Minutes:
Report: See page 67 of the main agenda
Councillor Paul Bates sought the consent of the meeting to allow Councillor John Friary to move Amendment E in the absence of Councillor Peter John. The consent was granted.
Councillor Nick Stanton, seconded by Councillor Kim Humphreys, moved the motion.
Councillor Lisa Rajan, seconded by Councillor Caroline Pidgeon, moved Amendment C.
During debate (Councillors Veronica Ward, Paul Noblet, Chris Page, Andrew Pakes, Dominic Thorncroft, Alison McGovern, Bob Skelly, Anood Al-Samerai and Lewis Robinson), Councillor Kim Humphreys made a point of personal explanation. Following which Councillor Nick Stanton exercised his right of reply.
Amendment C was put to the vote and declared to be carried.
Councillor Paul Kyriacou, seconded by Councillor James Barber, moved Amendment D.
During debate (Councillors Barrie Hargrove and Nick Stanton), the bell was rang. The Mayor then announced that the guillotine had fallen.
Amendment D was put to the vote and declared to be carried.
The guillotine having fallen, Councillors John Friary and Martin Seaton, formally moved and seconded Amendment E. Amendment E was put to the vote and declared to be lost.
The substantive motion was put to the vote and declared to be carried.
RESOLVED:
1. That council assembly notes the transformation of Southwark over the last eight years, from one of the worst performing London boroughs under Labour control to one of the best.
2. That in particular council assembly notes how prudent budgeting and financial competence has meant Southwark residents have benefited from cost of living tax rises, rather than inflation busting rises under Labour, illustrated by Band D council tax increasing 94% from £397 to £776 between 1994 and 2002 and by just 17.5% (to £912) since then, protecting pensioners and those on fixed incomes.
3. That council assembly also notes the rise in council tax collection rates from just 80% under Labour to 96% last year and believes they are set to rise further as a result of the council’s decision to bring the service in-house.
4. That council assembly is pleased to record that local peoples’ satisfaction with the council has increased in this time from 57% in 2000 to 67% in 2008 and notes that local environments are much improved with people feeling much safer walking outside their homes, and more satisfied with street lighting, street cleaning and recycling than they were under the previous Labour administration.
5. That council assembly further notes that after many years’ delay and lack of commitment under Labour, all of the big regeneration schemes – Bermondsey Spa, Canada Water, Aylesbury and Elephant and Castle – are together on course to transform the borough.
6. That in addition, council assembly notes the council’s record housing investment that has seen, over the last five years, a £374m major works programme (over and above the Labour government’s basic standard) including roof repairs, window replacements, electrical rewiring, boiler replacements, concrete repairs, external decorations, cavity wall and loft insulation and kitchen and bathroom refurbishment (including a doubling of spending from £4.1m pa to £8.7m pa on lifts, heating, electrics and tank room refurbishments); recognises this approach has widespread support from the tenants’ movement and is reflected in increased tenants’ satisfaction with housing services and believes much more could be achieved if the government ended the spending restrictions on the council.
7. That council assembly welcomes Simon Hughes MP’s Town and Country Planning Act (Amendment) private member’s bill which by proposing to lift restrictions on the use of planning gain would significantly increase resources for Southwark’s social housing of all types, and calls on all the borough MPs to support it in the House of Commons.
8. That council assembly is delighted at the continued achievements of Southwark school students, with the highest ever pass rates at GSCE in 2009 – with the total gaining five or more A* to C grades including English and maths increasing to 46.0% and the number of those achieving five or more A* to C grades in total improving from 56.3% in 2008 to 67.5% in 2009. Assembly further notes this improvement is mirrored in the borough’s primary schools which now boast results better than leafy shires such as Essex and East Sussex.
9. That council assembly notes that educational achievement was so poor under the Labour administration, with woeful pass rates for GCSE and barely half of 11 year olds competent in English and maths, that the education department had to be put in special measures by the government and handed to the private sector.
10. That council assembly welcomes the recognition for Southwark’s recent educational improvement from local MPs and others, and particularly notes comments from Harriet Harman that “In the past only a few Southwark young people went on to further and higher education. This is now changing. Previously only 185 Camberwell and Peckham young people started university. This year there are 525 young people entering further and higher education” (Source: Annual Report 2009). And congratulates all students, staff and parents for all their hard work and dedication.
11. That council assembly notes the six fold increase in recycling in the last eight years, from just 3.6% in 2002 under the previous Labour administration to 21% in 2009 and strongly regrets the lack of priority given to recycling and environmental issues by the previous Labour administration.
12. That council assembly notes the various initiatives taken by the current administration to boost recycling including the current introduction of a simple single co-mingled recycling bin to replace the various containers and the introduction of the clear bag collection service now available to over 41,000 properties including residents living in flats above shops and other hard to reach dwellings. Further notes there are now also 553 publicly accessible bring sites in the borough, 410 recycling sites within Southwark's private estates, commuter bins in and around transport hubs, a recycling enforcement programme and a complementary incentivisation scheme to boost recycling participation.
13. That council assembly notes the additional materials that residents are now able to recycle in Southwark with battery points installed in all libraries in the borough, the Town Hall and Manor Place offices (in addition to the household waste reuse and recycling centre) and two additional tetra pak sites have been put in place, with another two to follow in the near future. Notes there are now a total of 25 locations in the borough where textiles can now be recycling.
14. That council welcomes the decision to extend further the range of materials recycled with the introduction of food waste collections, which will be in place by 2015 at the latest, and a programme of improvements on council, housing association and private estates right across the borough, expanding the clear bag scheme and installing or improving recycling centre facilities and believes that all these initiatives will mean Southwark will further massively boost recycling rates to 40% and beyond.