O&S.30/21
The
Chairman introduced the agenda item and advised that, in accordance
with Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rule 12.5, the resolution
arising from Minute E.56/21: ‘Garden Waste Service’ had
been formally called-in for further consideration by the
Committee. The process of call-in was
then outlined.
Following a question from a Member, it was clarified that the
decision was a key decision because the issue, ie garden waste service, related to the whole
District.
The
Chairman advised that there would be three options available to the
Committee when considering the call-in. These were that the
Committee:
1.
was content with the original Executive resolution
and that decision would therefore take immediate effect;
2.
could refer the decision back to the next Executive
meeting (on 2 December 2021) for further consideration;
and
3.
could opt to refer the decision to the next full
Council meeting (on 25 November 2021).
The
Chairman then explained his reasoning behind the decision to invoke
a call-in. In so doing, the Chairman
made specific reference to:-
1. Failure to
adequately consult with Members prior to the Executive meeting of
14 October 2021 at which the decision was taken;
2. Late delivery
of the report in support of the recommendation. The report was only
made available to Members on the morning of the meeting and, as
such, many Members were not made aware of the serious nature of the
recommendation until the last minute, if at all, prior to the
decision being made; and
3. Lack of
openness in respect of the content of the report and the reaching
of the decision. For example, it was not made clear as to whether
or not FCC (the Council’s Waste Contractor) had requested a
continued suspension.
Following questions put to the lead Executive Member with
responsibility for Waste, it was clarified that:
·
The report had been published late because Officers
and the Executive Member had been working on the report right to
the last minute in a desperate attempt to get a one off garden
waste collection carried out before the decision had to be taken to
suspend the service until Spring.
·
The lead Executive Member confirmed that it had been
his decision to recommend to his Executive colleagues that the
suspension be extended so that residents were given some certainty
and not waiting month to month to be told about the
service.
·
Other neighbouring Local Authorities had been
approached to see if there was an opportunity for a one-off
collection with their service, but all were suffering from the
national HGV driver shortage and no one had any spare capacity
within their own service.
·
It was confirmed that the Council’s
contractor, FCC Environment (FCC), were unable to give any idea
when they would be able to restart the service.
·
Members were asked to give any alternative
suggestions to the Executive Member or Officers who would explore
any potential avenue.
·
One Member stated that a resident in her local Ward
had turned this into a business opportunity and was ...
view the full minutes text for item O&S.30/21