Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence had been received from Councillors Chapman, Davies, Dhillon, Graham, Lakhmana, Morse, Radia, Sansarpuri, Seaman Digby and Stead.

To receive the minutes of the meeting held on 13 January 2022 (attached)

RESOLVED:  That the minutes of the two meetings held on 13 January 2022 be agreed as correct records. 

There were no declarations of interest in any matters before the Council.

The Mayor noted that he had found his role incredibly rewarding over the last nine months and had been astounded by the public’s generosity.  Since the last Council meeting, the Mayor had attended the opening of new children’s playgrounds and had recently been holding citizenship ceremonies on a weekly basis.  He also praised the staff at Hillingdon Hospital who had treated him on a recent visit.   

 

The Mayor had awarded the Civic Medal to Mr Bob Beeston who was the third person to have been awarded the medal since 2011.  Mr Beeston had been a Scout for 80 years. 

 

Councillor Sir Ray Puddifoot MBE, Hillingdon Council's Armed Forces Champion, had been awarded the Knight's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland and the Gold Medal of Polish Armed Forces.  The Mayor congratulated Sir Ray who had received the awards from the President of Poland and the Polish Ambassador to recognise his exceptional and sustained contribution to the memory of those members of the Polish Armed Forces who had fought with British Forces throughout the war.

 

It was recognised that this would be the last Council meeting that some Councillors would be attending and the last Council meeting that the Mayor would be chairing.  He thanked the outgoing Councillors for their service and hoped that their replacements would work as hard as they had. 

On behalf of Members, Councillor Edwards thanked officers for the wonderful work that they had done to clear up the Borough after Storm Eunice had passed through.

 

(i)         Members’ Allowances 2022/23

 

Councillor Edwards moved the recommendations as set out on the Order of Business.  The motion was seconded by Councillor Bianco and it was:

 

RESOLVED: That the current Members’ Allowances Scheme be revoked as of 31 March 2022 and the new Scheme for 2022/23 be approved for implementation from 1 April 2022 as shown in Minute Annex A.

 

ii)         Programme of Meetings 2022/23

 

Councillor Edwards moved the recommendation, which was seconded by Councillor Bianco, and it was:

 

RESOLVED: That the timetable of meetings for 2022/23 as set out in Annex B to the minutes, be approved and the Head of Democratic Services in consultation with the Chief Whip of the Majority Party be authorised to make any amendments that may be required throughout the course of the year.

 

iii)        Waiver of 6 Month Councillor Attendance Rule

 

Councillor Edwards moved the recommendation, which was seconded by Councillor Bianco, and it was:

 

RESOLVED: That, pursuant to Section 85(1) of the Local Government Act 1972, Councillor Graham’s non-attendance at meetings of the authority due to ill health, be approved for a period ending on 5 May 2022.

To consider the recommendations of Cabinet which will be published, once agreed. The report to Cabinet is available in the Group Offices, on request to the Head of Democratic Services or online at:

 

https://modgov.hillingdon.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=115&MId=4176&Ver=4

 

Section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 will apply to the recommendations of this item. Any Member who is more than two months in arrears with their Council Tax or has arrears of Council Tax must declare that fact and not vote on this item.

 

Budget Conflict Resolution Procedures – Council is asked to consider the Cabinet’s proposals. It may adopt the proposals, submit objections to Cabinet or invite the Cabinet to make amendments specified by Council. If Council votes to object to the Cabinet proposals or to invite Cabinet to make amendments, then the Conflict Resolution Procedure will come into operation.

 

The Council meeting will be adjourned while a special meeting of the Cabinet is held, after which the Council will resume and consider any revised proposals submitted by the Cabinet or the reasons why the Cabinet disagrees with Council’s objections or proposed amendments. The budget would then be open for debate and amendment until a final decision is made.

 

Members are asked to note that, in accordance with the Local Authorities (Standing Orders) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2014, recorded votes will be taken at the annual budget setting meeting on any motion, amendment to motion or substantive motion regarding the General Fund Revenue Budget, Housing Revenue Account and Capital Programme.

Councillor Flynn moved, and Councillor Choubedar seconded, the suspension of Council procedure rule 14.4 to allow unlimited speaking time for the mover and seconder of the motion and the principal speaker / mover and seconder of the amendment from the Labour Group. 

 

RESOLVED: That the mover and seconder of the budget motion and the principal speaker / mover and seconder of the principal amendment from the Labour Group be allowed unlimited speaking time on this item.

 

Councillor Goddard moved, and Councillor Edwards seconded, the budget recommendations as set out on the Order of Business. 

 

Councillor Mathers moved, and Councillor Curling seconded, the following amendment:

 

That:

 

a)        the Cabinet be invited to consider the Labour Group's amendments to the Cabinet's budget proposals set out in the Council Tax Resolution and report back to the Council.

 

b)        in relation to the General Fund Revenue Budget, the proposals are based on the budget proposals approved by Cabinet on 17 February 2022, subject to the following amendments:

 

c)        In relation to the General Fund Capital Budget, the proposals are based on the budget proposals approved by Cabinet on 17 February 2022, subject to the following amendments:

 

d)        In relation to the Housing Revenue Account Budget, the proposals are based on the budget proposals approved by Cabinet on 17 February 2022, subject to the following amendments to the HRA Revenue Budget and Capital Programme:

 

Council Tax Levels and Medium-Term Impact

 

1          The following amendments to Cabinet’s budget proposals have been developed in the context of an immediate cost of living crisis facing residents and freeze of the Hillingdon element of Council Tax at 2021/22 levels. This freeze is to be financed from reserves in the short term, with a review of capital programme commitments and energy efficiency savings to fund this measure on a sustainable basis.

 

Table 1: Change to 2022/23 Council Tax

	Cabinet Proposals	Change	Labour Group Proposals
Council Tax Base (Band D) (£'000)	103,840	0	103,840
2021/22 Band D Council Tax	£1,239.72	£0.00	£1,239.72
Increase in Council Tax	0.90%	-0.90%	0.00%
Increase in Social Care Precept	1.00%	0.00%	1.00%
2022/23 Band D Council Tax	£1,263.28	-£11.16	£1,252.12
Council Tax Requirement (£'000)	131,179	(1,159)	130,020

 

2          Amendments to the capital programme outlined later in this document would result in a reduction of £800k in annual financing costs by 2026/27, with a further £580k savings anticipated from a 33% reduction in energy costs stemming from Carbon Reduction measures – including energy efficiency. By 2026/27 these measures would be sufficient to replace funding forgone through the 2022/23 Council Tax freeze and therefore not increase the headline £5,680k budget gap presented in the Cabinet’s budget proposals.

 

3          It is proposed to deploy £3,022k from General Balances to finance the Council Tax freeze in the period before capital and energy savings come onstream, reflecting the immediate cost of living pressures faced by residents. This approach would leave £23,574k General Reserves available to manage emerging risks and pressures. The following table summarises the medium-term impact of the Labour Group’s proposals.

 

Table 2: Funding Strategy

 

4          The following sections of this document outline further proposed amendments to the 2022/23 budget, alongside capital programme changes intended to support housing delivery in the borough and ultimately fund the proposed Council Tax freeze.

 

Changes to 2022/23 General Fund Revenue Budget

 

5          In addition to the headline change in Council Tax and associated deployment of balances, specific amendments to the 2022/23 have also been developed and set out in table 3 below. These proposals include:

 

6          Pandemic Recovery: additional investment of £250k per annum in new initiatives to support community resilience following the COVID-19 pandemic and £100k per annum on increase mental health support targeted at under 16s.  These measures would be funded from capacity within the Public Health Grant and therefore not impact on the Council Tax Requirement.

 

7          Services to Residents: Proposals to reinvest the planned £250k savings arising from the BID Review of Libraries within the service, alongside £100k additional support for Community Safety and Policing and £80k to pause proposed uplifts in Cremation Fees for 2022/23 would increase the Council Tax Requirement by £430k.

 

8          Social Care: Proposed invest-to-save measures around Youth Services and Early Intervention Outreach to reduce future demand for Children’s Services, and Education Psychology to manage demand for SEND services would be initially funded from a combination of Earmarked Reserves and Capital Receipts earmarked for pump-priming transformation measures.  In addition, to these self-financing investments a sum of £25k would be set aside to provide additional support for Care Leavers.

 

9          Savings Proposals: In order to fund the £455k increase investment outlined above, savings of £180k for scaling back publication of Hillingdon People and undertaking a review of communications would be accompanied by a further £275k BID Reviews.

 

10       In addition, table 3 outlines the in-year impact of the wider strategy on Council Tax.

 

Table 3: 2022/23 Revenue Budget

 

Changes to the General Fund Capital Programme

 

11       The following changes are proposed to the General Fund Capital Programme, which result in a £15,000k uplift in investment in delivery of housing through Hillingdon First Limited and a net £15,000k reduction in other commitments. It is expected that increased housing investment would be self-financing through delivery of commercially viable projects, thereby enabling a reduction of £800k in capital financing costs by 2026/27 as a result of reduced borrowing for other purposes.

 

Table 4: Capital Programme Changes

 

12       Review of Capital Programme: Proposals for £5,000k investment for new community facilities in Yiewsley and Cowley have been included, alongside scaling back planned investment in the Civic Centre site by £10,000k and £10,000k reductions across wider spending plans.

 

13       Reprioritisation of Youth Capital: Ensuring that existing capital budgets can be applied to support a wider range of groups and setting aside funds for an additional Youth Bus to support the invest-to-save proposal on outreach.

 

14       Increased Housing Supply: Increasing proposed investment through Hillingdon First Limited, building upon the successful proof of concept for the company and continuing to apply robust commercial appraisal on potential developments.

 

15       Other Programme Changes: Seeking to apply an element of funding earmarked for the Battle of Britain Bunker to provision of water fountains in parks and initial measures to increase use of solar panels on Council Assets.  This change in focus would be enabled by exploring alternative options for the ongoing ownership and management of the bunker.

 

Changes to 2022/23 Housing Revenue Account Budget

 

16       Additional investment of £260k Estate Wardens and £100k Burglar Alarms for Council Tenants are proposed in relation to the Housing Revenue Account from the 2022/23 financial year.  These measures will be funded by reducing the direct contribution from rental income to finance the capital programme by £360k, resulting in a marginal increase in the HRA Capital Financing Requirement from £165,040k to £165,400k in 2022/23.

 

17       Investment in Burglar Alarms is proposed as a one-off initiative for 2022/23, while Estate Wardens will be introduced with a view to increasing engagement with tenants and therefore enabling preventative action which could ultimately reduce costs across the HRA – including in the areas of repairs and maintenance.

 

Table 5: HRA Budget Changes

 

Those speaking against the amendment (Councillors Bianco, Corthorne, Edwards, Goddard, D Mills, R Mills, Simmonds and Yarrow) believed that the numbers did not add up and the proposals threw away the margin of safety through the high risk use of general balances.  Speaking against the amendment, Members believed that it would be unwise to cut £10m from the Civic Centre works as these were needed to ensure that the building remained thermally efficient.  It was also stated that pumping more money into Hillingdon First Limited would not provide exponential returns as there were only a limited number of opportunities each year.  Concern was expressed that the amendment would see the end of the Chrysalis Programme which had proved to be a popular scheme that put residents first. 

 

Whilst speaking against the amendment, Members noted that, given the current situation with regard to escalating energy costs, the proposed associated savings would be unachievable.  However, the energy saving measures proposed by the administration would lead to reduced costs. 

 

Those speaking in support of the amendment (Councillors Curling, Eginton, Gardner, Prince, and Sweeting) noted that the amendment would freeze Council Tax whilst also enabling the Council to invest in things like the youth services and community safety.  The amendment would also provide for action to enable the Council to meet its climate change targets.  Other proposals within the amendment included further investment in renewable energy, highways, ASBIT, heritage sites and Hillingdon First Limited and the provision of an educational psychologist. 

 

Members speaking in support of the amendment noted that its proposals would see libraries being used as community hubs.  They would also see the introduction of community estate managers to prevent housing related issues from escalating and becoming more costly and an investment in mental health services for the under 16s.  They maintained that the amendment had been fully costed and balanced over a five year period and would help residents with the cost of living crisis currently being experienced. 

 

The amendment was put to a recorded vote:

 

Those voting for: Councillors Allen, Birah, Bliss, Curling, Dhot, Duncan, Eginton, Farley, Gardner, Mathers, Milani, Money, Nelson, Oswell, Prince, Singh and Sweeting.

 

Those voting against: The Mayor (Councillor Chamdal), the Deputy Mayor (Councillor Haggar), Councillors Ahmad-Wallana, Arnold, Barnes, Bianco, Bridges, Brightman, Burrows, Choubedar, Cooper, Corthorne, Denys, Deville, Edwards, Flynn, Goddard, Hensley, Higgins, Hurhangee, Kauffman, Lavery, Lewis, Makwana, Markham, Melvin, D Mills, R Mills, Morgan, O’Brien, Palmer, Sir Ray Puddifoot, Riley, Rodrigues, Simmonds, Sullivan, Tuckwell and Yarrow.

 

Those abstaining: None. 

 

The amendment was lost.

 

Those speaking against the original motion (Councillors Curling, Eginton, Prince and Sweeting) considered the administration to be tired and stale and expressed concern that there would be an increased deficit and an increase in borrowing.  Despite being given £26.5m by HS2 to relocate HOAC by 2020, no action had yet been taken and the centre had been closed for some time. 

 

It was suggested by those against the original motion that the administration’s inaction would result in the need for a complete overhaul following the Safety Valve Agreement.  The opposition stated that it was not scaremongering as, if the bail out money was not forthcoming from Department for Education, the Council would be bankrupt.  Funding had been wasted on unused / unneeded primary school places and not enough had been spent on SEN places. 

 

Those speaking in support of the original motion (Councillors Edwards, Lavery, O’Brien, Palmer and Riley) suggested that the proposed budget would benefit all of the residents of the Borough as it would see the continuation of free weekly waste collection, Hillingdon First card, Chrysalis, emissions reduction, installation of electric vehicle charging points, light column upgrades, investment in the West Drayton Leisure Centre, the continuation of educational psychologist support for schools, highways maintenance, and shopfront and town centre improvements. 

 

It addition, it was stated that libraries would soon be reverting back to longer opening hours and a trial food waste collection service for flats had been planned.  By working closely with partners, the administration had established an adult MASH and launched a 24/7 mental health hub.  Fees and charges would increase in line with inflation but would remain lower that Hillingdon’s neighbours. 

 

The original motion was put to a recorded vote: 

 

Those voting for: The Mayor (Councillor Chamdal), the Deputy Mayor (Councillor Haggar), Councillors Ahmad-Wallana, Allen, Arnold, Barnes, Bianco, Birah, Bliss, Bridges, Brightman, Burrows, Choubedar, Cooper, Corthorne, Curling, Denys, Deville, Dhot, Duncan, Edwards, Eginton, Farley, Flynn, Gardner, Goddard, Hensley, Higgins, Hurhangee, Kauffman, Lavery, Lewis, Makwana, Markham, Mathers, Melvin, Milani, D Mills, R Mills, Money, Morgan, Nelson, O’Brien, Oswell, Palmer, Prince, Sir Ray Puddifoot, Riley, Rodrigues, Simmonds, Singh, Sullivan, Sweeting, Tuckwell and Yarrow.

 

Those voting against: None.

 

Those abstaining: None.

 

The original motion was unanimously carried and it was:

 

RESOLVED:  That the Cabinet budget recommendations as set out below, be approved.

 

1.      That the General Fund revenue budget proposals made by Cabinet be approved, resulting in a Council Tax requirement for 2022/23 of £131,178,995.

 

2.      That it be noted that, at its meeting on 13 January 2022 the Council calculated the amount of 103,840 as its Council Tax Base for the year 2022/23. This was calculated in accordance with the Local Authorities (Calculation of Council Tax Base) (England) Regulations 2012, as its Council Tax Base for the year (Item T in the formula in Section 31B (3) of the Local Government Finance Act 1992).

 

3.      That the Hillingdon element of Council Tax be set at £1,263.28 for a Band D property. Taking into account the precept levied by the Greater London Authority, this results in an overall Band D Council Tax of £1,658.87 for the borough.

 

4.      That the following amounts have been calculated by the Council for the year 2022/23, in accordance with Sections 32 to 36 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 (the Act):

 

a) £889,529,273           being the aggregate of the amounts that the Council estimates for the items set out in Section 31A (2) (a) to (f) of the Act.  (Gross Expenditure including the amount required for additions to working balances)

 

b) £758,350,278           being the aggregate of the amounts that the Council estimates for the items set out in Section 31A (3) (a) to (d) of the Act.  (Gross Income including reserves to be used to meet Gross Expenditure)

 

c) £131,178,995           being the amount by which the aggregate at 4 (a) above exceeds the aggregate at 4 (b) above.  This is calculated by the Council in accordance with Section 31A (4) of the Act, as its Council Tax requirement for the year.  (Item R under Section 31B of the Act)

 

d) £1,263.28                 being the amount at 4 (c) above divided by Item T (2 above).  This is, calculated by the Council in accordance with Section 31B of the Act, as the basic amount of its Council Tax for the year. (Council Tax at Band D for the Council)

 

e)                                   

The London Borough of Hillingdon Council Tax
Band A	Band B	Band C	Band D
842.17	982.54	1,122.91	1,263.28
Band E	Band F	Band G	Band H
1,543.99	1,824.74	2,105.45	2,526.54

 

                                      being the amounts given by multiplying the amount at 4 (d) above by the number which, in the proportion set out in Section 5 (1) of the Act, is applicable to dwellings listed in a particular valuation band divided by the number which in that proportion is applicable to dwellings listed in valuation B and D.  This is calculated by the Council in accordance with Section 36 (1) of the Act, as the amounts to be taken into account for the year in respect of categories of dwellings listed in different valuation bands.

 

5.      That it be noted that for the year 2022/23 the Greater London Authority and its functional bodies have stated the following amounts in precepts. These have been issued to the Council, in accordance with Section 40 of the Act, for each of the categories of dwellings shown below:

 

The Greater London Authority Precept
Band A	Band B	Band C	Band D
263.73	307.68	351.64	395.59
Band E	Band F	Band G	Band H
483.50	571.41	659.32	791.18

 

6.      That the Council has calculated the aggregate in each case of the amounts at 4 (e) and 5 above. The Council in accordance with Section 30 and 36 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 hereby sets the Council Tax for the year 2022/23 for each category of dwelling below:

 

Total Council Tax 2022/23
Band A	Band B	Band C	Band D
1,105.90	1,290.22	1,474.55	1,658.87
Band E	Band F	Band G	Band H
2,027.49	2,396.15	2,764.77	3,317.72

 

7.      That the Council Tax Discount for Older People be retained for 2022/23 with a 1.25% discount on the Hillingdon’s element of the Council Tax for those who joined the scheme on or after 1 April 2020, 2.86% for those who joined the scheme before or on 31 March 2019 and 6.14% for those who joined before or on 31 March 2018.

 

8.      That the General Fund Capital Programme for 2022/23 to 2026/27 as set out in Appendix A8 of the background report to Cabinet be approved.

 

9.      That the Housing Revenue Account budget proposals, HRA Capital Programme and housing rents set out in Appendix B of the background report be approved.

 

10.   That the proposed amendments to Fees and Charges set out in Appendix C of the background report to Cabinet be approved.

 

11.   That the Capital Investment Strategy, Treasury Management Strategy, Investment Strategy, Minimum Revenue Provision Statementfor 2022/23 to 2026/27 as set out in Appendix D of the background report to Cabinet be approved.

 

12.   That the London Borough of Hillingdon Pay Policy Statement for 2022/23 as set out in Appendix E of the background report to Cabinet be approved.

 

13.   That the Corporate Director of Finance’s comments regarding his responsibilities under the Local Government Act 2003 be noted.

 

14.   That, in accordance with Schedule G of the Constitution - Budget and Policy Framework Procedure Rules, Cabinet may utilise the general reserves or balances during 2022/23 in support of functions designated to the Cabinet in line with Part 4 of the Constitution.

 

15.   That it be confirmed that the Council’s relevant basic amount of Council Tax for 2022/23 is not excessive in accordance with principles approved under Section 52ZB Local Government Finance Act 1992 and therefore a referendum will not be triggered.