Resolved:  That all items on the agenda be web-cast.

It was noted that Councillor Moriarty was substituting for Councillor Chittenden.

There were no visiting Members.

a)  Disclosures of interest.

b)  Disclosures of lobbying.

c)  Disclosures of whipping.

There were none.

Resolved:  That all items on the agenda be taken in public as proposed.

a)  3 March 2009; and

b)  24 March 2009.

Resolved:  That the minutes of the meetings held on 3 March and 24 March 2009 be agreed as correct records and duly signed by the Chairman.

The Chairman proposed that Agenda item 10, ‘Best Value Review of Waste Services’, be taken before Agenda item 8, ‘Cabinet Member for Environment: Progress During 2008/09’.  Members of the Committee agreed to this proposal.

Resolved:  ThatAgenda item 10, ‘Best Value Review of Waste Services’, be taken before Agenda item 8, ‘Cabinet Member for Environment: Progress During 2008/09’. 

Interview with:

·  The Director of Change and Environmental Services, David Edwards; and

·  The Policy and Performance Manager, Georgia Hawkes.

Report to Follow.

The Chairman welcomed David Edwards, the Director of Change and Environmental Services, Steve Goulette, the Assistant Director of Environmental Services and Georgia Hawkes, the Policy and Performance Manager to the meeting.  Following a brief introduction from the witnesses outlining the contents of the Best Value Review of Waste and Recycling Services Scoping Report, the Committee suggested the following amendments and clarifications to the report:

·  Clarification of the recycling rate as the table at 1.7.5 showed Maidstone’s 2007/08 recycling rate at 24.54%, whereas the table at 1.17.2 showed it as 19%;

·  Whether the £917,000 difference in the costs of Maidstone’s service compared to the costs of the service in the borough offering best value for money for waste and recycling was a like for like comparison and to what authority this referred to;

·  With reference to 1.17.13, clarification that the weekend freighter service was not free as residents paid for the service through taxation; and

·  With reference to 1.12.11, the topic of CO² emissions be expanded to include emissions from vehicles and exploration of new fleet vehicles to reduce emissions.

Members discussed the report and considered that the following could be investigated as part of the Best Value Review:

·  Potential for exploration of disposal arrangements for items collected as part of the freighter service, including re-use;

·  Simplification of the bulky waste collection charges;

·  Consideration of the perceptions of residents receiving the new recycling service, including the amount of residual waste and possible collection arrangements; and

·  Potential for partnership working arrangements for waste and recycling collection as the collection contract was due for renewal in 2013.

Mr Edwards explained that the involvement of Overview and Scrutiny Committees in Best Value Reviews had traditionally only included consideration of the contents of the scoping document, the options report and implementation plan.  The Committee was invited to do this in addition to reviewing the collection arrangements as part of the Best Value Review.  The Committee agreed to this proposal.

A number of Councillors noted that they had had problems receiving e-mails and had therefore been unable to consider the scoping document prior to the meeting.  It was agreed that the Committee would make any further comments regarding the scoping report to the Overview and Scrutiny Officer by Friday 8 May 2009.

The Chairman thanked the witnesses for an informative presentation.

The Web Cast from this session is available at http://clients.westminster-digital.co.uk/maidstone/archive.aspx.

Resolved:  That

a)  The Committee review the collection arrangements for waste and recycling services as part of the Best Value Review in the municipal year 2009/10;

b)  The Committee submit further comments with regard to the scoping report to the Overview and Scrutiny Officer by Friday 8 May;

c)  The scoping report be amended to reflect the following amendments and clarifications:

  i.  Clarification of the recycling rate as the table at 1.7.5 showed Maidstone’s 2007/08 recycling rate at 24.54%, whereas the table at 1.17.2 showed it as 19%;

  ii.  Whether the £917,000 difference in the costs of Maidstone’s service compared to the costs of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 125.

Interview with the Cabinet Member for Environment, Councillor Mark Wooding.

The Chairman welcomed the Cabinet Member for Environment, Councillor Mark Wooding, to the meeting.  The Committee received an update from the Cabinet Member regarding the progress he had made during the municipal year 2008/09 and discussed the following topics:

·  The challenge of ensuring the Council continued to provide quality services whilst making efficiency savings, particularly in light of the economic recession;

·  The unexpected delays in the second and third stages of the new recycling scheme’s implementation as a result of the international demand for bins.  An increased price of oil used to produce the bins had increased the cost of purchasing the bins from £12.90 to £17, costing an additional £165,000;

·  The rate of recycling had increased in Maidstone from 18% to 26-27% and it was anticipated that this would increase to 36-37% following the full implementation of the new recycling scheme;

·  The success of environmental campaigns in promoting a clean and tidy borough including: Clean Sweep; fast food litter; and Love Food, Hate Waste.  It was also noted that Maidstone’s street cleaning service was in the top quartile nationally;

·  A review of litter bins had been carried out following the Committee’s recommendation in March and metal bins would now be used to replace plastic bins as problems of vandalism arose.  A Member requested that locally manufactured bins be considered;

·  Following the Committee’s recommendation, the Urban Traffic Control Management system had been extended to include management on Saturdays.  It was hoped that this would ease congestion and improve air quality;

·  The Council had introduced carbon reduction targets of 20% by 2015/16 and 30% by 2020/21.  Carbon reduction targets had been introduced to replace ‘carbon neutral’ targets as there had been some confusion regarding the definition of ‘carbon neutral’;

·  The National Health Service and Primary Care Trust had repeatedly failed to provide health information measuring the impact of air quality.  Health Impact Assessments were therefore being undertaken to inform air quality management;

·  Members requested that the Cabinet Member exert pressure on the Department for Transport to implement the order required for a controlled motorway on the M20 Maidstone corridor; and

·  Members were encouraged to contact the Environmental Enforcement Team if they were aware of problems of litter outside shop premises.

The Web Cast from this session is available at http://clients.westminster-digital.co.uk/maidstone/archive.aspx.

Resolved: That

a)  The Cabinet Member for Environment exert pressure on the Department for Transport to speed up the implementation of the order required for a controlled motorway on junctions 4 to 7 of the M20;

b)  The use of locally manufactured bins be explored; and

c)  The update from the Cabinet Member be noted.

Interview with the Cabinet Member for Leisure and Culture, Councillor Brian Moss.

The Chairman welcomed the Cabinet Member for Leisure and Culture, Councillor Brian Moss, to the meeting.  The Committee received an update from the Cabinet Member regarding the progress he had made during the municipal year 2008/09 and discussed the following:

·  The challenge of achieving savings of £1.9 million across the Council’s budget, particularly as most areas of the Leisure and Culture portfolio were discretionary.  However, Councillor Moss noted the continued importance of the portfolio, as leisure and culture contributed to making Maidstone a place where people wanted to live;

·  A lottery grant of £2.5 million had been awarded for Mote Park renovations.  This included repair and conservation work in and around the lake, works to trees and two new sub centres with play areas, toilets and parking;

·  A month long fair in Mote Park during the school summer holidays had recently been agreed.  Members welcomed this innovation, but requested that it be ensured that minimal damage was done to the park.  A Member requested the location of the proposed site be investigated as ‘Friends of Mote Park’ had identified that the fairground location was on an area requiring ecological protection;

·  It was anticipated that Maidstone Leisure Trust would be signing a15 year contract and that this would ensure that the effect on the Council’s budget was broadly cost neutral;

·  The Council’s parks and gardens were now managed by a direct labour force and initial problems encountered under this new arrangement had been addressed.  A Member had previously requested that grass cutting of the Millennium Greens be considered and this would be explored;

·  It was anticipated that the building of the athletics track would be completed by August 2009;

·  The Museum and Bentliff Art Gallery east wing extension was continuing, however attracting investment had been difficult in the current financial climate;

·  The Council’s allotments now had a small waiting list and demand was particularly high in the villages.  Demand would continue to be monitored and land dedicated land for expansion of allotments would be considered if required;

·  The achievement of the Kent Conference Bureau in gaining first place for their brochure in the 2008 South East Tourism Awards.  The structure of the Bureau had been reviewed to ensure it was revenue neutral to the Council; and

·  The Arts Development department had given him cause for concern as it was difficult to secure grant funding in the current economic climate.

The Web Cast from this session is available at http://clients.westminster-digital.co.uk/maidstone/archive.aspx.

Resolved: That

a)  The Cabinet Member for Leisure and Culture investigate the fairground location in Mote Park with regard to the proposed site’s ecological protection and ensure minimal damage is done to Mote Park; and

b)  The update from the Cabinet Member for Leisure and Culture be noted.

Report to Follow.

Members considered the draft Public Conveniences Report and agreed that they would contact the Overview and Scrutiny Officer, Mrs Bell, with any further comments.  The Committee made the following initial comments and suggested amendments:

·  That the recommendations to close public conveniences only be made if an alternative provision is available;

·  That it be clarified that the recommendations in the report were interlinked;

·  That the report note that the town centre was busy in the evenings as a result of people visiting bars and restaurants and that these establishments provided a toilet provision;

·  That the photo on the front of the report be amended to an exterior image; and

·  That the title of the report be amended to ‘Public Conveniences Review’.

The Committee agreed that the final draft of the report be circulated to Members on Monday 11 May, for final comments by 28 May.  The Committee agreed that the report should be approved by the Chairman, in consultation with the Vice-Chairman, prior to its submission to the Cabinet Member for Environment. 

Resolved: That

a)  The Committee submit further comments with regard to the draft Public Conveniences Report to the Overview and Scrutiny Officer;

b)  The Committee receive the final draft of the public conveniences report by 11 May and submit comments to the Overview and Scrutiny Officer by Monday 28 May;

c)  The Chairman approve the final draft of the Public Conveniences report for submission to the Cabinet Member for Environment in consultation with the Vice-Chairman; and

d)  The report be amended to include the following:

  i.  That the recommendations to close public conveniences only be made if an alternative provision is available;

  ii.  That it be clarified that the recommendations in the report were interlinked;

  iii.  That it be noted in the report that the town centre was busy in the evenings as a result of people visiting bars and restaurants and that these establishments provided a toilet provision;

  iv.  That the photo on the front of the report be amended to an exterior image; and

  v.  That the title of the report be amended to ‘Public Conveniences Review’.

The Chairman highlighted the forthcoming work programming workshop on 27 May 2009 to the Committee and it was agreed that Members would contact the Overview and Scrutiny team with further work programme suggestions. 

A Councillor raised concern that there had been some delay in agreeing the Committee’s work programme in 2008/09 with two meetings having been dedicated to it.  The Overview and Scrutiny Officer highlighted that the Committee had agreed to review the collection arrangements as part of the Best Value Review of Waste and Recycling Services and it was agreed that this review would commence at its meeting on 23 June 2009.

A Member noted the length of the meeting and requested that future Cabinet Member progress reports include a written report from the Cabinet Member.

Resolved:   That

a)  The Committee contact the Overview and Scrutiny Team with work programme suggestions for the work programming workshop on 27 May 2009; and

b)  Cabinet Members provide the Committee with written progress reports at future Cabinet Member Progress Report interviews.

6.30pm to 9.40pm.