AGENDA - COUNCIL
Thursday 15 November 2007 at 2.00 pm in the Council Chamber

1.         Minutes – to approve as a correct record and authorise the Chairman to sign the minutes of the meeting of the Council held on 13 September 2007.

2.         Urgent Business – the Chairman to announce if any item not on the agenda should be considered on the basis that he considers it as a matter of urgency (any such item to be deal with under item 7 below).

3.         Confidential Business – the Chairman to inform the meeting of any confidential item of business.

4.         Exempt Information – to consider whether the consideration of any item of business would be likely to disclose exempt information and if so the category of such exempt information.

5.         Chairman’s Announcements

6.         Declarations of Interest – Members are invited to declare any personal or prejudicial interests, including the nature and extent of such interests, they may have in any items to be considered at this meeting.
 

7.         Business Brought Forward by the Chairman – to consider business (if any) brought forward by the Chairman as reported under item 2 above.

8.         Questions – to consider the following questions received in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 8.

From Cllr Ward to Cllr Tucker, Leader of Council

(i)                 Can the Council guarantee that there will be no threat to the continued operation of pannier markets, or loss of the current amount of market trading space in the market square in Totnes, as a result of proposals in the Totnes DPD?

From Cllr Ward to Cllr Hitchins, Deputy Leader of Council

(ii)               Given the scale of the challenge we are facing with climate change, why is this Council not consulting and involving the community on its climate change strategy and action plan given that we have committed ‘to prepare a plan with our local communities, including key stakeholders within the health and business sectors to mitigate the causes of climate change and fuel poverty’ and ‘encourage all sectors in the local community to take the opportunity to reduce their own greenhouse gas emissions and to make public their commitment to action’ (Devon declaration on climate change and fuel poverty)?

(iii)             Why is this Council not making a commitment to a yearly target for reducing its carbon emissions, given that the council has committed to ‘publicly declare, within the plan, a commitment to achieving a significant reduction in greenhouse gases’ (Devon declaration on climate change and fuel poverty)?

(iv)              How is the Council going to measure its progress on carbon reduction when the climate change action plan has no targets or actions which are precise and measurable and set within a defined time frame?

From Cllr Baldry to Cllr May, Executive Member for Financial Affairs

(v)                What is the total annual postage expenditure of South Hams District Council?  Who makes the decision on the class of service and size of envelope used for items put into the post and on what basis?

From Cllr Baldry to Cllr Carson, Executive Member for Clean Environment

(vi)              At the Meeting of the Council Executive held on 30 January 2003, in reply to a public question, the Vice Chairman of the Executive said: “……the increasing cost of maintaining all of our toilets is not sustainable in the longer term for this Council……..”

At the Meeting of the Full Council on 29 March 2007 in answer to a question from Cllr Brazil about how many public lavatories are to be closed in the near future, the Executive Member for the Clean Environment said: “a further 4 may be closed for operational reasons in the future”.  The Executive’s policy for maintaining and providing public lavatories is unclear.  What is the current policy on closure?
 

            From Cllr Baldry to Cllr Tucker, Leader of Council

(vii)      A number of parish councils are receiving requests from the necessary number of parishioners for a local referendum on whether the European Reform Treaty should be signed.  These referenda are paid for by the local parish taxpayers.  In the case of my parish, Yealmpton, I have been quoted a cost of £1,000.  Would the District Council organise a District wide referendum, in order to let the government know the views of the entire District, rather than just those of a few parishes?

From Cllr Brazil to Cllr Saltern, Executive Member for Housing

(viii)          Given that we have torn up our Special Planning Guidance on Affordable Housing.  Given that officers stick rigidly to thresholds specified by government and perhaps most relevant given that we build less affordable houses than neighbouring local authorities, why are we a Beacon Council for Affordable Housing?

From Cllr O’Callaghan to Cllr May, Executive Member for Financial Affairs

(ix)              In view of the recent permanent closure of the Totnes Pavilion café, and the sudden reduction in opening hours of the café at Quayside Leisure Centre, Kingsbridge, during the half-term holiday, will the Executive Member explain what conditions exist in the Council’s contract with Tone Leisure to protect the interests of customers in respect of catering facilities, and why these are failing to do so?

From Cllr O’Callaghan to Cllr Carson, Executive Member for Clean Environment

(x)                In Kingsbridge, we are making it a priority to look for a permanent site for a skatepark, after the previous one was dismantled more than three years ago because of noise issues.  Why then are we being told that a possible site currently used by Western Power does not meet with favour within the District Council because of the need for long-stay car parking?  Since when was car parking a corporate priority of the Council, or even a cross-cutting theme as youth provision is?

From Cllr O’Callaghan to Cllr Tucker, Leader of Council

(xi)              What happened to the thousands of pounds raised by Kingsbridge youngsters for the initial skatepark?  Is it gaining interest for them, and under what circumstances will it be released? 

9.                  Notice of Motion – to consider the following motions received (if any) in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 10.1.

10.       Amendment to Council’s Constitution – to consider a report which informs the Council of a proposed change in the Scheme of Delegation, relating to the cautioning of offenders for benefit fraud (circulated separately);

11.       Appointments to Council Bodies – to consider a report which seeks to make appointments to Council Bodies (circulated separately);

12.       Reports of Bodies – to receive and as may be necessary approve the minutes and recommendations of the under-mentioned Bodies:-

            * Indicates minutes containing recommendations to Council.

Members of the public may wish to note that the Council's meeting rooms

are accessible by wheelchairs and have a loop induction hearing system.

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An optional lunch will be available for all Members

in the Dining Room at 12.45 pm

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   MEMBERS ARE REQUESTED TO SIGN THE ATTENDANCE REGISTER

   THIS AGENDA HAS BEEN PRINTED ON ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY PAPER

If you or someone you know would like this publication in a different format, such as large print or a language other than English, please call Darryl White on 01803 861247 or by email at: darryl.white@southhams.gov.uk