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Agenda and minutes

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Contact: Philippa Green  020 7527 3184

Items
No. Item

95.

Minutes of the last meeting pdf icon PDF 346 KB

Minutes of the Annual Council meeting on 12 May 2016.

Minutes:

RESOLVED:

 

That the Minutes of the meeting on 30 June 2016 be confirmed as a correct record and the Mayor be authorised to sign them.

96.

Declarations of Interest

If you have a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest* in an item of business:

§  if it is not yet on the council’s register, you must declare both the existence and details of it at the start of the meeting or when it becomes apparent;

§  you may choose to declare a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest that is already in the register in the interests of openness and transparency. 

In both the above cases, you must leave the room without participating in discussion of the item.

 

If you have a personal interest in an item of business and you intend to speak or vote on the item you must declare both the existence and details of it at the start of the meeting or when it becomes apparent but you may participate in the discussion and vote on the item.

 

*(a)       Employment, etc - Any employment, office, trade, profession or vocation
            carried on for profit or gain.

(b)       Sponsorship - Any payment or other financial benefit in respect of your
expenses in carrying out duties as a member, or of your election; including
from a trade union.

(c)       Contracts - Any current contract for goods, services or works, between you or
     your partner (or a body in which one of you has a beneficial interest) and the
     council.

(d)      Land - Any beneficial interest in land which is within the council’s area.

(e)       Licences- Any licence to occupy land in the council’s area for a month or
longer.

(f)        Corporate tenancies - Any tenancy between the council and a body in which
     you or your partner have a beneficial interest.

(g)       Securities - Any beneficial interest in securities of a body which has a place of
     business or land in the council’s area, if the total nominal value of the
     securities exceeds £25,000 or one hundredth of the total issued share capital
     of that body or of any one class of its issued share capital. 

 

This applies to all members present at the meeting.

 

Minutes:

None.

97.

Mayoral Announcements

(i)            Apologies

(ii)           Order of business

(iii)          Declaration of discussion items by the Majority and Opposition parties

 

Minutes:

(i)            Apologies for absence

Apologies were received from Councillors Doolan, Klute, Picknell and Councillor Rupert Perry.  Apologies for lateness were received from Councillors Caluori, Kay and O’Sullivan.

(ii)          Order of business

In accordance with rule 10.2(n) the Mayor advised she had accepted an urgent motion on ‘Islington – a home for all’.  The reason for urgency was the shocking increase in incidents of hate crime following the result of the EU Referendum and the Mayor agreed we should wait until the next meeting of the Council to make it clear that Islington continues to welcome people from all communities and condemns racism, xenophobia and hate crimes.

The Mayor also changed the order of the agenda, to bring forward Youth Questions.

(iii)         Declaration of discussion items

No items were declared.

(iv)         Mayor’s Announcements

A minute’s silence was held to mark the sad and untimely death of Jo Cox MP and to remember those who lost their lives or were injured in the shootings in Orlando and the attack on Istanbul airport.

With such tragic events in the world, the Mayor advised that it is sometimes hard to remember that good things are still happening, but she wanted to mention some of the highlights of her first month as Mayor, as a they make the work we do worthwhile.  The events included, Refugee Week, the end of year celebration at City and Islington College, the Word Festival and Armed Forces Day.  Amongst other activities during the month the Mayor had also enjoyed boxing at the Cally Festival, pond dipping with youngsters and meeting the queen bee at the Gillespie Park apiary.  The Mayor also attended the launch of Carer’s Week and particularly mentioned that the tireless efforts of those who care for others shows the best of Islington and that she was proud to recognise them on behalf of the Council.  Finally, the Mayor mentioned all the midsummer garden parties she had attended, which if nothing else, were a triumph of optimism over the weather.

(v)          Length of speeches

The Mayor asked colleagues to do their upmost to keep speeches within the permitted length.

98.

Leader's Announcements and Appointment of Councillors to the Executive pdf icon PDF 122 KB

Minutes:

Councillor Watts thanked the Mayor and supported her comments about the events in Orlando and the death of Jo Cox MP.  Councillor Watts advised that Jo had been a formidable talent and thanked all the councillors who attended the memorial on the Town Hall steps along with both the borough’s MPs and 400 people.

Councillor Watts advised that he was personally disappointed with the EU Referendum result, but that it was also having a negative impact on Islington.  We have already seen economic damage with the pound crashing and share values tumbling and fewer houses will be built, but the risk of social damage was underestimated and it has unleashed a wave of hate crime across the country.  There are no figures yet, but there is anecdotal evidence of an increase here too, so we want to make it clear that all people, regardless of where they come from are welcome here and that we appreciate the contribution they make. Councillor Watts encouraged everyone to attend a ‘Say No to Hate Crime’ rally on Highbury Fields at 10am on Saturday 2 July.  Islington’s history of welcoming new people goes back hundreds of years to the French Huguenots.  Councillor Watts thanked the Mayor for agreeing to accept the urgent motion.

Councillor Watts also advised that next week sees the anniversary of the Battle of the Somme.  Although he is looking forward to the events to commemorate the battle, World War I showed what happens when democracy and politics fails and that no matter how bad our system is, the alternatives are worse.

 

Councillor Watts confirmed Councillor Diarmaid Ward’s appointment and welcomed him to the Executive.

99.

Petitions

Minutes:

Mr Adam Cook presented a petition regarding support for a Crouch Hill and Hornsey Rise Neighbourhood Forum application.

 

Mr Chris Sparks presented a petition regarding alterations to Archway Road, Archway N19.

100.

Questions from the Youth Council pdf icon PDF 130 KB

Minutes:

 

Question a. Young Mayor Darey to Councillor Watts, Leader of the Council

 

What does Cllr Watts think will be the impact on young people living in London following the election of the new London Mayor?

 

Reply:

 

Thank you for your question and welcome to you and your Youth Council colleagues.  The election of Sadiq Khan as Mayor of London is a ray of light in an otherwise cloudy sky.  It made me proud to be a Londoner and that we have our first Muslim mayor is a fantastic statement.  The population of London is very young – approximately 25% of the population is aged between 25 and 34 and the Mayor needs to pay special attention to the needs of young people; to housing, schools and safety. 

We need more genuinely affordable housing; private housing is unaffordable and there is a long wait for social housing.  Sadiq is committed to appointing serious people to get things done.  It won’t be easy, but I have every confidence in him. 

London’s schools are the most improved in the developed world over the last 10 years, but with colleges, skills and training for jobs we need to do a lot of work and the Mayor can make a big difference.

With regard to safety, the Mayor has oversight of the Metropolitan Police.  We are feeling the loss of the neighbourhood police teams here; it’s harder for the community to build a relationship.  I am looking forward to Sadiq keeping the manifesto commitment to bring them back.  We do also need to look at tackling crime differently, and stop looking at different types of crime, but at the people involved. 

We need to work with the Mayor to find money to ensure high quality services for young people across London.  We are the only Council which has protected funding for Youth Services.

 

 

Question b.  Youth Councillor  & Member of the Youth Parliament Mohamed to Councillor Caluori, Executive Member for Children, Young People and Families:

 

Crime and gang related violence continue to be of concern for Islington’s young people. The IYC recognises that the police and its school engagement team are running a series of Safer School roadshows, What else is being done by the police and the council to address these concerns?

 

Reply:

Thank you for your question.  I am happy to say that between April and June we have seen some reductions, but we can’t become complacent.  There are three things that I think will help.  The Integrated Gangs Team is fully up and running now and they offer interventions, including accommodation, drugs treatment and counselling and work with the whole family.  We are also focussing on schools, with the Violence and Gangs education programme which highlights the dangers of crime, gangs and carrying knives and focuses on personal safety.  To date there have been over 160 sessions in schools.  The number of schools attending the Ben Kinsella exhibition at Finsbury Library has also increased.  Finally, we have committed £500K to mentoring projects  ...  view the full minutes text for item 100.

101.

Questions from Members of the Public pdf icon PDF 74 KB

Minutes:

Question a) from Greg Foxsmith to Councillor Webbe, Executive Member for Environment and Transport:

 

How did the Council promote National Walking Month in May this year, and Walk to School Week in the same month?

Reply:

Greg Foxsmith was not present in the chamber and will therefore be sent a written reply.

 

 

Question b) from Paul Milican to Councillor Webbe, Executive Member for Environment and Transport

 

It is estimated that 100 Islington residents die each year from health effects that are exacerbated by poor air quality. Is it not your responsibility to ban barbecues so that the 8 out of 10 residents who do not have a back garden can enjoy fresh air on warm days rather than have serious health issues exacerbated by the pollutants that barbecues emit? You have stated that there is no public health risk from BBQs but given there is no level at which PM2.5 is deemed safe, what proof do you have?

 

Reply:

There is evidence that particulate matters impact on health where there is constant exposure, such as people living next to busy roads and gyratories, but Public Health have reviewed the impacts of air pollution and barbeques and concluded they are unlikely to exceed limits.  Given that we have lots of residents without a garden our outside space, the Council has decided to continue allow using barbeques but will we continue to monitor and manage and Parks Patrol will continue to ensure that smoke impacts are
minimised.

 

Supplementary question:

 

In 2015 the Council commissioned a report.  The original report dated 1 October showed levels of PM2.5 even worse than some vehicle impacts, but the graphs and tables were removed before the report was made public, so it is impossible to compare barbeques with Marylebone Road traffic.  What reasons can you give for redacting the information.

 

Reply:

The Council commissioned a report from King’s College in which the pollution levels were collected over a weekend by people using personal monitors.  It provided a snapshot, but the monitors only recorded 5 minutes exposure and this is not a sufficient or accurate enough measure to provide data for a comparative analysis with the levels near a busy road over a period of 12 months, so I understand this was removed from the draft report.  The final report issued by King’s College gave an accurate assessment of the impact of barbeques.  The Public Health team have also reviewed the impacts and the number of times people have barbeques over a year will not have the same cumulative effect as the constant presence of particulate matter.  The report provides the public with a clear assessment of the impacts.


Question c) from Leyla Daybelge to
Councillor Webbe, Executive Member for Environment and Transport

 

A monitoring report on barbecues commissioned by the council in 2015 indicated that PM2.5 pollution levels in Highbury Fields caused by widespread barbecue use were three times the level of one of London's busiest roads. These fine particles are known to cause heart  ...  view the full minutes text for item 101.

102.

Questions from Members of the Council pdf icon PDF 232 KB

Minutes:

Question a) Councillor O’Halloran to Councillor Diarmaid Ward, Executive Member for Housing and Development:

 

Housing is a hugely important issue for residents in my ward and for everyone across the borough.  Can you tell me what your priorities will be in your new role?

 

Reply:

I have some very big shoes to fill and I would like to pay tribute to the work done by ex-Councillor James Murray.  We will continue to build affordable homes and to fight for a better deal for local people in rented accommodation and work tirelessly to make our repairs service the best in London.

 

Supplementary question:

 

A lot of people contact me regarding the Housing and Planning Act – what will you do to protect residents?

The Act will have terrible impacts on residents.  We will be offering advice to residents effected and continue to fight to get the Act changed.

Question b) Councillor Debono to Councillor Caluori, Executive Member for Children, Young People and Families:

 

In recent years the council has had an excellent relationship with local schools, and this has helped to achieve brilliant results and progress for our young people. Given the government has made it clear that it still wants to see all schools become academies, what is the council doing to ensure that Islington’s community of schools model is protected?

 

Reply:

Congratulations on your appointment as Chair of Children’s Scrutiny Committee.  I look forward to working with you.  The initial announcement was that every school would become an Academy and I know that they have now pulled back from that position in response to Islington Save our Schools campaign.  We need to continue through working with our schools, to deliver high quality schools, over 90% of which are rated good or outstanding.  By working closely with them we have achieved a lot.  We have had discussions about the possibility of a school led partnership with the council having a strong role and we need to be robust to push away moves towards Academies.

Question c) Councillor Nick Ward to Councillor Burgess, Executive Member for Health and Social Care:

 

According to government figures, the proportion of people living with HIV in London is three times higher than the average across England, and in 2014, London accounted for 45 per cent of all people diagnosed as HIV positive in England. In Islington, more than 1,200 people are living with HIV. Given that these figures show a rise in the prevalence of HIV in London, do you agree with me that NHS England’s decision not to commission the highly effective HIV prevention treatment, PrEP (Pre-exposure Prophylaxis), represents a serious risk to the work undertaken to tackle HIV, and do you share the concerns of the Terence Higgins Trust which has said that the delay in commissioning PrEP will see seven more people contract HIV every day?”

Reply:

Thank you for your question.  The figures are very clear and I agree with the Terence Higgins Trust.  We’ve made tremendous progress in reducing  ...  view the full minutes text for item 102.

103.

Constitution update pdf icon PDF 303 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Councillor Alice Perry moved the recommendations in the report.  Councillor Gill seconded.

 

The recommendations were put to the vote and CARRIED.

 

RESOLVED:

2.1

That the Leader of the Council has approved the changes to delegation of Executive functions be noted.

2.2

That the amendments to the Constitution set out in the attached Appendix including to Part 7 be agreed.

2.3

That the Assistant Chief Executive (Governance and HR) be authorised to make any consequential amendments to the Constitution she considers necessary be agreed.

 

104.

Chief Whip's report pdf icon PDF 148 KB

Minutes:

Councillor Alice Perry moved the recommendations in the report.  Councillor Gill seconded.

 

The recommendations were put to the vote and CARRIED.

 

RESOLVED:

COMMITTEE APPOINTMENTS:

1.      APPOINTMENT TO CHILDREN’S SERVICES SCRUTINY COMMITTEE

That Councillor Gill replaces Councillor Diarmaid Ward as a member of
Children’s Services Scrutiny Committee for the remainder of the municipal year 2016/17 or until a successor is appointed be agreed.

2.      APPOINTMENT TO VICE CHAIR OF ENVIRONMENT AND REGENERAITON SCRUTINY COMMITTEE

That Councillor Poyser be appointed as Vice Chair of Environment and
Regeneration Scrutiny Committee  with immediate effect for the remainder of the municipal year 2015/16 or until a successor is appointed be agreed.

3.      APPOINTMENT OF SUBSTITUTE TO HEALTH AND WELLBEING BOARD

That Councillor Diarmaid Ward be appointed as a substitute on Health and
Wellbeing Board until a successor is appointed be agreed.

 

OUTSIDE BODY APPOINTMENTS

4.      ISLINGTON UNITED CHARITIES

That the appointment of Councillor Andrews as the Council’s representative on Islington United Charities for a period of four years from 31 August 2016 until 31 August 2020, unless a successor is appointed, be agreed.

5.      FINSBURY PARK TOWN CENTRE MANAGEMENT GROUP

That the appointment of Councillor Heather as the Council’s representative on the Finsbury Park Town Centre Management Group with immediate effect for the remainder of the municipal year 2016/17 or until a successor is appointed, be agreed.


 

 

 

105.

Notices of Motion pdf icon PDF 159 KB

Where a motion concerns an executive function, nothing passed can be actioned until approved by the Executive or an officer with the relevant delegated power.

 

Motion 1 – Tenant Tax

Motion 2 – Andargachew Tsege, British National illegally detailed in Ethiopia

Motion 3 – Responding to the new Mayor of London’s proposed Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) Consultation.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Motion 1: Islington a home for all

Councillor Watts, seconded by Councillor Comer-Schwartz, moved the urgent motion in the second despatch of papers. Councillors Nick Ward, O’Halloran, Andrews and Councillor Russell contributed to the debate.

 

The motion was put to the vote and CARRIED.

 

RESOLVED:

-       that we condemn racism, xenophobia and hate crimes unequivocally.  We will not allow hate to become acceptable

-       that we stand with victims of hate crime and encourage everyone to report incidents to the police

-       that we will work with faith and community leaders across the borough to ensure that Islington remains welcoming to all and to challenge prejudice and hate whenever it occurs

-       that we call on the Leader of the Council and Executive Member for Community Development to hold a meeting with community and faith organisations and to report back to Full Council on the outcome of these discussions. 



MOTION 2: TENANT TAX

 

Councillor O’Sullivan, seconded by Councillor Jeapes, moved the motion. Councillors Heather, Russell and Diarmaid Ward contributed to the debate.

 

The motion was put to the vote and CARRIED.

 

RESOLVED:

-       To refer to the increase in rent charges levied on council housing tenants with incomes over £40,000 per year as the ‘Tenant Tax’.

-       To offer advice and information to all Islington tenants that may be affected by the introduction of the Tenant Tax and other measures within the Housing and Planning Act.

-       To continue to make representations to government to change elements of the Housing and Planning Act that will have such negative effects on Islington, such as, the Tenant Tax and the forced sale of council homes.

MOTION 3: Andargachew Tsege, British National Illegally Detained in Ethiopia

Councillor Donovan, seconded by Councillor Court, moved the motion.

The motion was put to the vote and CARRIED.

 

RESOLVED:

That the Leader of the Council write to the Secretary of State for Foreign & Commonwealth Affairs to make further representations to the Ethiopian Government calling for Mr Tsege’s release and return home to the UK as a matter of urgency.


Motion 4:  Responding to the new Mayor of London’s proposed Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) consultation

 

Councillor Russell moved the motion. Councillor Webbe, moved an amendment to the motion. Councillor Convery contributed to the debate.

The recommendations in the amended motion were put to the vote and CARRIED.

 

The motion as amended was put to the vote and CARRIED.

 

RESOLVED:

 

To ask the Executive to respond positively to the consultation, including repeating the Council’s request that all of the most polluting engines are included in the ULEZ, including Euro 6 diesel engines, and to make recommendations for further measures that would achieve pollution levels within legal limits in as short a time as possible for Islington, as required by the law.