Agenda item

QUESTIONS BY THE PUBLIC

To receive questions from and provide answers to the public in relation to matters which are about something the council is responsible for or something that directly affects people in the city, in accordance with Part B, paragraph 11 of the Constitution.

 

Questions, of no longer than 50 words, can be submitted to the Democratic Support Unit, Plymouth City Council, Civic Centre, Plymouth, PL1 2AA, or email to democraticsupport@plymouth.gov.uk. Any questions must be received at least five complete working days before the meeting.

Minutes:

Four questions had been received from members of the public in relation to matters which, in the opinion of the Lord Mayor, were relevant to the business of the meeting in accordance with paragraph 10 of the constitution.

 

Mr Williams (Q3) attended the meeting and in the absence of Councillor Lowry, Councillor Penberthy responded as set out below -

 

Question No

Question By

Cabinet Member

Subject

Q3/13-14

Mr Williams

Councillor Lowry  (Cabinet Member for Finance)

Code of Conduct for Bailiffs

 

Does the authority have an extant code of conduct for its bailiffs?  If so, will this be published in a leaflet to the general public, as it did in the days of the Community Charge?  If not, will it devise such a code of conduct? 

Response:

 

As part of the bailiff contract process there is a specification document which details the code of conduct, or operational guidelines that we expect our provider to adhere to. 

 

This will not be published in a leaflet to the general public but it is intended to publish the details on the Council’s website in due course.

 

Some of the detail contained within the contract is:

 

Bailiffs will

  • carry full and proper photographic identification;
  • adopt a firm but polite attitude;
  • introduce himself or herself,  establish the identity of persons present and explain the purpose of the visit and powers of the Bailiff;
  • Not make any attempt to levy or remove goods without first consulting with Plymouth City Council where it is evident that a person is mentally impaired, frail, disabled, confused, ill, or living off limited income;
  • not enter premises if it appears that the only persons present are young people under the age of 18;
  • seek guidance from the Council before continuing action where English is not understood;
  • only enter by lawful means;
  • provide the required copies of the relevant rating regulation as appropriate where distraint takes place;
  • Exercise due care to avoid any unnecessary damage to goods being removed.

       

 

 

In the absence of the questioner for Q4, a written response would be sent to Mr Sharpe as set out below -

 

Question No

Question By

Cabinet Member

Subject

Q4 13/14

Mr Sharpe

Councillor Smith (Deputy Leader)

Plymstock swimming pool

Please can Plymstock Residents have an update regarding a public swimming pool in Plymstock, and can also a consultation day be arranged on the subject as we appear to be no nearer having one than twenty years ago?

 

Response:

 

There is no update on the situation with Plymstock Pool other than previously advised in previous answers concerning Sherford. As stated in earlier replies, consultation on Sherford has occurred on several occasions and therefore a consultation day is not necessary.

 

The local planning policy document for this area clearly sets out the need for Sherford to provide a Sports Hub north of Elburton incorporating a swimming pool and, as advised previously, the policy document was the subject of extensive public consultations in 2006. Also, as advised previously, the Planning Committee’s decision on the planning application in 2012 was made following consideration of public opinion and following extensive public consultations.

 

The required S106 has been drafted and discussed between the lawyers of PCC, SHDC and DCC and, I understand that our lawyers can see no reason why it cannot be signed shortly. The planning permission can then be issued to facilitate the commencement of development during this financial year. The S106 would ensure (amongst other things) that there would be the phased delivery of the sports centre and that this would incorporate a 4 lane heated 25m swimming pool in phase 1 (years 1-3).

 

 

Mr Taylor Wickenden (Q5) attended the meeting and in the absence of Councillor Lowry, Councillor Penberthy responded as set out below -

 

Question No

Question By

Cabinet Member

Subject

Q5 13/14

Mr Taylor-Wickenden

Councillor Lowry (Cabinet member for finance)

£60 court charge

 

 

Why would the Labour Council have the nerve to add a £60 charge upon already indebted households who are being brought to court because of the Bedroom tax and council tax rises and how would this affect Labour’s child poverty targets?  

 

Response:

 

Due to the Government’s changes as part of the Welfare Reform, the Council has worked very closely with partners to engage with the people of Plymouth who are affected.  We have worked with Social Landlords to find ways to support tenants that are affected by the ‘bedroom tax’ and have been proactive in working with individuals, and families, to help manage their finances; offering advice about unclaimed benefits and discounts and exemptions as well as offering the 12 monthly payment option and weekly instalments. 

 

However, despite this support, we are still aware that inevitably more people will fall into debt and therefore are subjected to recovery action.  As with anyone who defaults on a payment, our recovery action includes issuing reminders. As a last resort, if the payment remains outstanding we do issue a court summons and obtain a Liability Order. Even at this stage we work with our customers to help support with them offering alternatives ways to pay the debt, taking into account their individual circumstances.

 

The £60 summons cost represents the administrative costs incurred by the Council to get an account to that stage of recovery action.

 

Court Costs for Council Tax debts are reviewed each year and the decision was made to not increase costs during 2013/14, taking into account the financial impact of the Welfare Reform on council tax payers.

 

The austerity cuts at a national level are also impacting local government. We are being forced to take financial sums out of our spend while endeavouring to ensure that this doesn’t affect our most vulnerable households. 

 

While at a local level we are working hard to reduce our child poverty levels, it appears that current government policy is making this difficult for us to achieve.

 

 

Mr O Hara(Q6) attended the meeting and Councillor Vincent responded as set out below -

 

Question No

Question By

Cabinet Member

Subject

Q6 13/14

Mr O’Hara

Councillor Vincent (Cabinet member for Environment)

the city’s nitrogen dioxide diffusion tube results for 2012

 

With operations at MVV’s new incinerator impending and the associated HGV traffic increase, comprehensive recording of local ‘background’ AQ data is crucial. Data from the Weston Mill Drive location samplers, near the primary school, are particularly important. When will PCC publish the city’s nitrogen dioxide diffusion tube results for 2012?

Response:

 

Monitoring data is presented in an annual progress report to DEFRA. Once the report has been accepted by DEFRA it is made available to the public and uploaded to the Councils website. It is anticipated that this information will be updated in the next few months.

 

However, a spread sheet containing the full set of monitoring results across the city will be sent to Mr O’Hara by email.

 

For immediate reference, the 2012 annual nitrogen dioxide results for the monitoring at 3 Weston Mill Drive is 31.43 micrograms per metre cubed.

 

The National Air Quality Objective for nitrogen dioxide is 40 micrograms per metre cubed.