Issue - meetings

To receive and consider the reports, minutes and recommendations of the recent meetings as follows:

(1)   Cabinet

-        30 August 2018

-        27 September 2018

2)    Scrutiny Committee

-            10 September 2018

-            8 October 2018

(3)  Audit Committee

-      18 September 2018

(4)  Environment Policy Development Group

-            4 September 2018

(5)  Homes Policy Development Group

-            11 September 2018

(6)   Economy Policy Development Group

-             6 September 2018

(7)  Community Policy Development Group

-            18 September 2018

(8)  Planning Committee

-            5 September  2018

-            19 September 2018

-            3 October 2018

(9)   Licensing Committee

-             9 October 2018

(10) Regulatory Committee

-                 9 October 2018

The Leader presented the report of the meeting of the Cabinet held on 30 August 2018.

The Council had before it questions * submitted by Councillors Mrs J Roach and Mrs N Woollatt in accordance with Procedure Rule 13.2, together with  responses from the Cabinet Member for Planning and Economic Regeneration.

Councillor Mrs N Woollatt asked a number of supplementary questions referring to:

Question 1  - The response to this question is disingenuous. My question was not about means of responding to the consultation, it was about the means of informing residents the consultation was taking place, therefore the example of how many responses to N Devon Link Road were online is irrelevant.

In fact to use the N Devon Link Road consultation as an example, in addition to online methods, the start of that consultation was advertised with the distribution of leaflets to 60 parishes, information boards on A361 and posters on local town and parish noticeboards and libraries. Posters are an issue I will cover further later. Research I have carried out of other relief and link road consultations conducted all over the country in the last few years demonstrates that leaflet, letter or postcards advising of the consultation taking place are the norm, with in most cases delivery of these media directly to households prior to or at the beginning of the consultation.

Question 2 - The reason I asked this question was twofold. One of the routes is literally inches from the showpersons site. I am aware that the Council met with representatives from this site but I am informed that the information about the consultation was not cascaded to the rest of the residents. Surely the Council had a duty to directly inform all the residents on this site? This is one of the many locations in Cullompton which did not receive a leaflet delivery.

When it became apparent that the leaflet delivery had failed to be delivered to the majority of households in Cullompton, the Chief Executive revealed in an email to me that he tends to resist the leaflet drop approach as he considers it skews the demographic responding. When I asked for further explanation he explained that ‘older people’ tend to respond to leaflets. Apart from finding this comment ‘ageist’ a combination of the leaflet delivery failure, mainly online advertisement of exhibition dates and because printed material and questionnaires was not left available for collection in public buildings in the town, I have found many older people I have spoken to who do not use online methods have felt excluded. Is there a document available detailing the equalities impact assessment and may I be sent a copy?

Question 3 - The full response to this question appears to have been put to Q4 ... I would suggest that given the failure of the leaflet delivery, if static exhibition boards had been displayed, it could have been mitigated in that at least residents would have a means to view the information other than  ...  view the full minutes text for item 67

To receive a report from the Group Manager for Public Health and Regulatory Services. Mid Devon District Council is required to set out and formally adopt a Statement of Principles advising how it will carry out its duties under the Gambling Act 2005. That statement has to be reviewed every three years and this is its fourth review.

The Committee had before it and NOTED a *report from the Lead Licensing Officer advising how the authority would carry out its duties under the Gambling Act 2005 Statement of Principles.

He explained that the statement had to be reviewed every three years and that this would be its fourth review. The Statement of Principles was a statutory requirement of the local licensing authority.

He further explained the main amendments to the policy which were:

·         Links to up to date information included within the policy

·         Local risk assessment requirements

The Lead Licensing Officer detailed the responses received as part of the consultation on the policy.

There was a general discussion about problem gambling and how the authority dealt with this. The Lead Licensing Officer explained that the local requirement for risk assessments should help deal with this, for example, line of sight to gambling machines to monitor exactly who was using them.

(Proposed by Cllr E J Slade and seconded by Cllr R J Chesterton)

Note: *Report previously circulated and attached to the minutes