Minutes:
Councillor Tom Dyer to Councillor Ric Metcalfe, Leader of the Council
Question
Can the Leader outline how the reduction in supply and thus increase in material costs have impacted City Council capital projects?
Reply
Councillor Ric Metcalfe stated that the City Council's capital projects had of course been impacted as a result of the current challenges in the construction sector, particularly around the supply of skilled labour, the availability of materials and their costs, which had been affected by inflation. The Council's officers continued to work hard to minimise these impacts.
Much depended on the relationship between the Council and its contractors and the Council was fortunate in that it had good contractor relationships, such that the Council could work collaboratively with them to minimise the impact of cost increases. For example, the sorts of things that could be used were: rescheduling the programme to absorb delays; changing materials where appropriate; accepting some delay without imposing a time penalty, so the contractor would not charge more to reflect the increase in costs; the use of contingency sums, which were always included in contracts; and looking for a quid pro quo from contractors, to share any escalation of costs.
Inevitably some projects had been or would be delayed in terms of completion dates, leading to some cost impacts. All of these would be reported in the normal way; and the Council was doing all it could to minimise any impact.
Supplementary
Councillor Tom Dyer referred to the expectation that the shortage of materials would continue for the rest of 2021, with prices increasing further in the short term. Between July 2020 and July 2021, the cost of materials had risen by circa 20%, according to the Office for National Statistics. Councillor Dyer asked whether, assuming a major scheme such as the western growth corridor were to be approved later this year, the Leader of the Council could outline how the current market would impact on the Council's ability to deliver this project. This was asked specifically because of the time-limited nature of the grants that would help fund the western growth corridor project.
Reply
Councillor Ric Metcalfe stated that he would not be commenting on specific projects, such as the western growth corridor. He made reference to the principle that where a contract referred to a fixed-price cost, any increase in costs would be met by the contractor. An example of this was the contract for the crematorium, which was a fixed price contract. Thus a large part of the answer was that it would depend on the content of the contract.
Supply issues would lead to delay in some programmes and would mean later completion dates, where rescheduling the programme and the use of contingencies within the programme could not be applied. The De Wint Court contract was an example of this circumstance.
In other projects, where there had been a negotiation of a fixed price for costs, the Council had either reached an overall agreed financial position without achieving the normally expected savings or the Council had achieved a lower cost position, with an agreement to share the financial impact with the contractor of any increase in material costs.
Delay was always possible and with delay there were always some additional costs, but this depended on the contract. This was being monitored closely and the impact was being monitored by officers during these challenging times.
Councillor Christopher Reid to Councillor Bob Bushell, Portfolio Holder for Place
Question
As Councillor Bushell will no doubt be aware, the on-going closures of a number of uphill public conveniences continue to cause issues for residents and businesses in the area. What additional steps is the Council taking to prevent the problems of some anti-social people choosing to use the streets, gardens and driveways of uphill Lincoln, in place of these closed toilets?
Reply
Councillor Bob Bushell stated in reply that there was no ongoing closure of toilets in Lincoln, only a confirmation of those that had been closed, or maintained just for events. As stated at the Policy Scrutiny Committee, the Executive and the Council, whilst the Council deeply regretted having to close any facilities, the provision of public conveniences was not a statutory function. The Council was committed to reviewing the provision of public conveniences, if its finances were to improve.
The lack of a public toilet was not an excuse for anyone not to have planned their likely toileting requirements and to behave accordingly. Going to the toilet in the locations suggested was an offence, and the Council trusted that the police would treat it as such.
Supplementary
Councillor Reid stated that the actions referred to in the question had been happening and were continuing to happen, a situation which could be confirmed by local residents, and particularly over the last eighteen months. Councillor Reid asked what the Council was doing to prevent this.
Reply
Councillor Bushell stated that there were adequate toilet facilities in that area, including an award winning public convenience in Castle Square and a public convenience in the Castle itself. There was good provision across the City.
Councillor David Clarkson to Councillor Bob Bushell, Portfolio Holder for Place
Question
Can the portfolio holder update Council with the usage rates of the City of Lincoln Council electric vehicle charging points?
Reply
Councillor Bushell stated in reply that he had extensive data, which he would be willing to share on email if any councillor wished to receive it. At Lucy Tower Street car park, where there was one charging point with two sockets, there had been 17 usages in July and 18 in August 2021. At Broadgate car park, where was one charging point with two sockets, there had been 43 usages in July and 45 in August 2021. At Chaplin Street car park, where there were five charging points, there had been 20 usages in July and 35 in August 2021. At Orchard Street car park, where there were four charging points, which had only recently been installed, there had been 16 usages in August 2021. At the Lawns car park, where there was one charging point with two sockets, there had been 39 usages in July and 48 in August 2021. At Lincoln Central car park, which had six charging points, there had been 135 usages in July and 166 in August 2021.
There had been a reduction in use during the lockdown, but the usage had been consistently increasing since that time.
Supplementary
Councillor Clarkson asked whether there were any plans to extend the network of vehicle charging points, especially in the more traditional tourist areas of the city.
Reply
Councillor Bushell replied that depending on finances there were plans to extend the network. These charging points had been funded by a grant. As ownership of electric vehicles increased, there would be a need for significantly more charging points. There were discussions on whether lamp posts might be used in the future as charging points. However, it was noted that national grid would need to be able to cope with the extra demand for electricity from vehicles.
Councillor Alan Briggs to Councillor Bob Bushell, Portfolio Holder for Place
Question
Does the City Council fully intend to follow the footsteps of other Lincolnshire district councils and rollout paper and card recycling?
Reply
Councillor Bob Bushell answered that the City of Lincoln Council remained a member of the Lincolnshire Waste Partnership, and as such had been fully involved in the discussions on separate paper and card collections. The transfer of waste from the ‘collection authority’, the City Council, to the ‘disposal authority’, Lincolnshire County Council, needed to be undertaken lawfully, and in the proper manner. This would mean that Lincolnshire County Council would serve a section 51 notice on the City of Lincoln Council, and this notice would set out the terms under which paper and card collection would be established.
Councillor Bushell added that when there would be clarity on the expected costs to the City of Lincoln Council, a report would be brought forward. It had been hoped that this would have been possible before now, but the Council was still awaiting the section 51 notice from Lincolnshire County Council. In any event, if Lincoln were to adopt paper and card collections, it was not anticipated that these would be before 2024.
Supplementary
Councillor Briggs asked whether the City of Lincoln fully intended to implement separate paper and card recycling, in the light of views expressed on social media.
Reply
Councillor Bushell confirmed that his earlier reply represented an accurate position of the City of Lincoln Council with regard to paper and card collections. There was a full intention to become involved in these collections.
Councillor Eddie Strengiel to Councillor Neil Murray, Portfolio Holder for Economy
Question
Can the portfolio holder update Council on when it plans to bring forward its review into parking in the City?
Reply
Councillor Neil Murray stated in reply that it was early days in the process. Parking services had been badly affected by Covid-19, but the Council was collecting data on this and the usage of the Council's car parks was improving week by week. The Council would have to see the impact of hybrid working arrangements, with people tending to work only part of the time in the office, before initiating the formal review.
Supplementary
Councillor Strengiel asked why had a decision been made on the school parking arrangements prior to the outcome of the parking review?
Reply
Councillor Murray replied that the Council had been requested to consider this, because some people had to use their car to take their children to school, which was acknowledged.
Councillor Matthew Fido to Councillor Ric Metcalfe, Leader of the Council
Question
Can the leader provide an update on local government reorganisation and devolution?
Reply
Councillor Ric Metcalfe advised that the Lincolnshire district council leaders, together with Lincolnshire County Council, had signalled their interest in another devolution deal. The former Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government had stated that local government had provided strong leadership during the pandemic and this could provide a platform to drive the country’s recovery from the pandemic and to continue re-shaping places and communities.
The County Council and the two greater Lincolnshire unitary authorities had also asked for a meeting with the government. A meeting had taken place at the beginning of September between civil servants and Lincolnshire local government officers. As part of the national context, it was understood that there had been thirty such meetings. It was understood that government had been seeking potential pilot areas and there would only be two or three areas likely to be given the go-ahead. These two or three pilots would be in advance of the long awaited white paper, which was expected sometime in the autumn 2021.
Councillor Metcalfe referred to the new Secretary of State, Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, and the situation was fast changing; and it was not known what views he would bring to the devolution agenda. Also, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government had been renamed as the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, but its title did not include local government.
Supplementary
Councillor Fido referred to the new Secretary of State's reputation as someone who had 'shaken up' various government departments and asked the Leader of the Council how he thought the Secretary of State would move local government forward and whether he looked forward to working with him in the future.
Reply
Councillor Metcalfe acknowledged that the new Secretary of State had a reputation for challenging the status quo, which was often a good thing, but it was not yet known what direction the new Secretary of State would lead his department. There had been changes to the ministerial team, which could bring more or less enthusiasm for local government re-organisation or devolution. It was understood that the will to undertake any local government re-organisation had diminished even further. However, owing to the centralising tendencies of many governments, a conversation on devolution would be welcome, because if local government could be given more autonomy, financially or in other respects, that would be positive.
Councillor Tom Dyer (in place of Councillor Bill Mara) to Councillor Sue Burke, Portfolio Holder for Reducing Inequality
Question
How is the military covenant monitored within the Council?
Reply
Councillor Sue Burke informed the Council that the armed forces community covenant helped to support serving and former military personnel and help reduce barriers. The armed forces community covenant was a declaration of mutual support between local authorities and the military. The two main principles were to remove any disadvantage that individuals in the armed forces and their families may experience as a result of serving; and an understanding that special consideration might be afforded serving and veteran personnel, if appropriate. The main service areas were health and wellbeing, education and housing.
The City of Lincoln Council was one of the signatories to the covenant with all the local authorities in Lincolnshire in 2017. The City of Lincoln Council focused on housing support; and monitoring was an integral part of the whole process; an example being the identification of armed forces personnel in the Council’s housing records.
The Council's housing allocation policy aligned with the covenant by making reference to armed services personnel in the section where priority was given to bidders with a local connection. This was difficult for armed forces personnel who moved around a lot as part of their military career and for whom it was difficult to prove a local connection to Lincoln. The Council's policy allowed those in, or leaving the armed forces, to refer to periods while serving or prior to serving as evidence of a connection.
The Council's lead officer was Joanne Crookes (Customer Services Manager), who was able to deal with any enquiries. The Council was in regular contact with welfare organisations such as the British Legion and the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association. The City of Lincoln, with its connections to the armed forces, was honoured to play its part in the armed forces covenant.
Supplementary
Councillor Tom Dyer referred to Councillor Bill Mara having emailed officers some weeks ago and not having received a response. Councillor Dyer asked when Jo Crookes had been appointed as the responsible officer, as Councillor Mara had been told when he had emailed in July 2021 that there was no responsible officer.
Reply
Councillor Sue Burke advised in her reply that a response to the email from Councillor Mara had now been issued. Unfortunately there had been a mix-up and the relevant director had apologised for this. The date of appointment of Jo Crookes as the responsible officer for the armed forces covenant would be notified after the meeting.
Councillor Andy Kerry to Councillor Donald Nannestad, Portfolio Holder for Housing
Question
Can the portfolio holder update the council on the City Council's housing waiting list, detailing how many applicants are in each band?
Reply
Councillor Donald Nannestad advised that the Council had the following numbers on the housing register: Band One 215, Band Two 362, and Band Three 711, which gave an overall total of 1,288 applications. Band Two comprised existing tenants who were seeking to move. The reason for the numbers being at that level was the impact of 'Right to Buy'. At one time the Council had approximately 11,000 council properties, but now had less than 8,000. The remaining housing stock contained a disproportionate number of one or two bedroom dwellings, as the larger dwellings, the three and four bedroom properties, had largely been purchased. A number of those purchased properties were now rented privately, so rather than a new class of homeowners, as was originally intended, a new private landlord class had been created.
Supplementary
Councillor Andrew Kerry asked how many applicants were seeking three or four bedroom properties; and given the reduced number of three and four bedroom properties in the Council's stock, he also asked whether the Council was seeking to build these properties to meet the shortfall.
Reply
Council Donald Nannestad replied that there were approximately 250 applicants for three or four bedroom properties. In the Rookery Lane development there were some larger houses planned. The Council also had to be cognisant that there were a number of people waiting for two bedroom properties.
Since 1 June 2021, when the ban on evictions had been lifted, the Council had been receiving approximately 70 applications per week. It was likely that these numbers would continue to increase. These evictions had been taken place not because of any fault of the tenant, but because the landlord wished to sell the property. This represented a very difficult situation.
Councillor Mark Storer to Councillor Neil Murray, Portfolio Holder for Economy
Question
How does the Council square ambitions to encourage more children to walk and cycle to school, with their decision to offer discounted parking for parents dropping children off in cars?
Reply
Councillor Neil Murray advised that the discounted rate for car parking offer was only of benefit to the parents of those schools which had a City of Lincoln car park close by. The car parking offer would ensure that those parents who wished to drive their children to school, and this could be for a variety of reasons, were parked away from the road immediately outside of a school.
Whilst there was a hope that parents would always want to consider walking and cycling to school as preferable options, it was a fact of life that this was not always viable for families given other work-life pressures, or who simply lived too far away. Currently heavy traffic pressures are witnessed around many schools at certain times of the day, and the offer brought forward was simply an effort to reduce some of that pressure, and thus assist with child safety issues outside of schools.
Supplementary
Councillor Mark Storer asked for the full environmental impact of the decision to provide discounted parking for parents.
Reply
Councillor Neil Murray stated that he would see if this information could be provided.
Councillor Hilton Spratt to Councillor Ric Metcalfe, Leader of the Council
Question
Please can the Leader update Council on the Council’s financial position with respect to the ongoing budget shortfall?
Reply
Councillor Ric Metcalfe stated that the Council’s approved budget for 2021/22 had included a requirement to deliver savings of £850,000, which represented a significant sum. It had been reported to the Executive and the Performance Scrutiny Committee in August 2021 that at the end of quarter 1 savings of £427,040 had been secured against this target. The position as at quarter 2 would be reported to the Executive and the Performance Scrutiny Committee in November 2021. At this stage in the financial year there was confidence that the full £850,000 would be delivered in 2021/22. Whilst this was challenging, it was currently considered achievable.
Supplementary
Councillor Hilton Spratt asked whether the Leader of the Council agreed with the use of advice and guidance from the Local Government Association to local authorities in respect of how financial investments could support a carbon-free and sustainable future.
Reply
Councillor Ric Metcalfe confirmed that, as the Council had done for a number of years, the efforts on carbon reduction had yielded significant savings. All the energy efficiency measures, which the Council had been making, had made a contribution to reducing the city Council's overall carbon footprint. If there were further opportunities, as part of the Council's savings effort and as part of the climate change agenda, the Council would take them.