Venue: Concorde Room, Council Offices, Farnborough
Contact: Chris Todd, Democratic Services on 01252 398825 or e-mail: chris.todd@rushmoor.gov.uk
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To confirm the Minutes of the Meeting held on 30th June, 2017 (copy attached). Minutes: The Minutes of the meeting of the Cabinet held on 30th June, 2015 were confirmed and signed by the Chairman. |
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FUTURE PROVISION OF REFUSE AND RECYCLING SERVICES PDF 664 KB To consider the
Corporate Director’s Report No. CD1508 (copy attached), which addresses the
options around the specification for refuse and recycling services to enable
the improvement of the Council’s recycling rate and to reduce costs. This
Report is in the context of the major re-procurement of a basket of direct
services, which was considered by the Cabinet on 30th June,
2015. Presented By: Environment and Service Delivery Minutes: The Cabinet considered the Corporate
Director’s Report No. CD1508, which set out options for the
future specification of the waste and recycling services provided by the
Council. The Cabinet was reminded
that, at its meeting on 30th June 2015, it had agreed many matters relating to
the specification of the renewal of the contract covering refuse, recycling,
street cleansing, grounds maintenance and toilet cleansing. At that meeting, it
had been agreed, however, that due to the significance of a decision to either
retain weekly collections of residual waste or switch to alternate weekly
collections and also to consider reducing the size of residual waste bins, an
extra meeting of the Cabinet should be set up in order for these matters to be
considered fully. The Council’s current financial position was
set out and it was reported that the most recent
budget on 8th July had changed little. The Council’s financial position
remained challenging, with the introduction of the Minimum Living Wage likely
to have the effect of making services provided by contractors, in particular,
more expensive. Members were informed
that the current contract had performed well and that residents had, generally,
expressed a high level of satisfaction with waste and recycling collection
services. The Council’s recycling performance, however, stood at around 26%,
which fell well short of the UK target to recycle or compost 50% of total waste
by 2020. Whilst it was considered that the introduction of alternate weekly
collections for residual waste would have the greatest effect in increasing
recycling rates, there were other initiatives that
would be likely to improve the rate also, including: ·
Free
garden waste collections ·
Incentive
schemes ·
Increasing
the range of recyclable materials collected ·
Improved
education ·
Introduction
of smaller residual waste bins In considering this matter, the Cabinet
discussed many issues, including the likely increased cost of contractors’
services due to the introduction of the Minimum Living Wage, the need for the
Council to make savings, how knowledge and awareness of
recycling might be improved and residents’ views on the current level of
service. Members felt that residents approved of the current frequency
of collections and, for this reason, agreed that a weekly collection of
residual waste should be maintained. The current level
of recycling was, however, of concern and it was agreed,
therefore, that the policy of reducing the size of residual waste bins over
time should be continued and it was recommended that the Future Contracts
Member Working Group should investigate additional ways of improving recycling
levels. The Cabinet RESOLVED to continue with the weekly collection of
residual waste and maintain the current policy of issuing 140 litre residual
waste bins as replacements or for new dwellings. |
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DEVOLUTION: PROPOSALS FOR A HAMPSHIRE WIDE COMBINED AUTHORITY PDF 479 KB To consider the
Chief Executive’s Report No. CEX1502 (copy attached), which seeks approval from
the Council to develop a proposal, with other Hampshire and Isle of Wight
authorities, to bring about devolution of powers and responsibilities from
central Government to the wider Hampshire area. Presented By: Leader of the Council Minutes: The Cabinet considered the Chief Executive’s
Report No. CEX1502, which set out the current position within Hampshire
regarding the potential devolution of power from central to local government. Members heard how, prior to the previous
parliamentary election, there had been significant national debate around the
devolution of power, funding and responsibilities. The creation of a combined
authority for Greater Manchester had become a flagship for how this could be achieved. It was reported
that authorities within the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Local Government
Association’s (HIOWLA) area had already engaged in a significant amount of
joint working and projects. Members heard how all member authorities of HIOWLA,
which included Hampshire County Council, Southampton and Portsmouth unitary
authorities, the Isle of Wight Council and eleven district councils, had been
in agreement that to develop a proposal for a devolved administration would be
in the best interests of Hampshire residents. This would involve the creation
of a ‘Combined Authority’ for Hampshire. It was clarified
that such an arrangement would not constitute a restructure of local government
and that sovereignty would remain with individual authorities. It would, however, provide an opportunity for closer joint
working, economies and service improvements. The first stage was to make a
submission to start the process which would make a number of ‘asks’ of
Government. Whilst not confirmed these might include: ·
Local
control over funding for skills, post-sixteen education, apprenticeships and lifelong learning ·
More
local control over national infrastructure spending on transport and housing ·
A
HIOWLA wide ‘Better Care Fund’ to better integrate health and social care
across local government and the NHS ·
Freedom
to borrow against the forecast proceeds of local growth (to support enabling
infrastructure) ·
A
comprehensive public sector land bank, making surplus NHS and Ministry of
Defence land available for housing ·
Ability
to use public procurement and national business support budgets to support
local business growth ·
Greater
retention of growth in business rates The Cabinet discussed the proposal and was
supportive of the principle of devolution, particularly in relation to the
opportunities for expanding shared services and driving down costs. It was agreed that any future ‘devolution deal’ would be
closely examined to ensure it would be beneficial to Rushmoor
residents as well as the broader HIOW area. |