Councillor Hassan Ahmed (unwell)

Councillor Eunice Campbell-Clark (unwell)

Councillor Dave Liversidge (unwell)

Councillor Georgia Power (unwell)

Councillor Audra Wynter (unwell)

None

None

None

The minutes of the meeting of Council held on 9 September 2019 were confirmed as an accurate record and signed by the Chair.

Ian Curryer, Chief Executive, reported the following:

Remembrance Day

The annual Service of Remembrance and Thanksgiving was held on 10 November at the Victoria Embankment War Memorial, followed by a march by the South Notts Hussars from St Mary’s Church to Old Market Square.  On the morning of 11 November councillors and citizens gathered outside the Council House to observe two minutes silence to honour the memory of those who have died and pledge to care for the living.

Nottingham Awards 2019

Following the 725^th Goose Fair opening and dinner in October, four local citizens - George Akins, Dalton Stephens, David Stewart and Phyllis Brackenbury – were presented with a Nottingham Award recognising their contribution to the City.

Eric Irons

A plaque has been installed on the National Justice Museum to commemorate the achievements of Eric Irons, Britain’s first black magistrate and a campaigner for social justice.  Amongst his achievements, he helped to lift the ban on black people working for a transport company and helped the Council address problems highlighted following the 1958 Race Riots.  He was awarded an OBE in 1977.

Recognition of work to develop sustainable vehicle fleet

The Innovation and Change Team in Parking, Fleet and Transport won the Best Efficiency and Transformation Award at the APSE Awards for their work in developing an electric vehicle fleet.  The Council was also ‘highly commended’ at the National Transport Awards for its contribution to sustainable transport across both public and private sectors, in particular the development of a sustainable fleet.  30% of the vehicle fleet in Neighbourhood Services will be electric by the end of the year and these electric vehicles will realise savings of 154 tonnes of CO2 every year they are in service. 

LGiU Councillor Achievement Award

Councillor Sally Longford was awarded the Environment and Sustainability Pioneer Award at the LGiU Councillor Achievement Awards in November.  The award recognises Councillor Longford’s passion for the environment and sustainability and her work in driving forward the Council’s pledges such as becoming carbon neutral by 2028 and becoming single-use plastic free. 

None

Knife related crime

Councillor Andrew Rule asked the following question of the Leader of the Council:

Following the welcome news that Police figures show a reduction in knife related crime across Nottingham compared with last year, would the Leader of the Council support the knife angel monument coming to Nottingham as a symbol against violence and aggression in our City and as a powerful message of the impact that knife crime has on victims and their families?

Councillor David Mellen replied as follows:

Thank you Lord Mayor, and can I thank Councillor Rule for his question. Keeping our City safe is a top priority and one that I am committed to delivering. The causes of crime often begin long before a crime is committed, and to truly make a difference we have to intervene early to prevent these underlying causes from emerging in our communities.  To do that it takes time, effort, resources and money, all of which is in short supply and needs to be spent on earlier intervention, as well as on catching criminals.

As long as citizens both young and old feel it is necessary to have a knife in their pocket to be safe, then there is more work to be done. A safer City won’t happen overnight, but I remain committed as Leader of the Council to ensuring that it remains a top priority for everyone in Nottingham.

It is important to be clear, we are making progress to reduce knife crime in our City. The latest figures from the Crime and Drugs Partnership show knife crime offences in the City fell by 17% over the past 12 months, but while this is welcome news this is still far too many cases of knife crime and we can never be complacent.

We are continuing to help rehabilitate those who might be at risk of repeat offending by working with Probation Services to create positive opportunities, including education, employment or training, and finding the right support for young people or adults.

Lord Mayor, if Councillor Rule is committed truly to supporting continued reductions in serious crime in our City, then perhaps he will join me in asking for greater protection of public services following nine years of sustained cuts to Police budgets, which have led to the loss of 10,000 Police Officers on the streets up and down the country. The Tories never learn. Whilst a Labour Government increased Police and Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) numbers, championing community policing, and crime fell hugely, the Tories have cut the Police numbers and, lo and behold, crime has risen.  We know that a Labour Government would invest in front line Police Officers and PCSOs that our cities and communities so desperately need.

Lord Mayor, the people across the country have a clear choice in the coming weeks: voting for a Government that has continually promised one thing whilst in office and delivered little for local people, cutting direct funding for Police forces by £3.6billion; or a Labour  ...  view the full minutes text for item 53.

Report of the Leader of the Council

Councillor David Mellen, Leader of the Council, presented the report proposing adoption of the Council Plan for 2019 to 2023.

RESOLVED to approve the Nottingham City Council Plan 2019-2023 as set out in the appendix to the report.

Report of the Leader of the Council

Councillor David Mellen, Leader of the Council, presented the report detailing decisions taken under procedures that include exemption from Overview and Scrutiny Call In Procedure Rules and Special Urgency Access to Information Rules.

RESOLVED to note

(1)  the urgent decisions (exempt from call in)

(2)  the Key Decisions taken under Special Urgency Procedures

Report of the Portfolio Holder for Regeneration, Safety and Communications

Councillor David Mellen, Portfolio Holder for Regeneration, Safety and Communications, presented the report proposing adoption of the Crime and Drugs Partnership Plan for 2019 to 2022.

RESOLVED to approve the Crime and Drugs Partnership Plan 2019 to 2022 as set out in the appendix to the report.

Motion in the name of Councillor Rebecca Langton:

This Council recognises that 9 years of austerity, cuts to benefits, the introduction of Universal Credit, low and insecure wages, rising private sector rents and the rising cost of living have made life harder for Nottingham people.

The benefit cap, bedroom tax and benefits freeze alone have made Nottingham families an average of £320 per year worse off since 2016. This amounts to more than £53 million of welfare income taken away from Nottingham people. This is on top of losing £529 per household of council funding, which has been lost since 2010. At the same time, the cost of living has risen faster than wages, with Nottingham households experiencing poverty up from 25.6% to 30.8%.

This Council recognises that this time of year can be difficult for Nottingham people, with extra things to spend money on, from gifts to food and decorations to social engagements. The Bank of England estimates that a typical household spends an extra £500 in December.

The 2018 Citizens Survey found that 22% of people in Nottingham are struggling to keep up with bills and 38% of people do not know where to get financial advice and welfare information.

This Council resolves to:

·  Campaign for a government that will:

o  reduce living costs

o  deliver fair wages and secure jobs through a ‘Green Industrial Revolution’

o  scrap universal credit

o  put an end to austerity, with investment in public services including the NHS and the Police

o  build more council housing to provide affordable good quality homes

·  Protect funding for community based benefit and debt advice, and use our ‘MONEY’ campaign to increase the number of people who know where to get support and information

·  Arrange drop-in welfare and debt advice sessions in every ward in the city

·  Promote Nottingham’s Credit Union as an ethical alternative bank

·  Protect services for the most vulnerable

·  Sign-post people to help and advice through The Arrow, AskLion, MyNottingham social media pages, face to face sessions and frontline services

Motion proposed by Councillor Rebecca Langton, seconded by Councillor Pavlos Kotsonis:

This Council recognises that 9 years of austerity, cuts to benefits, the introduction of Universal Credit, low and insecure wages, rising private sector rents and the rising cost of living have made life harder for Nottingham people.

The benefit cap, bedroom tax and benefits freeze alone have made Nottingham families an average of £320 per year worse off since 2016. This amounts to more than £53 million of welfare income taken away from Nottingham people. This is on top of losing £529 per household of council funding which has been lost since 2010. At the same time, the cost of living has risen faster than wages, with Nottingham households experiencing poverty up from 25.6%% to 30.8%.

This Council recognises that this time of year can be difficult for Nottingham people, with extra things to spend money on, from gifts to food and decorations to social engagements. The Bank of England estimates that a typical household spends an extra £500 in December.

The 2018 Citizens Survey found that 22% of people in Nottingham are struggling to keep up with bills and 38% of people do not know where to get financial advice and welfare information.

This Council resolves to:

·  Campaign for a government that will:

o  reduce living costs

o  deliver fair wages and secure jobs through a ‘Green Industrial Revolution’

o  scrap universal credit

o  put an end to austerity, with investment in public services including the NHS and the Police

o  build more council housing to provide affordable good quality homes

·  Protect funding for community based benefit and debt advice, and use our ‘MONEY’ campaign to increase the number of people who know where to get support and information

·  Arrange drop-in welfare and debt advice sessions in every ward in the city

·  Promote Nottingham’s Credit Union as an ethical alternative bank

·  Protect services for the most vulnerable

·  Sign-post people to help and advice through The Arrow, AskLion, MyNottingham social media pages, face to face sessions and frontline services

RESOLVED to carry the motion.

Motion in the name of Councillor Salma Mumtaz:

Nottingham City Council regrets the decision by the Indian Government to revoke Article 370 and sub clause 35A of the constitution and end the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.  Nottingham has a large community with Kashmiri heritage with many of them having friends or family currently living in or visiting the region. They are anxious about the threat to the peace and security of the region and the safety of people there following reports of human rights violations.

This Council recognises that events abroad can lead to concerns here. Nottingham is a diverse city where people from different backgrounds get on with each other and we reaffirm our commitment to community cohesion in our city.

This Council therefore resolves to: 

1.  Call on the UK Government to do all it can to bring the Indian and Pakistan Governments together to find a peaceful resolution which respects the rights of the Kashmiri people and implements the UN resolutions.

2.  Recognise the strong ties between Nottingham and Kashmir and that many people in the City have Kashmiri heritage and ties to the region. 

3.  Write to the Foreign Secretary urging immediate action on the resolutions moved and agreed by this Council, and to express its concerns regarding the human rights violations and the threat of increased conflict in the region and beyond.

4.  Call upon the Leader of the Council to write on behalf of Nottingham citizens to the High Commissioners of India calling for the immediate lifting of the curfew and restrictions on free speech and bring peace and stability to the region. 

5.  Continue to work with Nottingham’s diverse communities from all backgrounds to encourage community cohesion and understanding of what we have in common

Motion proposed by Councillor Salma Mumtaz, seconded by Councillor Linda Woodings:

Nottingham City Council regrets the decision by the Indian Government to revoke Article 370 and sub clause 35A of the constitution and end the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.  Nottingham has a large community with Kashmiri heritage with many of them having friends or family currently living in or visiting the region. They are anxious about the threat to the peace and security of the region and the safety of people there following reports of human rights violations.

This Council recognises that events abroad can lead to concerns here. Nottingham is a diverse city where people from different backgrounds get on with each other and we reaffirm our commitment to community cohesion in our city.

This Council therefore resolves to: 

1.  Call on the UK Government to do all it can to bring the Indian and Pakistan Governments together to find a peaceful resolution which respects the rights of the Kashmiri people and implements the UN resolutions.

2.  Recognise the strong ties between Nottingham and Kashmir and that many people in the City have Kashmiri heritage and ties to the region. 

3.  Write to the Foreign Secretary urging immediate action on the resolutions moved and agreed by this Council, and to express its concerns regarding the human rights violations and the threat of increased conflict in the region and beyond.

4.  Call upon the Leader of the Council to write on behalf of Nottingham citizens to the High Commissioners of India calling for the immediate lifting of the curfew and restrictions on free speech and bring peace and stability to the region. 

5.  Continue to work with Nottingham’s diverse communities from all backgrounds to encourage community cohesion and understanding of what we have in common

RESOLVED to carry the motion.

To note that:

a)  Councillor Leslie Ayoola has resigned as a member of the Health and Wellbeing Board; and

b)  Councillor Merlita Bryan has resigned as a member of the Health Scrutiny Committee.

The following committee membership changes were noted:

(1)  Councillor Leslie Ayoola has resigned as a member of the Health and Wellbeing Board; and

(2)  Councillor Merlita Bryan has resigned as a member of the Health Scrutiny Committee.