Agenda and minutes

The Democratic Services Manager reported apologies for absence from Mrs Dean, Mr Manion, Mr Marsh, Mr Rayner, Mr Sole and Mr Watkins. 

The Democratic Services Manager said Mr Chittenden and Mrs Parfitt-Reid would be joining the meeting late.

(Mrs Game, the present Chairman, presided for this item)

(1)      Sir Paul Carter proposed, and Mr Cooper seconded that Mr G Cooke be appointed Chairman of the County Council.

Agreed unanimously.

(2)      Mr Cooke took the chair, made his Declaration of Acceptance of Office, and returned thanks for his election.

(3)      Mr Cooke paid tribute to, and thanked, Mrs Game for the manner in which she had carried out her duties as Chairman of the Council.  The Chairman invited Members to speak, and tributes were paid to Mrs Game by Mr Gough, Dr Sullivan, Mr Hook, Mr Stepto, Ms Meade, Mr Lewis, Mr Meade, Mr Kite, and Ms Wright.  Mr Cooke presented Mrs Game with the Past Chairman’s Badge.

(4)      Mrs Game thanked Members for their comments.

(1)      Mr Meade proposed, and Miss Carey seconded that Mr B Sweetland be appointed Vice-Chairman of the County Council.

Agreed unanimously.

(2)      Mr Sweetland made his Declaration of Acceptance of Office and returned thanks for his election.

There were no declarations of interest.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on 23 March 2023 be approved as a correct record. 

Mr Ross, Chairman of the Corporate Parenting Panel, introduced the item and reminded Members of their role as a corporate parent to Kent’s children in care.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting of the Corporate Parenting Panel held on 15 February 2023 be noted.

Dan Daley

(1)      With the greatest of regret the Chairman informed Members, formally, of the passing of Mr Dan Daley at the end of March 2023.  He said Mr Daley was a well-known and well-respected Borough and County Councillor who worked tirelessly on behalf of the residents in Maidstone Central Division.  Mr Daley was elected to Maidstone Borough Council in 1990 and to Kent County Council in 2001.  The Chairman said Mr Daley had a love of nature and the environment and cared greatly about the health and wellbeing of Kent residents.  He was a member of the Council’s Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee since it was set up in its current form and his thoughtful and passionate input at all committees would be missed greatly.

(2)      Tributes were made by Mr Hook, Mr Gough, Dr Sullivan, Mr Lehmann, Mr Lewis, Sir Paul Carter, Miss Carey, Mr Simkins, Mr Streatfeild, Mr Kennedy, and Mr Cannon.

Paul O’Grady

(3)      At the end of March this year, Kent residents and people from around the world mourned the unexpected death of Mr Paul O’Grady MBE DL. The Chairman said Mr O’Grady had been appointed a Deputy Lieutenant of Kent in November 2022 and referred to Mr O’Grady’s love for the county which he had made his home for over 21 years.  He filmed a series about Kent back in 2020 which saw him travelling around the county highlighting many of the coastal areas around Kent and had written a book about living in Kent, with his latest children’s book being set on the Romney Marshes. Mr Grady was also very committed to supporting many charities, including being a Patron of Save the Children and an Ambassador for Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, along with a number of other animal charities across the county.  The Chairman said Mr O’Grady was a great loss to many people and the organisations he championed.

(4)      The Chairman held a one-minute silence in memory of Mr Daley and Mr O’Grady.

Motion of condolence

(5)      Mr Cooke proposed, and Mr Sweetland seconded, that the Council formally record the sense of loss it feels on the sad passing of Mr Daley and Mr O’Grady and extends to their families and friends its heartfelt sympathy to them in their sad bereavements.

Agreed unanimously.

Mike Whiting

(6)      The Chairman welcomed back to the Council, Mr Mike Whiting, as Member for the Sheppey Division.

David Cockburn retiring

(7)      The Chairman informed Members of Mr Cockburn’s decision to retire from his role as Chief Executive Officer and expressed his support on behalf of the Council.  Mr Cooke thanked Mr Cockburn for his outstanding contribution to the Council and said he had been the most Senior Officer of the Council for nearly 12 years and the commitment he had given to the Authority, particularly through some of the most difficult of times, was exceptional.  Mr Cooke said he would be extremely missed and on behalf of all Members of the Council thanked and wished him  ...  view the full minutes text for item 143.

In accordance with Sections 14.15 to 14.22 of the Constitution, 14 questions were submitted by the deadline, 7 questions were asked, and replies given. A record of all questions put and answers given at the meeting is available online with the papers for this meeting.

As Mr Sole was not present during this item a written answer to their question was provided.

Questions 9 - 14 were not put in the time allocated but written answers were provided.

(1)      The Leader commented on the recent district and borough elections that were held across Kent and Medway on 4 May 2023 and the scale of change that had occurred as a result.  Mr Gough commiserated with Conservative colleagues who had lost their seats but looked forward to working with the new administrations across the county. 

(2)      Mr Gough spoke about the situation at Galley Hill where, on the evening of 10 April 2023, a chalk cliff collapsed on the northern side of Galley Hill Road in Swanscombe resulting in a major water leak.  He said Kent Highways had taken control of the site and the road remained closed.  The Council was working closely with Dartford Borough Council to ensure local communities and businesses were kept informed and a dedicated KCC webpage included information on diversion routes, changes to bus routes and points of contact for enquiries. He said it was a complex engineering issue which the Council was working hard to resolve, and the road was expected to remain closed for the foreseeable future.  Mr Gough recognised the major difficulties this caused for residents and businesses and said the Council would seek to ensure effective communication with residents and with Mr Harman as the local Member.

(3)      The Leader noted that although there had been two consecutive bank holiday weekends without the need for Operation Brock, it had been utilised over the Easter weekend and strong demand was expected at the Port of Dover and Eurotunnel for the Whitsun bank holiday weekend.  Mr Gough said this was a reminder of the scale of the pressures the Council faced and noted that demand had returned to pre-pandemic levels. He said the Council continued to work closely with the Department for Transport and other government departments to address these issues and the implementation of the EU’s Entry/Exit System. 

(4)      Mr Gough said almost 26,000 pothole enquiries had been received during the last year and the amount received during December to March was over five times that of equivalent periods in the previous year.  Since the beginning of April 2023, almost 5,000 potholes had been repaired and nearly 6,000 square metres of longer-term patching had been replaced.  Although the Council would deploy the £6million in extra government funding announced in the budget there were severe limits to the Council’s resources.  He said he was pressing government, along with other Southeast Leaders, for further funding to address the severe situation on the county’s roads.  Mr Gough confirmed that a summer programme of resurfacing and surface treatments had commenced, and this would see investment of around £40million into the network in 2023/24 with a further £3million spent on footways and £4.5million capital investment into highway drainage renewals and repairs. 

(5)      The Leader reported that on 30 March 2023 the Council received an allocation of over £12million from the local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund to deliver charging infrastructure to 40% of households without off-street parking.  The scheme, which ran to 2030, would build on the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 145.

(1)      Mr Gough proposed, and Mrs Bell seconded the motion that

“County Council agrees the amendment to the Integrated Care Partnership Joint Committee’s terms of reference as set out in Appendix 1 to the report.”

(2)      The Chairman put the motion set out in paragraph 1.

(3)      RESOLVED that the County Council agrees the amendment to the Integrated Care Partnership Joint Committee’s terms of reference as set out in Appendix 1 to the report.

(1)       Mrs Binks proposed, and Mr Collor seconded the motion that

“The County Council:

a)    Notes the report.

b)    Endorses the recommendation of the Governance and Audit Committee and agrees the revised Terms of Reference for this Committee as set out in Appendix 1.

c)    Endorses the recommendations of the Selection and Member Services Committee in relation to the Member Remuneration Panel and agrees the revised Terms of Reference for the Panel, as set out in Appendix 2.”

(2)       The Chairman put the motion set out in paragraph 1.

(3)       RESOLVED that the County Council:

a)    Notes the report.

b)    Endorses the recommendation of the Governance and Audit Committee and agrees the revised Terms of Reference for this Committee as set out in Appendix 1.

c)    Endorses the recommendations of the Selection and Member Services Committee in relation to the Member Remuneration Panel and agrees the revised Terms of Reference for the Panel, as set out in Appendix 2.

(1)       Mr Gough proposed, and Mr Oakford seconded the motion that

“The County Council is asked to:

a)       Determine the total number of Committee places; the allocation of those places between the political groups; and the allocation of places on certain bodies;

b)       Note that Selection and Member Services will make or confirm necessary appointments to outside bodies, except for those which fall to be made by the Leader of the Council; and

c)       Confirm the continued delegated authority to the Democratic Services Manager, in consultation with the four Group leaders to adjust the allocation of committee places in order to conform to overall proportionality requirements and manage membership arrangements in line with the details set out in this report.”

(2)       Following the debate, the Chairman put the motion set out in paragraph 1.

(3)       RESOLVED that the County Council is asked to:

a)       Determine the total number of Committee places; the allocation of those places between the political groups; and the allocation of places on certain bodies;

b)       Note that Selection and Member Services will make or confirm necessary appointments to outside bodies, except for those which fall to be made by the Leader of the Council; and

c)       Confirm the continued delegated authority to the Democratic Services Manager, in consultation with the four Group leaders to adjust the allocation of committee places in order to conform to overall proportionality requirements and manage membership arrangements in line with the details set out in this report.

(1)      Mr Oakford proposed, and Mrs Binks seconded the motion that

“County Council is asked to:

i.         Approve the revised Contract Standing Orders (“Spending the Council’s Money”) – as attached as Annex 2 and recommended by Governance & Audit Committee

ii.        Approve revisions to the Constitution wording on contract standing orders – as attached as Annex 1.”

(2)      Following the debate, the Chairman put the motion set out in paragraph 1.

(3)      RESOLVED that County Council is asked to:

i.         Approve the revised Contract Standing Orders (“Spending the Council’s Money”) – as attached as Annex 2 and recommended by Governance & Audit Committee

ii.        Approve revisions to the Constitution wording on contract standing orders – as attached as Annex 1.