Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Choules, Tippins and Winterbottom.

To sign the minutes of the Ordinary Meeting held on 8 April 2014 and the Annual Meeting held on 3 June 2014

The minutes of the Ordinary Meeting held on 8 April 2014 and the Annual Meeting held on 3 June 2014 were taken as read and signed as correct.

The Lord Mayor announced that he had received a letter of thanks from Brigadier P Hankinson 6 Rifles of the Army thanking the Council for hosting the Armed Forces Day. The Lord Mayor confirmed that he would respond accordingly.

The minutes of the Scrutiny Committee - Community of 17 June 2014 were presented by the Chair, Councillor Shiel and taken as read.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the Scrutiny Committee - Community held on 17 June 2014 be received.

The minutes of the Scrutiny Committee - Economy of 26 June 2014 were presented by the Chair, Councillor Henson and taken as read.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the Scrutiny Committee - Economy held on 26 June 2014 be received.

The minutes of the Scrutiny Committee - Resources of 2 July 2014 were presented by the Chair, Councillor Baldwin and taken as read.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the Scrutiny Committee - Resources held on 2 July 2014 be received.

The minutes of the Executive of 24 June 2014 were presented by the Leader, Councillor Edwards and taken as read.

In respect of Minute 57 (Flooding in Topsham – Response and Recovery) the Leader recognised and commended the council staff for their contribution and quick response to the potential flooding which ensured that disruption was minimised.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the Executive held on 24 June 2014 be received. and, where appropriate, adopted.

The minutes of the Executive of 15 July 2014 were presented by the Leader, Councillor Edwards and taken as read.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the Executive held on 15 July 2014 be received. and, where appropriate, adopted.

In accordance with Standing Order No. 8, the following questions were put by Councillor Holland to the Leader in respect of the Mould Problem in some 300 Council Owned Properties.

Councillor Holland thanked Senior Housing Officers for helping him to better understand the issues with regards to the damp ingress.  

Question - Given that the Labour Group said in their last manifesto that they provide 'good quality social housing' then will they agree with me that to honour this statement then remedial action needs to be taken immediately?

The Leader responded that the Portfolio Holder has already agreed with officers that emergency action should be taken on a case by case basis where there is justification to do so.  A full report on this issue is anticipated to go to Executive in September.

Question - Part of the remit of Local Authorities is to 'benchmark' against other LA's to ensure best value. Will the Leader follow the initiative of adjacent East Devon District Council and implement repairs without the need to follow the complex procurement process?

The Leader responded that East Devon District Council had undertaken the work as reactive repairs and that this Council would not take that course of action. The Council needed to act lawfully and in accordance with its own financial regulations, the proper tender process and European procurement rules. Officers are looking at how East Devon are tackling the problem and if there are lessons to be learned from their approach, or grounds on which the Council can streamline the procurement process, then the Council would do this.

Question - Will the Leader now go ahead and implement these repairs rather than make tenants endure these intolerable conditions until the middle of next year?

The Leader responded that the Council needed to make a full assessment of the position before allocating budgets. Given the current weather conditions, the Council would expect the cavity wall insulation to be drying out.

Councillor Holland raised a supplementary comment that when the insulation was installed it was not fit for purpose and it should be removed.

The Leader responded that there was a procurement process to follow and where conditions really are "intolerable" the Council will take action under the emergency protocol in place.  The Council will do the works as soon as it can, but unforeseen expenditure of this scale needs to be undertaken with due diligence.

In accordance with Standing Order No. 8, the following questions were put by Councillor Leadbetter to the Leader in respect of the Housing Stock.

Question - is the Leader aware of any other maintenance or other issues that are effecting tenants quiet enjoyment of their Council Owned homes?

The Leader responded that there were no major issues known of apart from reactive repairs. The Council receive approximately 15000 requests per annum to address issues arising from the housing stock.  This is predominantly about repairs but can also address other pressing issues such as anti-social behaviour. If you have something  ...  view the full minutes text for item 38.