Agenda and minutes

The Mayor held a minute’s silence in memory of former Mayor and Councillor Andy Kane who sadly passed in January 2023. The Mayor then invited representatives from each party to pay tribute.  Councillors C Mullins, Burrett, and the Mayor paid their respects.

In accordance with the Council’s Code of Conduct, councillors are reminded that it is a requirement to declare interests where appropriate.

The disclosures of interests made by councillors are set out in Appendix A to these minutes.

To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meeting of the Full Council held on 14 December 2022.

The minutes of the meeting of the Full Council held on 14 December 2022 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Mayor.

To receive and consider any announcements or communications, including any additional Cabinet Member announcements.

The Mayor provided the Full Council with a brief update on the Mayoral events attended since the last meeting, which included attending Oriel High School with the Greenway Foundation on Christmas Eve for the distribution of Christmas lunches for families in Crawley and the return of the Mayor’s Ball in January which coincided with celebrating Crawley’s birthday. Last week she was able to attend the Stegosaurus Uncovered Exhibition at Crawley Museum with her grandson and many young people were present.

To answer public questions under Full Council Procedure Rule 1.1-E.  The questions must be on matters which are relevant to the functions of the Council, and should not include statements.

One supplementary question from the questioner will be allowed.

Up to 30 minutes is allocated to Public Question Time.

There were no questions from the public.

The Full Council considered report LDS/195 of the Head of Governance, People & Performance. Councillor Lamb as Chair of the Governance Committee introduced the report which requested that some temporary changes to the Scheme of Polling Places relating to the May 2023 Borough Council elections be made in advance of the introduction of voter ID. The current Scheme was adopted in January 2019 following ward boundary changes arising from the Local Government Boundary Commission for England electoral review of the Borough. The Polling Scheme worked well at the three sets of elections held in 2019. Several temporary changes had been made to the Polling Scheme for the elections held in 2021 and 2022 and, at its meeting held on 10 October 2022, the Committee considered the use of schools as polling places for May 2023. At its meeting on 24 January 2023, the Governance Committee considered further temporary changes to the Polling Scheme for polling districts LLB (Broadfield Ward), LMC (Three Bridges Ward) and LMD (Three Bridges Ward) due to the unavailability of venues and the requirements for the checking of voter ID.

Councillor Lamb explained that the Governance Committee requested further information for the Full Council’s consideration with regards to Creasys Drive, the former Adventure Playground site, being used as a Polling Station over the suitability and safety of the venue due to storm damage and vandalism. This report was included within the Supplementary Agenda Order Paper on page 21, which stated that the building would be repaired and available and as such would suitable for use as a polling station at the May 2023 elections, and recommended that it is retained as the Polling Place for polling district LBB.

The recommendation was seconded by Councillor Bounds.

Councillor Irvine then moved and presented Amendment 1 (as shown in the Supplementary Agenda Order Paper on page 23). The Amendment was seconded by Councillor K Khan who also spoke on the item.

Councillor Lamb, using their right to reply, commented that he would accept Councillor Irvine’s amendment and include it as part of the substantive recommendation. The Mayor then called for a vote on the amendment, which was carried unanimously. The Mayor then called for a vote on the substantive recommendation as amended which was also carried unanimously.

RESOLVED

That the Full Council agrees that, for the 2023 elections, the Polling Scheme be amended to allocate polling places as follows:

LBB – Creasys Drive former Adventure Playground site*

LMC – The Hawth Theatre

LMD – The New Town Hall

*  and if the building is unsafe, then a temporary polling station, such as a Portakabin, should be provided.

The Full Council considered report PES/427of the Head of Economy and Planning. The Cabinet Member for Planning and Economic Development presented the report. The new Crawley Local Plan had been prepared based on the outcomes of monitoring the implementation of the 2015 adopted Local Plan and feedback from previous stages of formal public consultations, and updated from the supporting technical evidence base. Following Full Council held on 16 December 2020 which approved the Draft Local Plan for publication and submission, formal public consultation took place from early January until the end of June 2021.

Progression of the Local Plan to submission was subsequently delayed due to the work required in order to meet the Habitats Regulations specifically in relation to water supply constraints. Due to this, a number of key changes, which account for the impact of “water neutrality” and associated time delay, had been made to the draft Local Plan. On this basis, the amended draft Plan required further consideration by the Full Council.

The report sought Full Council’s approval of the submission draft Local Plan for Regulation 19 Publication Consultation (a statutory six-week period of), commencing 9 May 2023 and approval that the submission draft Local Plan be submitted to the Secretary of State for examination by an independent Planning Inspector, subject to minor amendments deemed necessary following consultation for the purposes of clarity, together with the recommendation to Full Council for approval of the publication and submission of the supporting documents for the Local Plan. These included the Local Plan Map; the Sustainability Appraisal; the Habitats Regulations Assessment; the Consultation Statement; and the detailed technical evidence base documents necessary for supporting the Local Plan through examination.

The item had been previously considered at the Overview and Scrutiny Commission and Cabinet meetings on 30 January 2023 and 1 February 2023 respectively. Councillor Nawaz moved the recommendation which was seconded and supported by Councillor Jones.

Councillor Burrett then moved and presented Amendment 1 to Recommendation 2 (as shown in the Supplementary Agenda Order Paper on page 25). The amendment was seconded by Councillor Belben who also spoke on the item.

A single debate occurred on both the recommendation and the proposed amendment. Councillors Crow, Irvine, McCarthy, Lanzer, Lunnon, Mwagale and Jones also spoke during the Local Plan debate.

Following the conclusion of the debate, the Mayor announced that she planned to hold recorded votes for both the amendment and the substantive recommendation. The Mayor invited the Democracy and Data Manager to commence the recorded voting process.

For the Amendment: Councillors Belben, Bounds, Burgess, Burrett, Crow, Hellier, Jaggard, McCarthy, Morris, Mwagale, Peck, Pendlington and Piggott (13)

Against the Amendment: Councillors Ayling, Buck, Hart, Irvine, Jhans, K Khan, Y Khan, Jones, Lamb, Lanzer, Lunnon, Malik, Millar-Smith, C Mullins, S Mullins, Nawaz, Pritchard, Raja, Rana and Sivarajah (21)

Abstentions: None (0)

The Mayor declared that the proposed amendment had fallen – votes in favour 13, and votes against 21 with 0 abstentions.

For the Recommendation: Councillors Ayling,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

The Full Council considered reports FIN/606and FIN606a of the Chief Executive and Chief Accountant (s151 officer). The Leader of the Council presented the reports which detailed that the Council had a statutory responsibility to set a Council Tax and Budget in advance of the commencement of the new financial year. It was noted that the report detailed each of the Revenue, Capital and Housing Revenue Accounts that combine together to formulate ‘The Budget’. In proposing the level of Council Tax for the financial year 2023/24, each of those accounts identified had been considered. The proposed Council Tax for 2023/24 was to be increased by 2.99%. In presenting the report the Leader highlighted the proposal to use £261,970 from the General Fund reserve, the proposal to increase the capital budget for Crawley Homes retrofit schemes by £900,000 to assist with water neutrality and the expenditure on capital projects.

The item had been previously considered at the Overview and Scrutiny Commission and Cabinet meetings on 30 January 2023 and 1 February 2023 respectively. Councillor Jones moved the recommendation which was seconded and supported by Councillor C Mullins.

Councillor Crow then moved and presented Amendment 1to Recommendation 3 (as shown in the Supplementary Agenda Order Paper on page 27). The amendment was seconded by Councillor Lanzer.

A single debate occurred on both the recommendation and the proposed amendment. Councillor Lanzer, Jhans, Irvine, C Mullins, Burrett, S Mullins, and Lamb also spoke during the debate.

At the conclusion of the discussion, Councillors expressed their thanks and

appreciation for the work carried out by the Council’s Finance division.

The Full Council was reminded that in accordance with the Local Authorities (Standing Orders) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2014, all Councils at their annual budget meetings were required to adopt the practice of recorded votes - that is, recording in the minutes of the meeting how each member present voted on any decision relating to the Annual Budget and Council Tax. This applied not only to substantive budget motions to agree the Budget and setting Council Taxes, including precepts, but also on any amendments proposed.

Following the conclusion of the debate, the Mayor invited the Democracy and Data Manager to commence the recorded voting process on the 2023/24 Budget and Council Tax, for both the amendment and the substantive recommendation respectively.

For the Amendment: Councillors Belben, Bounds, Burgess, Burrett, Crow, Hellier, Jaggard, Lanzer, McCarthy, Millar-Smith, Morris, Mwagale, Peck, Pendlington and Piggott (15)

Against the Amendment: Councillors Ayling, Buck, Hart, Irvine, Jhans, K Khan, Y Khan, Jones, Lamb, Lunnon, Malik, C Mullins, S Mullins, Nawaz, Pritchard, Raja, Rana and Sivarajah (19)

Abstentions: None (0)

The Mayor declared that the proposed amendment had fallen – votes in favour 15, and votes against 19 with 0 abstentions.

For the Recommendation: Councillors Ayling, Belben, Bounds, Buck, Burgess, Burrett, Crow, Hart, Hellier, Irvine, Jaggard, Jhans, K Khan, Y Khan, Jones, Lamb, Lanzer, Lunnon, Malik, McCarthy, Millar-Smith, Morris, C Mullins, S Mullins, Mwagale, Nawaz, Peck, Pendlington, Piggott, Pritchard,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

The Full Council considered reports FIN/608and FIN608a of the Chief Executive and Chief Accountant (s151 officer). The Leader of the Council presented the reports on the Treasury Management Strategy for 2023/2024 which included the Council’s Investment Strategy. The Council was required to approve a Treasury Management Strategy before the start of the financial year in accordance with the CIPFA Code of Practice for Treasury Management and the Council’s financial regulations.

The item had been previously considered at the Overview and Scrutiny Commission and Cabinet meetings on 30 January 2023 and 1 February 2023 respectively. Councillor Jones moved the recommendation which was seconded and supported by Councillor C Mullins.

Councillor Crow then moved and presented Amendment 1to Recommendation 4 (as shown in the Supplementary Agenda Order Paper on page 29). The amendment was seconded by Councillor Piggott.

Councillors Pritchard, Lanzer, S Mullins, K Khan, Belben, Irvine, Lamb, Piggott, and C Mullins also spoke on the item.

As the business of the meeting had not been completed within the scheduled two hours and 30 minutes, a vote on continuation in line with Council Procedure Rule 8.3 was held. The Mayor required the Full Council to consider if it wished to continue with the meeting.

Having put it to the vote, the Council agreed that the meeting be continued for an additional period not exceeding 30 minutes.

Following the agreement of the Full Council to continue the meeting, the Mayor restarted the discussion on Recommendation 4 Treasury Management Strategy 2023/2024.

The Mayor then called for a vote on Amendment 1 as moved by Councillor Crow in respect of Recommendation 4 Treasury Management Strategy 2023/2024, which fell by 12 votes in favour, 19 against and 3 abstentions.

The Mayor then called for a vote on Recommendation 4 which was carried by 33 votes in favour, 0 against and 1 abstention.

RESOLVED

That the Full Council approves:

a)            the Treasury Prudential Indicators and the Minimum Revenue Provision (MRP) Statement contained within Section 5.4 of report FIN/608.

b)            the Treasury Management Strategy contained within Section 6 of report FIN/608.

c)            the Investment Strategy contained within Section 7 of report FIN/608.

d)            the amended the prudential indicators in the Treasury Management Strategy2023/2024 FIN/608 as set out in Section 4 of report FIN608a.

The Full Council considered report CEX/60 of the Chief Executive. The Leader of the Council presented the report which documented a refresh the Council's Corporate Plan, so it reflected the Council's priorities for the period 2023-2027. The key changes within the Plan from the previous edition related to the borough’s recovery from the economic crisis and the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic, the impact of water neutrality on the built environment, the need for more affordable housing and temporary accommodation and the importance of reducing the Council’s and the town’s carbon footprint through the delivery of the Climate Emergency Action Plan.

The item had been previously considered at the Overview and Scrutiny Commission and Cabinet meetings on 30 January 2023 and 1 February 2023 respectively. Councillor Jones moved the recommendation which was seconded and supported by Councillor C Mullins.

Councillor Crow then moved and presented Amendment 1to Recommendation 5 (as shown in the Supplementary Agenda Order Paper on page 31). The amendment was seconded by Councillor Millar-Smith.

Councillors Lamb, Burrett, and C Mullins also spoke on the item.

Councillor Jones, using their right to reply, commented that he would accept the Amendment and include it as part of the substantive recommendation. The Mayor called for a vote on the Amendment, which was carried unanimously. The Mayor then called for a vote on the substantive recommendation as amended which was also carried unanimously.

RESOLVED

That the Full Council approves:

a)            the adoption of the Corporate Plan 2023 – 2027 as detailed in Appendix B.

b)            that the Council will publish quarterly and annual Key Performance Indicators for the four years of the Corporate Plan, in order for the performance and progress of the Corporate Plan to be transparent and able to be monitored by Crawley residents.

Councillor Jones presented report FIN/613 and Recommendation 6 that set out the Notice of Precept 2023/24 from the Police and Crime Commissioner for Sussex and West Sussex County Council, which combined with the previously agreed Crawley Borough Council precept to formulate the 2023/24 Council Tax Resolution for 2023/24.

The recommendation was moved by Councillor Jones and seconded by Councillor C Mullins.

Following approval of the Council’s budget in Recommendation 3, and in accordance with the Local Authorities (Standing Orders) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2014, the names of the councillors voting for and against Recommendation 6 were recorded as set out below:-

For the Recommendation: Councillors Ayling, Belben, Bounds, Buck, Burgess, Burrett, Crow, Hart, Hellier, Irvine, Jaggard, Jhans, K Khan, Y Khan, Jones, Lamb, Lanzer, Lunnon, Malik, McCarthy, Millar-Smith, Morris, C Mullins, S Mullins, Mwagale, Nawaz, Peck, Pendlington, Piggott, Pritchard, Raja, Rana and Sivarajah (34)

Against the Recommendation: None (0)

Abstentions the Recommendation: None (0)

The Mayor declared the recommendation was carried – votes in favour 34, and votes against 0 with 0 abstentions.

RESOLVED

That the Full Council, following the receipt of the notice of precept from the Police and Crime Commissioner for Sussex and West Sussex County Council and the approval of the Council’s budget, approves the following:

1.         That it be noted that on 22 December 2022 the Leader of the Council under delegated powers calculated the Council Tax Base 2023/24 for the whole Council area as 35,952.7 [Item T in the formula in Section 31B of the Local Government Finance Act 1992, as amended (the "Act")] ; and

2.         That the Council Tax requirement for the Council’s own purposes for 2023/24

is calculated at £8,101,581.

3.         That the following amounts be calculated for the year 2023/24 in accordance with Sections 31 to 36 of the Act:

As the business of the meeting had not been completed within the additional 30 minutes, a vote on continuation in line with Full Council Procedure Rule 8.3 was held. The Mayor required the Full Council to consider if it wished to continue with the meeting.

Having put it to the vote, the Council agreed that the meeting be continued for an additional period not exceeding 30 minutes

To consider, in accordance with Full Council Procedure Rule 1.1-H, the following Notice of Motion to be moved by Councillor Crow and seconded by Councillor Burgess.

The Full Council considered the Notice of Motion – Motion on the Sale of Nitrous Oxide – as set out on page 75 of the agenda.

The Motion was moved and presented by Councillor Crow, who in doing so gave further explanation of the reasoning behind the Motion. It was seconded and supported by Councillor Burgess.

Councillor S Mullins moved and presented Amendment 1to the Notice of Motion (as shown in the Supplementary Agenda Order Paper). The amendment was seconded by Councillor Pritchard.

Councillors Lamb and K Khan also spoke on the item.

Councillor Crow, using their right to reply, commented that he would accept Councillor S Mullins’ amendment and include it as part of the substantive recommendation. The Mayor then called for a vote on the amendment, which was carried unanimously. The Mayor then called for a vote on the substantive recommendation as amended which was also carried unanimously.

RESOLVED

This Council notes that:

In September 2021, the Home Office asked the independent Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) to review the harm caused by Nitrous Oxide, known as laughing gas, after it was reported that over half a million young people took the drug in 2019-20.

The sale of Nitrous Oxide for its psychoactive effects was made illegal after the Psychoactive Substances Act in 2016, but it is not currently a crime to be caught in possession of the drug, despite the fact that inhaling Nitrous Oxide can cause serious long-term health impacts.

Nitrous Oxide is commonly used at anti-social gatherings and leads to widespread littering in public places, including in Crawley, where the amount of discarded small silver canisters often seen suggests there is an issue with this within the Borough.

This Council notes:

The Minister for Crime, Policing and Fire, Chris Philp MP, has already requested that the review into Nitrous Oxide be fast tracked with a call for evidence that closed yesterday, with a view to making a formal announcement in order to support further action on Nitrous Oxide by the government later this year.

This Council resolves to:

For the Cabinet Member for Community Engagement and Public Protection to write to Chris Philp MP, on a cross party basis on behalf of the Council's entire membership, to urge him to bring forward legislation this year to ban direct consumer sales and possession of Nitrous Oxide without lawful reason. Such a lawful reason would include sale and possession of nitrous oxide for the purposes of food or drink production i.e. cake making.

There will be a maximum of 30 minutes for Councillors’ Question Time (CQT). Councillors may ask questions relating to either a portfolio issue or with regard to the functions delegated to a Committee.

There are two methods for Councillors asking questions:

1.     Councillors can submit written questions in advance of the meeting and written answers will be provided on the evening of the Full Council.

2.     Councillors can also verbally ask questions during the CQT.

Councillors have the opportunity to ask oral supplementary questions in relation to either of the methods above.

As the business of the meeting had not been completed within the additional 30 minutes a vote on continuation in line with Full Council Procedure Rule 8.3 was held. The Mayor required the Full Council to consider if it wished to continue with the meeting.

Having put it to the vote, the Council agreed that the meeting be continued for an additional period not exceeding 30 minutes.

Following the agreement of the Full Council to continue the meeting, the Mayor restarted Councillors' Questions Time.

To receive the minutes of the meetings of the Cabinet, Overview and Scrutiny Commission and Committees, as listed on page 19, and set out in the appendices to this item and to debate any Reserved Items contained within those Minutes.

NB:  In advance of the meeting Political Groups can identify any items they wish to debate as a Reserved Item.  These Reserved Items will then be the only matters to be the subject of debate.

Moved by Councillor Rana (as the Deputy Mayor):-

RESOLVED

That the following reportsbe received:

·         Planning Committee – 5 December 2022

·         Overview and Scrutiny Commission – 9 January 2023

·         Planning Committee – 10 January 2023

·         Governance Committee – 24 January 2023

·         Overview and Scrutiny Commission – 30 January 2023

·         Cabinet – 1 February 2023

·         Planning Committee – 6 February 2023

·         Licensing Committee – 7 February 2023

There were no items for debate.