Agenda item

To consider the following motions:

 

·  Tackling empty homes in Southwark

·  Local government devolution.

MOTION 1 – TACKLING EMPTY HOMES IN SOUTHWARK (See page 10 of the main agenda and page 8 of supplemental agenda 2)

 

This motion was considered prior to the guillotine having fallen.

 

Councillor Adele Morris, seconded by Councillor Ben Johnson, moved the amended motion.

 

Councillors Tom Flynn and Leo Pollak moved and seconded Amendment B.

 

Following debate (Councillors Mark Williams, Hamish McCallum, Richard Livingstone and Neil Coyle), at 10.05pm the Mayor announced that the guillotine had fallen.

 

Amendment B was put to the vote and declared to be carried.

 

The substantive motion was put the to the vote and declared to be carried.

 

RESOLVED:

 

1.  That council assembly:

 

1)  Notes the projected rise in the borough's population within the next twenty years and the need to ensure sufficient housing as part of the borough's housing strategy and the new Southwark Plan.

 

2)  Notes that Southwark has one of the strongest records in London for delivering new homes, with more affordable homes being delivered over the last 3 years than any other London borough.

 

3)  Welcomes the administration’s commitment to build 11,000 new council homes, with the first 1,500 to be delivered by 2018.

 

2.  That council assembly also:

 

1)  Agrees that minimising the number of empty homes in the borough will also be a key way of ensuring the maximum number of homes for Southwark residents.

 

2)  Notes recent media reports of some other inner London boroughs where up to one third of new developments are said to be left empty as 'buy to leave' investment opportunities.

 

3)  Welcomes the new powers given to local authorities by the government to charge additional council tax for second and long-term empty homes and notes that Southwark was one of the first local authorities to use these powers.

 

4)  Notes, however, that minimising the number of empty homes in the borough on its own will not meet the growing demand for housing, which will require more homes to be built across the borough, particularly affordable homes.

 

3.  That council assembly therefore calls on the cabinet to:

 

1)  Identify ways the council's planning powers could be used to ensure future new homes in Southwark do not stay empty for more than three months.

 

2)  Increase the number of existing empty homes in the borough that are charged council tax by reviewing the current council tax exemptions on empty homes.

 

3)  Support calls for the qualifying period for charging the empty home premium to be reduced from two years to one and for the amount to be increased from 150% to 200% council tax.

 

4)  Continue to build more homes of every type in Southwark, including council homes at council rents.

 

Note: This motion will be referred as a recommendation to the cabinet for consideration

 

MOTION 2 – LOCAL GOVERNMENT DEVOLUTION (See pages 10 - 11 of the main agenda and page 10 of supplemental agenda 2)

 

The guillotine having fallen, Councillors Rebecca Lury and Kieron Williams formally moved and seconded the motion.

 

Councillors David Hubber and Rosie Shimell formally moved and seconded Amendment C.

 

Amendment C 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 believes that local government has significant potential to shape outcomes for residents and to positively change the lives of people in our borough. Therefore, council assembly believes that local government is best placed to deliver services to residents to meet local need.

 

2.  That local government has proved itself as the most efficient part of government. Local authorities are continuing to delivering services, balance budgets and grow local economies while at the same time making huge savings, following government cuts of up to 30% of councils’ budgets.

 

3.  That the devolution of public health to local authorities has been a welcome first step towards delivering better health outcomes and a more joined up approach to health and social care. Council assembly notes the efforts of this administration to put public health in Southwark at the front and centre of the council’s priorities in every area, including transport, housing, leisure and environment.

 

4.  That council assembly believes giving local government greater control over health and welfare spending has the potential to tackle health inequalities locally, to deliver better services and to save taxpayers money.

 

5.  That council assembly calls on cabinet to work with other London boroughs and the Mayor of London to lobby government to be less centralist and to introduce greater devolution to local authorities in London.  Council assembly further calls on cabinet to write to the Secretary of State for Health and the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions to call for the devolution of greater health and welfare powers to local government, in order to improve service delivery and local accountability.

 

Note: This motion will be referred as a recommendation to the cabinet for consideration.

 

MOTION 3 - Late Motion on HIV testing(See white paper circulated at the meeting)

 

This motion was considered as part of the themed debate.

 

Councillors David Noakes and Dan Garfield formally moved and seconded the motion.

 

The motion was put to the vote and declared to be carried.

 

RESOLVED:

 

1.  That Southwark Council:

 

1)  Recognises the importance of local action in coordinating and commissioning accessible and effective HIV testing to reach the undiagnosed and reduce late HIV diagnosis.

 

2)  Recognises that Southwark has a high prevalence of HIV (over 2 diagnosed per 1,000 residents) and commits to strengthening its own provision of HIV testing services through working with local NHS partners, HIV charities and patient groups.

 

3)  Recognises that late HIV diagnosis is a Public Health Outcomes Indicator in the Public Health Outcomes Framework.

 

4)  Recognises the volume and quality of public health and local government guidelines and performance indicators designed to support local authority implementation and monitoring of appropriate and effective testing guidelines.

 

2.  That the council further notes:

 

1)  That an estimated 100,000 people were living in England with HIV in 2012; 22% were unaware of their status.

 

2)  That there is an impact of late diagnosis on individual health, public health and health budgets. Late diagnosis increases the likelihood of the need for complex and expensive treatment and the risk of onward transmission to others. 47% of people diagnosed with HIV in 2012 were diagnosed late (with a CD4 count <350mm3).

 

3)  That if diagnosed early, put on a clear treatment pathway and guaranteed access to antiretroviral therapy (ART), people living with HIV can expect to have a near-normal life expectancy and live healthy and active lives.

 

3.  That recognising the weight of evidence in favour of expanding local HIV testing services, Southwark Council:

 

1)  Resolves to:

 

·  Act to halve the proportion of people diagnosed late with HIV (CD4 count <350mm3) in Southwark by 2020.

 

·  Act to halve the proportion of people living with undiagnosed HIV in Southwark by 2020.

 

2)  Further resolves to:

 

·  Ensure that rates of late diagnosed HIV are included as an indicator in its Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA).

 

·  Ask the Director of Public Health to provide a report outlining what needs to be done locally in commissioning and provision of services in order to halve late diagnosed and undiagnosed HIV by 2020.

 

·  Become a supporter of the Halve It Coalition by contacting the Halve It secretariat (info@halveit.org.uk) informing them of this resolution and by agreeing to be listed as a Halve It coalition supporter.

 

Note: This motion will be referred as a recommendation to the cabinet for consideration.