Agenda and minutes

A webcast of the meeting can be viewed at http://council.webcast.vualto.com/leicestershire-county-council/home?EventId=14387

 

It was moved by Mr Rushton, seconded by Mr Galton and carried:-

 

“That Mr Bill Liquorish be elected Chairman for the period until the next Annual Meeting of the Council.”

 

Mr Liquorish read out and signed his Declaration of Acceptance of Office which was witnessed and signed by the Chief Executive.

 

Mr Liquorish took the Chair and thanked his proposer and seconder and members of the Council for electing him.

 

The Chairman thanked Mr Snartt for his services to the County during his period of office as Chairman.  Mr Rushton, Mr Galton and Mr Sharp each joined the Chairman in associating their Groups with the thanks to Mr Snartt.  Mr Snartt thanked members for their generous remarks.

 

It was moved by Mr Rushton, seconded by Mr Galton and carried:-

 

“That Mrs Janice Richards be appointed Vice-Chairman for the period until the next Annual Meeting of the Council.”

 

Mrs Richards read out and signed her Declaration of Acceptance of Office which was witnessed and signed by the Chief Executive.

 

Mrs Richards thanked her proposer and seconder for their generous remarks and members of the Council for appointing her as Vice-Chairman.

 

The Queen’s 90^th Birthday

 

The Chairman reminded members that they had been invited to a service to be held on Sunday, 12^th June at Leicester Cathedral to celebrate Her Majesty’s 90^th Birthday.  The service would be held jointly with the Lord-Lieutenant and Lord Mayor and would be preceded by a party in Jubilee Square.  All members were encouraged to attend.

 

Armed Forces Day

 

The Chairman reminded members that they had been invited to a special service to be held on Saturday, 25^th June at Leicester Cathedral to mark Armed Forces Day.  The service would be held jointly with the Lord Mayor of Leicester and the Lord-Lieutenant and would be followed by a parade of Standards, service personnel, veterans and cadets through the streets of Leicester, behind the pipes and drums of the Seaforth Highlanders.  All members were encouraged to attend.

 

The Centenary of the Battle of the Somme

 

The Chairman asked members to note that they would receive an invitation a special service at Leicester Cathedral on Friday, 1^st July which would mark the start of the 100^th anniversary of the Battle of the Somme, in which over 2,000 men from Leicester and Leicestershire lost their lives.  The Service would be held jointly with the Lord-Lieutenant and the Lord Mayor.  The Service would conclude with a two-minute silence, which would also be observed at County Hall.  He hoped all members would attend.

 

Chairman’s Reception – Beaumanor Hall

 

The Chairman was pleased to inform members that he would be holding a Reception at Beaumanor Hall on Thursday, 28^th July at 6.30pm.  All members of the County Council would be receiving invitations in due course.

 

County Service

 

The Chairman asked members to note that the County Service this year would be held at Broughton Astley Parish Church on Sunday, 2^nd October.  The Bishop of Leicester would be preaching and the Service would be followed by refreshments.  Invitations would be issued to all members in due course and he hoped that members would support the annual service.

 

Visitors

 

The Chairman welcomed to the meeting all visitors and guests of members, including Mr David Wright and his Wife, Maureen, who had been elected as Mayor of Melton Borough Council.

 

The Chairman also welcomed anyone who was viewing the meeting via the webcast.

 

It was moved by the Chairman, seconded by the Vice-Chairman and carried:-

 

“That the minutes of the meeting of the Council held on 16^th March 2016, copies of which have been circulated to members, be taken as read, confirmed and signed.”

 

 

The Chairman invited members who wished to do so to make declarations of interest in respect of items on the agenda for the meeting.

 

No such declarations were made.

 

(A)     Mr Spence asked the following question of the Leader or his nominee:-

 

“Leicestershire County Council is rightly proud of our historic links with the Armed Forces.

 

With significantly higher recruitment targets for our reserved armed forces the Government continues to promote the target of 1% of all civil service staff enlisting.

 

Accepting that Leicestershire County Council is not part of the civil service but a nevertheless vital public sector employer can the Leader please advise:-

 

1.       What percentage of County Council staff are currently reservists in our armed forces?

 

2.       What steps, if any, are presently taken by the County Council to encourage employees to join up?”

 

Mr Rhodes replied as follows:-

 

“1.      The County Council does not currently have a simple way of monitoring how many of our current staff are reservists – individual line managers would have to provide information.

 

2.       The County Council has a published policy on employees wishing to volunteer to serve in Britain’s Reserve Force.  That policy indicates a commitment from the Council to provide up to 2 weeks paid leave for employees to attend the annual training camp.  I thank Mr Spence for raising this important issue and I am happy to ask Officers to explore ways in which we can encourage current staff to become reservists, linking to broader messages about community engagement and involvement.”

 

(B)     Mr Mullaney asked the following question of the Leader or his nominee:-

 

“1.      Is the Leader aware that the CQC, after a recent inspection of EMAS, rated the service “inadequate” under the “Safe” category, raising concerns over “insufficient staff and a lack of appropriate skill mix to meet the needs of patients in a timely manner”?

 

2.       What does the Leader think can be done to address this problem and what role could this Council play?”

 

Mr White replied as follows:-

 

“1.      Yes

 

2.       The Council has a key role to play in reducing the demand on the Ambulance Service and the wider health and care system by helping to improve the health of the population and supporting people to be independent.  This is delivered through involvement in the Better Care Together programme as well as the ongoing preventative work of the Public Health, Adults and Communities and Children and Families Departments.

 

          I understand that the County Council’s Health Scrutiny Committee has invited EMAS to a meeting in June to discuss the findings and discuss the action EMAS intends to take to address the concerns raised by the CQC. It would seem sensible for this to happen before determining what further role the County Council could play.”

 

(C)     Mr Hunt asked the following question of the Leader or his nominee:-

 

“1.      A Strategic Review of Beaumanor Hall was announced more than two years ago and apparently delayed due to other priorities.  In February 2015 the Council was told the Review was underway and would include a detailed analysis of the financial performance of the facility.  Could the Leader advise:-

 

i)        Has the review been completed and, if so, where can it be accessed?  

ii)        If the review has not been completed, when is it now due to be completed?

 

2.       The subsidy for Beaumanor Hall in 2013/14 was expected to be £200,000. The budgeted subsidy in 2014/15 was £80,000 but was expected to break even.  The subsidy in 2015/16, without a major intervention was expected to be about £30,000.  Could the Leader update Council on the subsidy provided for in the last three years, including major maintenance and repairs, and that provided for in the 2016/17 budget?”

 

Mr Rhodes replied as follows:-

 

“1.      Beaumanor Hall  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

The Leader presented a position statement on the following matters:

 

• Sporting Achievements

§  Leicester City Football Club

§  Mark Selby

§  Leicester Riders

§  Leicester City Women

§  Leicester Tigers

§  Leicestershire County Cricket

• Police and Crime Commissioner
• Pam Posnett
• Adult Social Care Peer Review
• Low-funded County Councils – Funding Update
• Academies Agenda
• Combined Authority and Devolution Update

 

A copy of the position statement is filed with these minutes.

 

It was moved by Mr Rushton, seconded by Mr Osborne and carried:-

 

"That Council meetings in 2016/17 be held on the following dates:-

 

Wednesday 29 June 2016

          Wednesday 21 September 2016

          Wednesday 7 December 2016

          Wednesday 22 February 2017 (Budget Meeting)

          Wednesday 22 March 2017

          Wednesday 17 May 2017 (Annual Meeting).”

 

It was moved by Osborne, seconded by Mr Rhodes and carried:-

 

“That Mr N J Rushton be appointed Leader of the Council for the period until the next Annual Meeting of the Council.”

 

It was moved by Mr Rushton, seconded by Mr Osborne and carried:-

 

"That it be noted that the Leader proposes to appoint the members named on list 'A' attached to the Order Paper as members of the Cabinet."

 

A copy of list ‘A’ is filed with these minutes.

 

It was moved by Mr Rushton, seconded by Mr Rhodes and carried:-

 

"That the following members be appointed as Cabinet Support Members until the next Annual Meeting of the County Council, as provided for in Article 7 of the Council's Constitution:-

 

          Mr G A Hart

          Mr P G Lewis

Mrs R Page."

 

The motion was put and carried.

 

It was moved by Mr Osborne, seconded by Mr Charlesworth and carried:-

 

"That the membership of the Scrutiny Commission, Boards and Committees as set out in List 'B' attached to the Order Paper be approved."

 

A copy of list ‘B’ is filed with these minutes.

 

Spokesmen

 

Mr Osborne named the members shown in the second column of List ‘S’ as Conservative Spokesmen of the bodies as shown.

 

Mr Hunt named the members shown in the third column of List ‘S’ as Labour Spokesmen of the bodies as shown.

 

Mr Charlesworth named the members shown in the fourth column of List ‘S’ as Liberal Democrat Spokesmen of the bodies as shown.

 

A copy of List ‘S’ is filed with these minutes.

 

Substitutes

 

It was moved by Mr Osborne, seconded by Mr Charlesworth and carried:-

 

"That the Chief Executive be authorised to make and terminate appointments to the Commission, Committees, Boards and other County Council bodies (not including the Cabinet) in accordance with the wishes of the political groups to whom the seat in question has been allocated, subject in the case of those bodies set out in list 'B' to the Group giving one day's notice to the Chief Executive of its wishes."