Resolved:  That agenda items 1-9 and 11 be web-cast.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Mrs J Naghi, Mrs D Parvin and Mrs P Stockell.

It was noted that Councillors Brindle, Mrs Hinder and D Naghi were substituting for Councillors Mrs Stockell, Mrs Parvin and Mrs J Naghi respectively.

It was noted that Councillor English was a visiting Member with an interest in Agenda Item 9, Joint Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells Health Working Group.

Resolved: That:

a)  Councillor Mrs Stockell be elected Chairman for the Municipal Year 2010-11; and

b)  Councillor Mrs Paterson be elected Vice Chairman

for the Municipal Year 2010/11.

Councillor Mortimer disclosed a personal interest in Agenda Item 9, Joint Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells Health Working Group, as an employee of the Health care industry.

It was noted that all Councillors had been lobbied by a member of the public in respect of Agenda Item 10, the future Work Programme.

There were no disclosures of whipping.

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

Resolved: That the Minutes of the meeting of the External Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting of 13 April 2010 be agreed and duly signed by the Vice Chairman.

The Committee discussed the setting up of a Joint Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee with Tunbridge Wells Borough Council. The Vice Chairman proposed that as well as nominating three Councillors to sit on the Committee, Councillor Marchant should also be appointed as an expert advisor. It was noted that he had been involved in producing the Mental Health Review, which was still being considered by the Primary Care Trust.

The Committee noted that the Committee would set its own work programme and deal with other NHS related issues during the year. Members discussed how the Boroughs should manage issues where they were likely to have widely differing views on the approach adopted by the NHS, e.g. in the location of maternity care for the Boroughs. They agreed the Boroughs should produce separate responses in such cases.

Resolved: That:

·  Councillors Mortimer, Paterson and Stockell would sit on the Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells Joint Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee

·  Councillor Marchant would be recommended to the Joint Committee as a co-opted expert, without voting rights.

·  Both Boroughs would provide separate responses where there were widely differing views on a health matter.

The web cast from this session is available at: http://clients.westminster-digital.co.uk/maidstone/Archive.aspx

Working in small groups, Members spoke to responsible Officers about the work areas covered by the terms of reference of the Committee. Members then discussed the topics for review that had been proposed as follows:

No Cold Calling Zones

Members felt that introducing such zones would have little impact on the level of crime in the area. They were also concerned that there may be an adverse effect on other areas, such as charity collections.

Delivery of the Sustainable Community Strategy / The Local Strategic Partnership

These items were considered together as the Local Strategic Partnership had responsibility for overseeing and delivering the Sustainable Community Strategy. Members noted that the Committee’s future work programme included quarterly performance updates from the LSP. Members felt this was an important area, but that they should monitor progress during the year before embarking on a review.

Licensing of private hire vehicles / the Licensing Partnership with Tunbridge Wells and Maidstone Borough Council

A Member suggested that there were problems with enforcement as Maidstone had lost an enforcement officer. Members believed there was merit in looking at the issues, but there was an overlap with the Licensing Committee. Members concluded they should receive an update on the Licensing Partnership later in the year and the Licensing Committee should be contacted to identify appropriate areas of licensing for review by overview and scrutiny.

Total Place

Members heard that Total Place was an initiative to identify how services could be delivered more effectively across public sector services, and at reduced cost, by combining resources to maximise their use, minimise duplication and focus on the needs of the customer. After some discussion, Members concluded this topic was more appropriate for the Corporate Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

Sustainable Communities Act

Members heard that the Sustainable Communities Act (SCA) enabled central Government to provide funding to local authorities to support projects that improve the local environment. Other authorities have received support for areas such as improving the availability of affordable housing, improving the local economy, tackling unemployment or reducing emissions. A Member suggested that action should be taken soon because access funds may be cut at short notice.

The Vice Chairman suggested the Committee could consider using the Act to help with emission problems around the Borough. Members agreed, but said that the impact on local businesses should be assessed when considering any measures that could be adopted.  Members recognised a potential overlap with the terms of reference of the Environment and Transportation Overview and Scrutiny Committee and agreed the Committee should inform them of their intention to review this area.

Tackling Obesity

Members were concerned at the level of obesity in the Borough and concluded that a short review should be undertaken to identify the causes.

Domestic Violence

A Member was concerned at the level of domestic violence in the Borough. This was said to be on the increase, whereas other crime indicators were falling. Members agreed this was an important issue, but felt this should be  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.

Members briefly discussed the future work programme, noting there were no planned key decisions relevant to the Committee over the next four months.

Resolved: That the future work programme for 2010-11 be noted.