vital for the Council to work with developers to ensure surface water issues would be dealt with appropriately.

Healthcare services - it was commented that the Local Plan could identify a site for a new hospital to support the additional demand on the area. The Chief Planning Officer explained that the Council was liaising with the NHS in relation to local healthcare services. A Member commented that Healthy Living Centres were in good locations and more services could be provided by those centres.

Capstone Park -  a Member commented that Capstone Park was important to the air quality of Medway and previous development proposals in the area had been met with significant petitions. The Chief Planning Officer agreed the importance of air quality in Medway, the Council needed to plan for mitigating the impact of development on air quality and this included the development of electric vehicle charging points and tree planting. He added that with regard to previous petitions, he could not rely on a petition from several years ago in relation to future proposals.

Brownfield development – in response to a question how the Council would ensure that brownfield development was prioritised, the Chief Planning Officer stated that the Council had been successful in developing brownfield sites like Kitchener Barracks using Homes England Funding, Chatham Waterfront through the Medway  ...  view the full minutes text for item 240.

To present Members with the consultation responses received in respect of the draft revised Gambling Policy. The report includes an evaluation of each response and gives a recommendation as to whether or not to amend the draft revised policy statement and, if so, in what way and to what extent.

Discussion:

The Assistant Licensing Manager introduced the report, the Gambling Act 2005 required the Local Authority to review the statement of gambling policy every three years.  The amended policy proposed only minor changes to the policy to update weblinks and to ensure the policy met accessibility guidance.

A consultation had taken place and one response had been received.

The following issue was discussed:

Online gambling - Members commented that any proposal to restrict gambling in Medway would result in people moving to online gambling. The Assistant Licensing Manager agreed, the policy ensured gambling shops had the right policies and were inspected. Online gambling was a matter for the Gambling Commission, however, further restrictions would, in her view, be self-defeating.

Decision:

a)              The Committee noted the response received during the consultation and advised on any amendments to the draft policy.

b)              The Committee recommended approval of the draft policy to Cabinet and Council.

This report presents the results of the first round of the Council’s revenue budget monitoring process for 2024/25.

Discussion:

The Chief Operating Officer introduced the report. He highlighted that the round one monitoring forecast an overspend of £16.5m, with an overspend of £1.6m within the remit of this Committee.

The overspend within the remit of this Committee related principally to projections in savings related to Medway 2.0, where work was progressing and officers were confident that savings would be achieved, however, until those savings had been delivered they would not be included in the forecast.

The following issues were discussed:

Revenue – in response to a question whether there were plans in place to utilise Council assets such as commercial use of the data server, the Chief Operating Officer replied that it was planned to make greater commercial use of the Council’s assets but this had been delayed due to the safety works which were required to Gun Wharf.

Legal Services overspend – concern was raised in relation to the overspend in Legal Services despite recent investment in the service. The Chief Operating Officer stated that the restructure of Legal Services had yielded improvements, however the full benefits of the investment would take time to be realised.

He added officers were reviewing its legal costs and other costs in relation to Children Services to ensure that the Council had the correct resources available to progress cases more quickly and effectively.

Medway 2.0 – A Member commented that the reported overspend was in addition to the £14.7m emergency financial support. He asked if the projected savings from Medway 2.0 represented permanent savings. The Chief Operating Officer explained the projected £2m in savings did represent permanent savings but would not be included in the forecast until they the changes to services had been delivered.

Cost of Debt - in response to a question what had caused the increased cost of debt repayment, the Chief Operating Officer explained that £42m had been earmarked in the Capital Programme to purchase housing for Temporary Accommodation. There were costs to service the borrowing, however, savings would be made in the temporary housing budget which had not yet been realised.

Emergency Financial Support – it was asked whether there was concern that further emergency financial support would be required to meet the overspend in the current financial year. The Chief Operating Officer explained that the Council had received a letter from the then Secretary of State that they were minded to approve capitalisation of up to £14.7m, in 2024/2025, however the Council had also stated in its application for exceptional financial support that it would need further capitalisation directions in 2025/26 and 2026/27.  An assurance review would be undertaken by CIPFA and following the publication of final accounts and sign off by auditors the capitalisation direction for 2024/2025 would be agreed. Separate applications would need to be made in future years.

The Chief Operating Officer added that the Council currently held £10m general reserves, however, this was an arbitrary figure. If reserves were set at 5% of the Council’s annual budget, they would be in  ...  view the full minutes text for item 242.

This report presents the results of the first round of the Council’s capital budget monitoring process for 2024/25.

Discussion:

The Chief Operating Officer introduced the report which summarised projections against the Capital Programme and how it was funded.

The following issues were discussed:

Projected underspend – It was asked whether the projected £4.6m underspend in the Regeneration, Culture and Environment Department would allow for additional projects to be considered. The Chief Operating Officer stated that the Council was not actively planning to use the underspend on additional projects, the saving reduced the cost of the Council’s debt through lower interest rate payment.

ICT Investment – in response to a question whether ICT investment could provide further income through commercial use of the Council data centre the Chief Operating Officer explained that further commercial use of data centre was planned. However, the difficulties in relation to the use of the Gun Wharf building had meant a delay in implementation of the commercial plan.

It was also asked whether there had been further consideration of using the Cloud as a data management storage, the Chief Operating Officer stated the use of the Cloud was under constant review, however, at this stage it did not provide the best value for money.

Decision:

The Committee noted the results of the first round of capital budget monitoring for 2024/25.

This item advises Members of the current work programme and allows the Committee to adjust it in the light of latest priorities, issues and circumstances. It gives Members the opportunity to shape and direct the Committee’s activities over the year.

Discussion:

The Democratic Services Officer introduced the report, he highlighted the changes to the Work Programme as set out in appendix 1 to the report. The Democratic Services Officer also outlined the changes to the Scrutiny of Local Authority Trading Companies (LATCOs) to strengthen scrutiny.

Decision:

a)     The Committee agreed the provisional work programme at Appendix 1 to the report.

b)     The Committee noted the work programmes of the other Overview and Scrutiny Committees at Appendix 2 to the report.