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Agenda and minutes

Agenda and minutes

Venue: Council Chamber - The Guildhall

Contact: Stewart Agland  Email: stewart.agland@portsmouthcc.gov.uk

Media

Items
No. Item

85.

Declarations of Interests under Standing Order 13(2)(b)

Minutes:

Councillor Will Purvis declared a pecuniary interest in agenda item 12(a) Housing Bill in that he works for a developer and would withdraw from the chamber for that item.

 

Councillor Luke Stubbs declared a personal, non-prejudicial interest in agenda item 12(b) - Keeping the Fire Service in Portsmouth Strong - in that he is a member of Hampshire Fire & Rescue. He also declared a pecuniary interest in agenda item 13, Question 2, South Parade Pier as this is near his house and would leave the chamber for that item. As a result, the Leader would answer the question on his behalf.

 

Councillor Hannah Hockaday declared a personal, non-prejudicial interest in agenda item 12(b) in that she is a member of Hampshire Fire & Rescue.

 

Councillor Phil Smith declared a personal, non-prejudicial interest in agenda item 12(b) and said that although he would not leave the chamber for this item he would not vote.

 

Councillor Scott Harris declared a pecuniary interest in agenda item 13, Question 2, South Parade Pier in that his house is near the pier and he would leave the chamber for that item.

 

Councillor Ian Lyon declared a personal, non-prejudicial interest in agenda items 12(a) and 12(c) in that his partner is one of Portsmouth's MPs.

86.

Minutes of the Meetings of the Council held on 13 October 2015 pdf icon PDF 63 KB

·         the Extraordinary and Ordinary Meetings of the Council held on 13 October 2015

Additional documents:

Minutes:

It was

 

Proposed by Councillor Donna Jones

Seconded by Councillor Hugh Mason

 

That the minutes of the extraordinary and ordinary meetings of the Council held on 13 October 2015 each be confirmed and signed as a correct record.

 

RESOLVED that the minutes of the extraordinary and ordinary meetings

of the Council held on 13 October 2015 each be confirmed and signed as

a correct record.

87.

Communications and Apologies for Absence

Minutes:

Apologies for absence had been received on behalf of Councillor Margaret Foster.  Apologies for lateness had been received on behalf of Councillor Gerald Vernon-Jackson who was meeting the Secretary of State for Housing in London.

 

The Lord Mayor advised that today's meeting is being filmed.

 

The Lord Mayor gave details of the evacuation proceedings.

 

The Lord Mayor advised that former Portsmouth City Council chief executive, Nick Gurney sadly passed away recently and expressed condolences on behalf of the council.  In addition he reported that Councillor Wemyss' mother sadly passed away last week and passed on to him condolences on behalf of the council.  Councillor Wemyss thanked everyone for their messages and expressions of sympathy.

88.

Deputations from the Public under Standing Order No 24

Minutes:

The City Solicitor advised council that two deputation requests had been received both on item 12(b) - Keeping the Fire Service in Portsmouth Strong.  Mr Dave Smith, Group Commander, Portsmouth, for Hampshire Fire & Rescue Service made his deputation. 

Mr Gary Jackson, Hampshire Fire Brigades Union secretary made a deputation in favour of adopting the notice of motion.

89.

Questions from the Public under Standing Order 25 pdf icon PDF 77 KB

Minutes:

There was one question from a member of the public but it could not be put as the person was not in attendance.

90.

Appointments

Minutes:

The Lord Mayor advised that he had been notified of the following appointments:-

 

Cllr John Ferrett was appointed as Labour opposition spokesperson for the Children and Education portfolio.

 

Councillor Yahiya Chowdhury was appointed as Labour opposition spokesperson for Traffic and Transportation portfolio.

 

Councillor Aiden Gray was appointed as Labour opposition spokesperson for Resources portfolio.

 

RESOLVED that the above appointments be noted.

91.

Urgent Business

Minutes:

There was no urgent business.

92.

Recommendations from the Cabinet Meeting held on 5 November 2015

Minutes:

The following minute was approved unopposed:

 

Minute 66 - Treasury Management Mid-Year Review for 2015/16

93.

Recommendations from Governance & Audit & Standards Committee from its Meeting held on 6 November 2015

Minutes:

The following minutes were approved unopposed:

 

Minute 76 - Review of Members' Code of Conduct and Committee Arrangements for Assessment, Investigation and Determination of Complaints

Minute 74 - Changes to the Designated Independent Person Dismissal Procedures

 

The following minute was opposed:

 

Minute 77 - Contract Procedure Rules

 

It was

 

Proposed by Councillor Simon Bosher

Seconded by Councillor Ian Lyon

 

That the recommendations contained in the report be approved.

 

Following debate upon being put to the vote this was CARRIED.

 

RESOLVED that the revised contract procedure rules be adopted by council and brought into force from 1 January 2016.

94.

Notices of Motion

(a)          Housing Bill

 

Proposed by Councillor Darren Sanders

Seconded by Councillor Matthew Winnington

 

The City Council believes that good quality housing that families can afford is essential for families.

 

The City Council regrets the following decisions of the Government that will reduce the amount of good quality social housing for rent to Portsmouth families:

 

*         The decision that 200,000 out of 275,000 "affordable homes" to be built in this parliament are to be for sale at a price of up to £250,000 and therefore only 75,000 will be built for rent. This means many Portsmouth families will not be able afford these new "affordable homes".

 

*         That a tax will be imposed by the Government on the rents of council tenants to fund discounts for housing association tenants who are rich enough to buy their properties. Taxing families on the lowest incomes to fund discounts for people who may well be much better off.

 

*         The cuts to section 106 payments from developers which will see fewer social housing properties offered to residents in the city from new builds.

 

These actions will mean that there is less money for the provision of new social rented properties and less money available to provide services to tenants such as repairs, estate services officers, youth clubs or play centres that significantly improve the life of families.

 

The City Council therefore opposes the current Housing Bill going through Parliament and asks the Leader of the Council to write to the Prime Minister, the Secretary of State for Communities and the two Portsmouth MPs to ask them to express the City Council's opposition to the Bill and to ask them to make changes to the Bill to support the continued provision of sufficient good quality social rented housing to meet the needs of residents of Portsmouth.

 

(b)          Keeping the Fire Service in Portsmouth strong

 

Proposed by Councillor Gerald Vernon-Jackson

Seconded by Councillor Hugh Mason

 

The City Council notes the proposals from the Hampshire Fire Authority to reduce the number of full sized fire engines in Portsmouth.

 

The current provision is 2 full sized fire engines in Cosham and 3 full sized fire engines at Southsea (one being the engine transferred from Copnor when the fire station was closed).

 

The City Council notes that after the fire in a high rise in Southampton the guidance from the Fire Service is that if there is a fire in a high rise 5 fire engines need to be in attendance for a major fire to be tackled.

 

The city council notes that the proposals from Hampshire Fire Service will see one of Cosham's downgraded to a medium sized engine with less equipment and Southsea will have 1 Full size, 1 Medium and 1 van, with the current Aerial Ladder platform downgraded to a secondary response due to the changes of crewing.

 

This would leave only 4 full sized or medium sized fire engines based in the city, and that to fight a fire in a high rise will need fire engines to come into the city from surrounding areas when roads into the city can be very congested.

 

The proposals again see many more cuts to fire cover in Portsmouth than to any other area in Hampshire.

 

The City Council therefore opposes the changes to fire cover proposed by the Hampshire Fire Service and asks for them to be reconsidered by the Fire Authority. The City Council asks our representatives on The Fire Authority to reflect the views of the City Council when a decision is made at the Fire Authority.

 

(c)          Tax Credits

 

Proposed by Councillor Hugh Mason

Seconded by Councillor Aiden Gray

 

The City Council wishes to place on record our thanks to the Bishop of Portsmouth for speaking out in the House of Lords debate about the removal of tax credits from around 15,000 low paid working families in Portsmouth.

 

The independent Institute of Fiscal Studies has examined the cuts to tax credits along with changes in tax and changes to the Minimum Wage and has concluded that the cuts fall heaviest on the poorest families in the country.

 

The Council regrets the decision of both the city's MPs not to vote against the cuts to tax credits which will hit many low paid families in Portsmouth and ask them to meet with the Bishop of Portsmouth to understand more of the realities of life for low paid working families in Portsmouth.

 

 

(d)          Individual Electoral Registration

 

Proposed by Councillor John Ferrett

Seconded by Councillor Aiden Gray

 

Council notes:

 

The Electoral Commission’s findings in its report into the transition to Individual Electoral Registration (IER) and, in particular, the finding that 1.9 million of the current entries on the electoral register are only being retained under the transitional arrangements from the previous household registration system, which represents 4% of all register entries. The Electoral Commission has previously estimated that the number of people not correctly registered at their current address is around 7.5million across the UK.

 

The Government want to end the transitional arrangements and fully implement IER 12 months early. However, the Electoral Commission has warned that there is “a risk that a considerable number of eligible voters could be removed from the registers before the significant set of polls scheduled for May 2016 if the transition to IER is brought forward.”

 

Council believes:

 

That the government’s proposals for the introduction of Individual Electoral Registration (IER) remain poorly thought out and implemented, running the risk that voters could be disenfranchised as part of this process.

 

That the end of the transitional arrangements before IER is fully implemented should remain December 2016 as stated in law and should not be brought forward to December 2015.

 

Council resolves:

 

To take every possible step to ensure that as many local residents as possible are registered to vote.

 

For the Council Leader to write to the Government to express our concerns and to ask for additional resources that ensure that local residents are not disenfranchised from the democratic process.

 

 

(e)          Tax Exempt Vehicles

 

Proposed by Councillor Steve Hastings

Seconded by Councillor Robert New

 

There is a loop hole being exploited by some people due to the category that Historic vehicles are currently placed in and local authority officers and police are unable to remove these cars and vans when they have no tax and MOT due to DVLA guidelines, which tell them in their guideline notes not to remove any vehicle that is in this category.

 

This council accepts that they should not be charged for their road fund licence but should be taken out of the category that they are in and placed in with all other cars and vans as this causes many problems to residents where multiple vehicles are littered all over their roads in a state of disrepair and seemingly abandoned, dangerous and a blight on the area and often owned by one person.

 

Any vehicle within standard vehicle category that has no tax and MOT would be removed by Portsmouth City Council officers and notified to DVLA and then they would follow it through with the registered keeper with fines or disposal.

 

Therefore this council asks that the Chief Executive, and the Cabinet Member for Traffic and Transport write a joint letter to the Secretary of State for Transport to request that Historic vehicles manufactured prior to 1st January 1975 be removed from the DVLA tax exempt classification alongside such vehicles as steam engines, mowing machines, MOD and agricultural vehicles.

 

This will mean that local authorities and the police will be empowered to remove these vehicles from the highway if they break the law and have no tax and MOT in the same way as any of us with our own cars and vans thus allowing officials to do their job.

Minutes:

It was

 

Proposed by Councillor Donna Jones

Seconded by Councillor Ian Lyon

 

That the order of the notices of motion be changed to start with notice of motion (c) in order to allow time for Councillor Vernon-Jackson to get back to Portsmouth from his meeting in London. 

 

Upon being put to the vote this was CARRIED

 

Notice of Motion (c) - Tax Credits

 

It was

 

Proposed by Councillor Hugh Mason

Seconded by Councillor Aiden Gray

 

That this notice of motion be debated today.

 

Upon being put to the vote this was CARRIED.

 

It was

 

Proposed by Councillor Hugh Mason

Seconded by Councillor Aiden Gray

 

That notice of motion (c) as set out in the agenda be adopted.

 

As an amendment, it was

 

Proposed by Councillor Colin Galloway

Seconded by Councillor Julie Swan

 

To delete first paragraph.

 

In respect of the last paragraph change the word "regret" to "note" in the first line and in the second line of the last paragraph change the "will" to "may".

 

Delete all text in last paragraph after " .....many low paid families in Portsmouth"

 

Then replace with the following

 

"depending on the proposition from the Government, we ask both the City's MPs to reconsider their decision at the next vote in Westminster ."

 

Notice of Motion to therefore read:

 

The independent Institute of Fiscal Studies has examined the cuts to tax credits along with changes in tax and changes to the Minimum Wage and has concluded that the cuts fall heaviest on the poorest families in the country.

 

The Council notes the decision of both the city's MPs not to vote against the cuts to tax credits which may hit many low paid families in Portsmouth depending on the proposition from the Government, we ask both the City's MPs to reconsider their decision at the next vote in Westminster.

 

Following debate upon the amendment standing in the name of Councillor Colin Galloway being put to the vote, this was CARRIED.  Upon being put to the vote the substantive motion was CARRIED.

 

RESOLVED that council adopts the following notice of motion:

 

The independent Institute of Fiscal Studies has examined the cuts to tax credits along with changes in tax and changes to the Minimum Wage and has concluded that the cuts fall heaviest on the poorest families in the country.

 

The Council notes the decision of both the city's MPs not to vote against the cuts to tax credits which may hit many low paid families in Portsmouth depending on the proposition from the Government, we ask both the City's MPs to reconsider their decision at the next vote in Westminster.

 

The Lord Mayor proposed that as Councillor Vernon-Jackson had now arrived in the chamber the meeting should revert to the order on the agenda and this was agreed.

 

Notice of Motion (a) - Housing Bill

 

It was

 

Proposed by Councillor Darren Sanders

Seconded by Councillor Matthew Winnington

 

That notice of motion (a) as set out on the agenda be debated today.

 

Upon being put to the vote this was CARRIED.

 

It was

 

Proposed by Councillor Darren Sanders

Seconded by Councillor Matthew Winnington

 

That notice of motion (a) as set out on the agenda be adopted.

 

As an amendment it was

 

Proposed by Councillor Steve Wemyss

Seconded by Councillor Donna Jones

 

The City Council believes that good quality housing that families can afford is essential for families.

 

Delete paragraph 2 and the 3 bullet points and paragraph 3 and replace with the following

 

Government proposals expect all Councils that currently have a housing stock to pay for the Right-to-Buy discounts being offered to tenants of some Housing Associations. Given that the consequence will be to reduce the ability of Councils to provide replacement social housing for that lost under the Right-to-Buy, the Council wishes the Government to consider other options.

 

Amend the final paragraph to read (changes in bold)

 

The City Council therefore opposes elements of the current Housing Bill going through Parliament and asks the Leader of the Council to write to the Prime Minister, the relevant Secretaries of State for Communities and the two Portsmouth MPs to ask them to express the City Council's concerns opposition to the Bill and to ask them to make changes to the Bill to support the continued provision of sufficient good quality social rented housing to meet the needs of residents of Portsmouth.

 

Full Notice of Motion to therefore read:

 

The City Council believes that good quality housing that families can afford is essential for families.

 

Government proposals expect all Councils that currently have a housing stock to pay for the Right-to-Buy discounts being offered to tenants of some Housing Associations. Given that the consequence will be to reduce the ability of Councils to provide replacement social housing for that lost under the Right-to-Buy, the Council wishes the Government to consider other options.

 

The City Council therefore opposes elements of the current Housing Bill going through Parliament and asks the Leader of the Council to write to the Prime Minister, the relevant Secretaries of State and the two Portsmouth MPs to express the City Council's concerns and to ask them to make changes to the Bill to support the continued provision of sufficient good quality social rented housing to meet the needs of residents of Portsmouth.

 

Upon the amendment standing in the name of Councillor Steve Wemyss being put to the vote this was CARRIED.

 

RESOLVED that the substantive motion be adopted as set out below

 

"The City Council believes that good quality housing that families can afford is essential for families.

 

Government proposals expect all Councils that currently have a housing stock to pay for the Right-to-Buy discounts being offered to tenants of some Housing Associations. Given that the consequence will be to reduce the ability of Councils to provide replacement social housing for that lost under the Right-to Buy, the Council wishes the Government to consider other options.

 

The City Council therefore opposes elements of the current Housing Bill going through Parliament and asks the Leader of the Council to write to the Prime Minister, the relevant Secretaries of State and the two Portsmouth MPs to express the City Council's concerns and to ask them to make changes to the Bill to support the continued provision of sufficient good quality social rented housing to meet the needs of residents of Portsmouth."

 

Council adjourned at 4.30 pm.

 

Council resumed at 4.45 pm.

 

Notice of Motion (b) - Keeping the Fire Service in Portsmouth Strong

 

It was

 

Proposed by Councillor Gerald Vernon-Jackson

Seconded by Councillor Hugh Mason

 

That notice of motion (b) be debated today.

 

Upon being put to the vote this was CARRIED.

 

It was

 

Proposed by Councillor Gerald Vernon-Jackson

Seconded by Councillor Hugh Mason

 

That notice of motion (b) as set out on the agenda be adopted.

 

As an amendment it was

 

Proposed by Councillor Ian Lyon

Seconded by Councillor Rob New

 

To delete the words in the motion after "the City Council notes" in the first line and replace with the following -

 

" that the Hampshire Fire Authority is undertaking a review of the provision of firefighting services to the County in general and to Portsmouth in particular, and it also notes that just under one month remains of the public consultation process.

 

The City Council wishes to await the publication of the results of the Hampshire Fire Authority's public consultation process rather than express its views at this stage in the process.

 

The City Council urges residents and other interested parties to engage in the public consultation process before its closing date of 4th December 2015.  To this end the City Council notes that residents may have their say on shaping the future of the fire service by attending the public meeting arranged by the Fire Service in Portsmouth tomorrow, Wednesday 11th November, at the John Pounds Centre at 23 Queen Street, Portsmouth P01 3HN from 6.30pm to 9pm: and, in addition, residents can submit their views to the Hampshire Fire Authority by completing the on line questionnaire at www.hantsfire.gov.uk/a-safer-hampshire; by e-mailing asaferhampshire@hantsfire.gov.uk; or by writing to Planning for a Safer Hampshire, Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service Headquarters, Leigh Road, Eastleigh, Hampshire, SO50 9SJ."

 

As an amendment it was

 

Proposed by Councillor Lee Hunt

Seconded by Councillor Matthew Winnington

 

That Para 1 add at the end of the sentence "and the numbers of fire crew on duty."

 

Para 4 add at the end "and a reduction of 4 fire officers on duty in Southsea per shift."

 

Councillor Vernon-Jackson as proposer of the original notice of motion agreed to accept into his original notice of motion as set out on the agenda, the amendment standing in the name of Councillor Lee Hunt.

 

Following debate a recorded vote was requested by eight members standing on the amendment standing in the name of Ian Lyon.  Upon the amendment standing in the name of Councillor Ian Lyon being put to the vote the following members voted in favour:

 

Simon Bosher

Lee Mason

Jennie Brent

Gemma New

Ryan Brent

Rob New

Ken Ellcome

Sandra Stockdale

Colin Galloway

Luke Stubbs

Paul Godier

Julie Swan

Scott Harris

Linda Symes

Steve Hastings

David Tompkins

Hannah Hockaday

Steve Wemyss

Donna Jones

Neill Young

Ian Lyon

 

 

The following members voted against:

 

Dave Ashmore

Hugh Mason

Yahiya Chowdhury

Will Purvis

Alicia Denny

Darren Sanders

Ben Dowling

Phil Smith

John Ferrett

Lynne Stagg

David Fuller

Gerald Vernon-Jackson

Aiden Gray

Matthew Winnington

Suzy Horton

Rob Wood

Lee Hunt

 

 

The following members abstained:

 

Councillor Ken Ferrett

Councillor Stuart Potter

 

The amendment standing in the name of Councillor Ian Lyon was therefore CARRIED.

 

Upon the substantive motion incorporating the amendment being put to the vote this was CARRIED.

 

RESOLVED that

 

The City Council notes that the Hampshire Fire Authority is undertaking a review of the provision of firefighting services to the County in general and to Portsmouth in particular, and it also notes that just under one month remains of the public consultation process.

 

The City Council wishes to await the publication of the results of the Hampshire Fire Authority's public consultation process rather than express its views at this stage in the process.

 

The City Council urges residents and other interested parties to engage in the public consultation process before its closing date of 4th December 2015. To this end the City Council notes that residents may have their say on shaping the future of the fire service by attending the public meeting arranged by the Fire Service in Portsmouth tomorrow, Wednesday 11th November, at the John Pounds Centre at 23 Queen Street, Portsmouth PO1 3HN from 6.30pm to 9pm: and, in addition, residents can submit their views to the Hampshire Fire Authority by completing the on line questionnaire at www.hantsfire.gov.uk/a-safer-hampshire; by e-mailing asaferhampshire@hantsfire.gov.uk; or by writing to Planning for a Safer Hampshire, Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service Headquarters, Leigh Road, Eastleigh, Hampshire, SO50 9SJ.


 

Notice of Motion (d) - Individual Electoral Registration

 

It was

 

Proposed by Councillor John Ferrett

Seconded by Councillor Aiden Gray

 

That this notice of motion be debated today.

 

Upon being put to the vote this was CARRIED.

 

It was

 

Proposed by Councillor John Ferrett

Seconded by Councillor Aiden Gray

 

That notice of motion (d) as set out in the agenda be adopted.

 

As an amendment it was

 

Proposed by Councillor Donna Jones

Seconded by Councillor Steve Wemyss

 

That the last paragraph be amended with the insertion of the words highlighted in bold as follows -

 

For the Council Leader to write to the Government to express our concerns and to ask for the following -

 

that given the additional financial burden placed on the Authority's budget by IER, the Government clarifies its plans for funding IER from the 2016/17 financial year onwards on the basis that additional resources should be allocated by the Government to the Council from then. That ongoing funding will ensure that local residents are not disenfranchised from the democratic process and will also enable the completeness and accuracy of the electoral register to be sustained under the new system.

 

The proposer of the original notice of motion, Councillor John Ferrett accepted the amendment standing in the name of Councillor Donna Jones into the notice of motion set out on the agenda.

 

It was

 

Proposed by Councillor Lee Mason

Seconded by Councillor Luke Stubbs

 

That the matter be now put to the vote and the Lord Mayor was content with this proposal.

 

Upon being put to the vote this was CARRIED.

 

Upon the substantive notice of motion incorporating the amendment being put to the vote, this was CARRIED.

 

RESOLVED that the following notice of motion be adopted:

 

Council notes:

 

The Electoral Commission’s findings in its report into the transition to Individual Electoral Registration (IER) and, in particular, the finding that 1.9 million of the current entries on the electoral register are only being retained under the transitional arrangements from the previous household registration system, which represents 4% of all register entries. The Electoral Commission has previously estimated that the number of people not correctly registered at their current address is around 7.5million across the UK.

 

The Government want to end the transitional arrangements and fully implement IER 12 months early. However, the Electoral Commission has warned that there is “a risk that a considerable number of eligible voters could be removed from the registers before the significant set of polls scheduled for May 2016 if the transition to IER is brought forward.”

 

Council believes:

 

That the government’s proposals for the introduction of Individual Electoral Registration (IER) remain poorly thought out and implemented, running the risk that voters could be disenfranchised as part of this process.

 

That the end of the transitional arrangements before IER is fully implemented should remain December 2016 as stated in law and should not be brought forward to December 2015.

 

Council resolves:

 

To take every possible step to ensure that as many local residents as possible are registered to vote.

 

For the Council Leader to write to the Government to express our concerns and to ask for the following -

 

that given the additional financial burden placed on the Authority's budget by IER, the Government clarifies its plans for funding IER from the 2016/17 financial year onwards on the basis that additional resources should be allocated by the Government to the Council from then. That ongoing funding will ensure that local residents are not disenfranchised from the democratic process and will also enable the completeness and accuracy of the electoral register to be sustained under the new system.

 

Notice of Motion (e) - Tax Exempt Vehicles

 

It was

 

Proposed by Councillor Steve Hastings

Seconded by Councillor Rob New

 

That this notice of motion be debated today.

 

Upon being put to the vote this was CARRIED.

 

It was

 

Proposed by Councillor Steve Hastings

Seconded by Councillor Rob New

 

That notice of motion (e) as set out in the agenda be adopted.

 

Councillor Hastings clarified that the notice of motion is only intended to remove historic vehicles from the DVLA tax exempt classification - not any other vehicles in the same category.

 

Following debate upon being put to the vote the original notice of motion as set out on the agenda paper was CARRIED.

 

RESOLVED that the following Notice of Motion be adopted

There is a loop hole being exploited by some people due to the category that Historic vehicles are currently placed in and local authority officers and police are unable to remove these cars and vans when they have no tax and MOT due to DVLA guidelines, which tell them in their guideline notes not to remove any vehicle that is in this category.

 

This council accepts that they should not be charged for their road fund licence but should be taken out of the category that they are in and placed in with all other cars and vans as this causes many problems to residents where multiple vehicles are littered all over their roads in a state of disrepair and seemingly abandoned, dangerous and a blight on the area and often owned by one person.

Any vehicle within standard vehicle category that has no tax and MOT would be removed by Portsmouth City Council officers and notified to DVLA and then they would follow it through with the registered keeper with fines or disposal.

 

Therefore this council asks that the Chief Executive, and the Cabinet Member for Traffic and Transport write a joint letter to the Secretary of State for Transport to request that Historic vehicles manufactured prior to 1st January 1975 be removed from the DVLA tax exempt classification alongside such vehicles as steam engines, mowing machines, MOD and agricultural vehicles.

 

This will mean that local authorities and the police will be empowered to remove these vehicles from the highway if they break the law and have no tax and MOT in the same way as any of us with our own cars and vans thus allowing officials to do their job.

95.

Questions from Members under Standing Order No 17 pdf icon PDF 79 KB

Minutes:

There were four questions from members.

 

Question No 1 was from Councillor Gerald Vernon-Jackson

 

"Why was a decision to sack nine Community Wardens taken in secret and not open to scrutiny by the public or councillors?"

 

This and supplementary questions were answered by the Cabinet Member for Environment & Community Safety, Councillor Rob New.

 

Question No 2 was from Councillor Matthew Winnington

 

"Can the cabinet member please update Full Council on the progress of the work going on at South Parade Pier and of the bid to the coastal revival fund that the council has made with the pier owners?"

 

This and supplementary questions were answered by the Leader of the Council, Councillor Donna Jones as the Cabinet Member for Planning, Regeneration & Economic Development had left the chamber owing to his having declared a pecuniary interest in this item.

 

Question No 3 was from Councillor Colin Galloway

 

"Will the Leader please give us an update on the survey that was conducted to consider local elections to be held every four years instead of the expensive present system?"

 

This and supplementary questions were answered by Councillor Donna Jones.

 

Question No 4 was from Councillor Matthew Winnington

 

"Will the Council Leader please give us a progress report on the joint bid with Caen to host the Tour de France by the end of this decade?"

 

This and supplementary questions were answered by the Leader of the Council, Councillor Donna Jones.