Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Caroline Stock and Councillor Wendy Prentice.

The Worshipful the Mayor was present.

Rabbi Lawrence was called upon by The Worshipful the Mayor to speak to Council and say prayers. 

Councillor Dean Cohen declared a non-pecuniary interest in relation to Agenda item 11.3 (Referral from Policy and Resources Committee to Full Council: Proposed Submission North London Waste Plan (Regulation 19)) by virtue of being a Member of the North London Waste Authority.

Councillor Peter Zinkin declared a non-pecuniary interest in relation to Agenda item 11.3 (Referral from Policy and Resources Committee to Full Council: Proposed Submission North London Waste Plan (Regulation 19)) by virtue of being a Member of the North London Waste Authority.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting dated 30 October 2018 be agreed as a correct record.

The Worshipful The Mayor noted that early 2018 the London Borough of Barnet had been invited by its twin town, Le Raincy, France, to participate in their Twin Town Digital Photographic Competition.

The Worshipful The Mayor noted that the theme had been “Exchanging Viewpoints” which consisted of taking digital photographs with a focus on remarkable buildings, property of both public and private owners of our cities.

The Worshipful the Mayor was delighted to present the third prize certificate to David Loebell for his photograph of St Andrews Church, Totteridge. 

The Worshipful the Mayor was delighted to present the second prize certificate Alan Last for his photograph of Leathersellers Almshouses.

The Worshipful the Mayor was delighted to present Sue Willoughby the first prize certificate for her photograph of St Mary the Virgin, Monken Hadley.

The Worshipful the Mayor advised the Chamber that Barnet had hosted a very successful visit in November from its twin towns from: Chaville, France; Tempelhof Schoneberg, Berlin, Germany; and Siegen Wittgenstein; Germany as they joined for the Armistice. 

There was none.

Answers to the questions submitted were provided as a supplementary paper to the agenda.

Supplementary questions were then asked and answered within the allotted time given for the item.

During the consideration of this item, Councillor Peter Zinkin left the meeting. 

There was none.

There was none. 

Councillor Daniel Thomas, Chairman of the Assets, Regeneration & Growth Committee, moved reception and adoption of the recommendations in the report.  Debate ensued.

On the recommendations in the report being put to the vote, votes were recorded as follows:

RESOLVED that:

1)    Given the strategic importance of BXC and the scale of the investment proposed in delivery of the new Thameslink station at Brent Cross West (BXT), Council confirm the council’s continuing commitment to the delivery of BXT and other elements of the critical infrastructure needed to support BXC.

2)    Council authorises the Deputy Chief Executive to enter into the Implementation Agreement with Network Rail and to commission the Schedule 1A (site set up) works set out in that agreement.

3)    Council delegate authority to the Policy & Resources Committee to commission the Schedule 1B (rail systems and sidings) works provided: (a) a Revised Funding Agreement (RFA) has been agreed with HM Government (HMG); and (b) that the RFA does not expose the council to unacceptable risk.

Councillor Richard Cornelius, Chairman of the Policy & Resources Committee, moved reception and adoption of the recommendations in the report. Debate ensued.

On the recommendations in the report being put to the vote, votes were recorded as follows:

RESOLVED that Council:

1.     Approve the Barnet Council Tax Support Scheme as set out in Appendix A.

2.     Note the proposed Discretionary Council Tax Hardship and Discretionary Housing Payment Policy as set out in Appendix F.

Councillor Melvin Cohen, Chairman of the Planning Committee, moved reception and adoption of the recommendations in the report. Debate ensued.

On the recommendations in the report being put to the vote, votes were recorded as follows:

RESOLVED that Council approve the Regulation 19 Proposed Submission North London Waste Plan (NLWP), as set out in Appendix 1.

Councillor John Marshall, Chairman of the Licensing Committee, moved reception and adoption of the recommendations in the report.  Debate ensued.

On the recommendations in the report being put to the vote the recommendations were unanimously agreed.

RESOLVED that Council approve Statement of Principles Gambling Act 2005 as set out in Appendix 1 on the recommendation of the Licensing Committee.

The Head of Governance introduced the report.  Appendix A detailed a vacancy to an Outside Body which had arisen and a proposed change to the calendar of meetings that was no longer required and so was withdrawn.  Appendix B sought nominations from groups for a Small Business Champion.  Appendix C detailed a change to the Membership of the Financial Performance & Contracts Committee. 

The Worshipful the Mayor moved to the vote on the two nominations received for the vacancy on the Arts Deport Trust Ltd as set out in Appendix A.  Votes were recorded as followed:

Councillor Thomas Smith was duly appointed to the vacancy on the Arts Depot Trust Ltd.

The Worshipful the Mayor moved to the vote on the two nominations for the position of Small Business Champion.  Votes were recorded as follows:

Councillor Alex Prager was duly appointed as the Small Business Champion.

RESOLVED that:

1.     Council appoint Councillor Thomas Smith to the vacancy on the Arts Depot Trust Ltd.

2.     Council appoint Councillor Alex Prager to the position of Small Business Champion.

3.     Council approves the changes to the membership of the Financial Performance & Contracts Committee as set out in Appendix C. 

None. 

Councillor Alan Schneiderman moved the motion in his name.  Councillor Dean Cohen moved the amendment in his name.  Councillor Sara Conway moved the amendment in her name.  Debate ensued.

The amendment in the name of Councillor Dean Cohen was put to the vote.  Votes were recorded as follows:

The motion in the name of Councillor Dean Cohen was declared CARRIED.

The amendment in the name of Councillor Sara Conway was put to the vote.  Votes were recorded as follows:

The amendment in the name of Councillor Sarah Conway was declared LOST.

The substantive motion as amended by Councillor Dean Cohen was put to the vote.  Votes were recorded as follows:

RESOLVED that:

Council notes and apologises to residents for the disruption following the re-organisation of the borough's bin collections.

Council notes this disruption has arisen out of the need to completely rewrite collection routes which had not been changed for more than a decade. This rationalisation will make the service more efficient and thereby save money. However, it was not the primary motivation; the Medium Term Financial Strategy Paper presented to the Policy & Resources Committee on 11^th December has identified changes to the spending portfolio which has eliminated almost all of the £69 million budget deficit to 2024.

Council recognises that the new bin collection rounds are not final, and thanks officers for their hard work in continuing to consult staff and come up with a system that works.

Council puts on record its thanks to front-line Streetscene staff who are working extremely hard under very difficult circumstances to try and ensure the bin collections are made on time.

Councillor Rohit Grover moved the motion in his name.  Councillor Danny Rich moved the amendment in his name.  Debate ensued. 

The amendment in the name of Councillor Danny Rich was put to the vote. Votes were recorded as follows:

The amendment was declared LOST.

The motion in the name of Councillor Dean Cohen was put to the vote.  The motion was unanimously AGREED.

RESOLVED that:

Council acknowledges that in December, the darkest month of the northern hemisphere, many faith communities come together to mark important religious festivals.

Many Barnet Christians will be celebrating Advent in the run up to Christmas, and the Jewish festival of Hanukkah typically falls within this period. Buddhists celebrate Siddartha Gautama’s Enlightenment, while Zoroastrians mark the death of the Prophet Zoroaster. Some residents may even celebrate the Winter Solstice. Hindus, Sikhs, and Jains celebrated Diwali in November, while Muslims also recently celebrated the Birthday of the Prophet.

Council believes this is the season in which the borough’s cultural and religious diversity is most prominent, while also emphasising our shared humanity and shared home in Barnet.

However, Council also recognises the unwelcome rise of intolerance and extremism in many aspects of public life. Mindful that interaction with those of different cultures and traditions is often a salve to tensions, Council instructs the Community Leadership & Libraries Committee to consider means of bringing residents together during festive seasons, under the priorities identified in the Barnet Together Action Plan 2018.

Councillor John Marshall moved the motion in his name.  Councillor Kath McGuirk moved the amendment in her name.

The amendment in the name of Councillor Kath McGuirk was put to the vote.  The amendment was unanimously AGREED.

The substantive motion as amended by Councillor Kath McGuirk was put to the vote.  It was unanimously AGREED.

RESOLVED that:

Council congratulates Hampstead Garden Suburb Conservation Area on its 50^th Anniversary.

Council also thanks the Hampstead Garden Suburb Trust, itself now 50 years old, and the Hampstead Garden Suburb Residents’ Association for ensuring that the Suburb remains true to the ideals of Dame Henrietta Barnett.

Council notes that one of these ideals was that the Hampstead Garden Suburbshould include housing that caters for all classes of people and all income groups, including housing at subsidised rents.

Council pledges to ensure that the Suburb remains true to the ideals of Dame HenriettaBarnet with her vision for a mixed community and the architectural jewel in Barnet’s crown.