Issue - meetings

Report of the Leader detailing Executive Business for the last two months, attached.

The report of the Leader of the Council was submitted setting out the details of the business undertaken by the Executive.

The Leader and the Cabinet made statements and responded to Questions.

The following questions were then submitted in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 11.1

1.  Blacklisting

Question from Councillor Pope to Councillor Letts

On 7th October 2015, in the Consulting Association blacklisting cases at the High Court, construction firms* admitted that they had infringed workers’ rights to confidentiality, privacy, reputation and data protection, plus admitting defamation. Plus, they were ordered by the High Court in July 2015 to conduct comprehensive searches for evidence of blacklisting. Several of these firms have operated in Southampton, including on the Sea City Museum, the former Ordnance Survey site, and on Watermark West Quay.

What will this Council do to ensure that blacklisting was not and will not be conducted on the City’s construction sites? Will this include planning conditions and conditions in Employment and Skills Plans and S106 Agreements?

*The firms named were: Carillion, Balfour Beatty, Costain, Kier, Laing O’Rourke, Skanska, Sir Robert McAlpine, Vinci, Amec, BAM, Cleveland Bridge, Lend Lease"

Answer

The Council will use whatever binding contractual terms it can when negotiating contracts with suppliers to play its part in ensuring blacklisting does not happen.  It already forms part of the ethical procurement policy. It is unlikely in law this can extend to planning conditions, but subject to further consideration may be able to be included in employment and skills plans and s.106 agreements.

2.  Fuel poverty in Council blocks

Question from Councillor Pope to Councillor Payne

As of October 2015, tenants of this Council in blocks such as Millbrook Towers and Redbridge Towers are paying almost £1,000 a year for their heating alone, and in the Council's own words, "may still be suffering from fuel poverty". Despite this, there are no firm plans to improve the heating or insulation infrastructure. Would the Cabinet Member agree that this is an outrageous situation, and commit today to taking action to reduce such costs for tenants by half in this financial year and in every financial year? Can you also please explain why such infrastructure spending was in your Woolston ward first?

Answer

Residents at Millbrook Towers, along with all tenants on the citywide communal heating scheme, will receive a 2.5% reduction in their charges in the coming year. The Council aims to close the communal account in the future and provide all residents with modern energy supplies, their own bill and heating controls. To bring this about, the Council intends to continue its greening programme of Council housing beyond the CESP and ECO related projects already completed, proposed or underway.

The Council is awaiting guidance from Central Government on precisely what scheme will replace ECO in March 2017 and what funding opportunities will exist. Under ECO, greater grants could be secured and more benefit delivered to tenants in solid-wall concrete blocks such as those undergoing improvements, rather than  ...  view the full minutes text for item 56