Council Meeting 1 June 2005
CITY OF SHEFFIELD
METROPOLITAN DISTRICT
COUNCIL SUMMONS
Notice is hereby given that a Meeting of the Council of the City of Sheffield
will be held in the Council Chamber within the Town Hall, Sheffield, on
Wednesday, 1st June, 2005, at 2.00 p.m.
THE FOLLOWING BUSINESS IS PROPOSED TO BE TRANSACTED-
1. MINUTES OF PREVIOUS COUNCIL MEETINGS
To receive the record of the proceedings of the meeting of the Council held on 4th May, and the Annual Meeting held on 18th May, 2005, and to approve the accuracy thereof.
2. PUBLIC QUESTIONS AND COMMUNICATIONS
To receive any questions or communications from the public, or communications submitted by the Lord Mayor or the Chief Executive and to pass such resolutions thereon as the Standing Orders permit and as may be deemed expedient.
3. MEMBERS' QUESTIONS
(a) Questions relating to urgent business - Standing Order No. A18(6).
(b) Questions submitted at this meeting – Standing Order A18(2)
(c) Supplementary questions on questions submitted at this meeting - Standing Order No. A18(4).
(d) Questions on the discharge of the functions of the South Yorkshire Joint Authorities for Fire and Civil Defence, Passenger Transport, Pensions and Police - Section 41 of the Local Government Act, 1985 - Standing Order No. A18(6).
(e) Questions on the discharge of the functions of the Yorkshire and Humber Assembly – Standing Order No. A18(6).
4. REPRESENTATION
To consider any changes to the memberships and arrangements for meetings of Boards etc., delegated authority, and the appointment of representatives to serve on other bodies.
5. OBSERVATIONS
To receive observations on the minutes of the meetings of the various Council bodies for the period 16th April to 13th May, 2005.
6. NOTICE OF MOTION GIVEN BY COUNCILLOR JAN WILSON
That this Council:
(a) recognises the importance of the Government’s Sustainable Communities agenda and in particular, the importance of acknowledging that the North of England has an essential part to play in a successful national economy;
(b) supports the Government in their recognition that developing the potential of the regions will make an overwhelming contribution to the prosperity and stability of the Country;
(c) acknowledges that raising the profile of Sheffield, as the economic driver of the city-region, will bring wide ranging benefits to the people of South Yorkshire, North Nottinghamshire and North-East Derbyshire;
(d) supports the economic renaissance which is already underway within the North of England, and recognises that unlocking the unrealised potential in the North will start to reduce pressure on the overloaded South of England, particularly London; and
(e) fully endorses the economic regeneration of Sheffield as a key economic hub of the city region within the Northern Way and accepts the responsibilities that this Council has in its role of leading the economic rejuvenation of the City.
7. NOTICE OF MOTION GIVEN BY COUNCILLOR PAUL SCRIVEN
That this Council:
(a) warmly congratulates all the Sheffield Members of Parliament on their election to represent the people of Sheffield in the Houses of Parliament and notes that this Council looks forward to working with all of them;
(b) notes the groundswell of opinion, demonstrated in part by the Independent newspaper’s ‘Campaign for Democracy’, that the current ‘first past the post’ electoral system is outdated and in need of change as it does not deliver a representative Parliament, in terms of the link between total share of the vote and parliamentary seats;
(c) believes that if we had an electoral system under which every vote counted, turnout levels would increase and the concept of democracy would be strengthened within the United Kingdom, and therefore;
(d) directs that the Chief Executive arranges for presentations on the advantages and disadvantages of a number of electoral systems to be presented at a scrutiny meeting of full Council as soon as possible, to enable Council to come to a view over which electoral system it supports;
(e) urges the Government to commission a full enquiry into electoral reform without delay; and
(f) directs that a copy of this Motion is sent to all the Sheffield Members of Parliament and the Prime Minister.
8. NOTICE OF MOTION GIVEN BY COUNCILLOR VERONICA HARDSTAFF
That this Council:
(a) wholeheartedly endorses the “Every Child Matters” strategy and welcomes the integration of Children’s Services in the Council and the improvements that this will bring to the delivery of services for children and young people in Sheffield;
(b) welcomes the Children’s Centres programme which gives a clear focus to the delivery of change to achieve positive outcomes for children and families in Sheffield;
(c) welcomes the aim of providing universal access to childcare and early years education; and
(d) welcomes the opportunity that the Children’s Centres programme will bring to enable all children in Sheffield to reach their potential.
9. NOTICE OF MOTION GIVEN BY COUNCILLOR SHAFFAQ MOHAMMED
That this Council:
(a) fully supports the Star newspaper’s ‘Let’s Spring Clean Sheffield’ campaign and notes the initiative was a key pledge of the major opposition group prior to the 2004 local elections, and concurs with the view of the Star newspaper regarding the Council’s cleaning strategy that ‘we feel not enough is being done – and that what is being done is in too small and too selective an area”;
(b) directs that ‘Let’s Spring Clean Sheffield’ becomes an annual event which the Council promotes as a key part of its cleaning strategy; and
(c) therefore also directs that a report is drawn up, and brought back to the next meeting of full Council, which includes an action plan for each Council Directorate showing how every part of the Council will contribute to this year’s ‘Let’s Spring Clean Sheffield’ campaign and how the event will be organised on an annual basis.
10. NOTICE OF MOTION GIVEN BY COUNCILLOR PAT MIDGLEY
That this Council:
(a) supports the promotion of democratic government in Burma;
(b) acknowledges the achievements of Aung San Suu Kyi, who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1990 and has spent ten years in detention;
(c) is proud that Sheffield has welcomed the first group of Burmese refugees who have been located here under the United Nations High Commission for Refugees ‘Gateway’ programme; and
(d) directs that a copy of this Motion is sent to the Foreign Secretary, the Home Secretary and the Sheffield Members of Parliament.
11. NOTICE OF MOTION GIVEN BY COUNCILLOR SYLVIA ANGINOTTI
That this Council :-
(a) regrets the decision of FirstBus to increase the cost of weekly and monthly bus passes in South Yorkshire and notes that, in Sheffield, the increase for weekly bus passes is over 4% and the increase for monthly bus passes is over 10%, and regrets that the ‘bus consultation’ carried out by the present administration has done nothing to persuade bus operators to reduce fares or reinstall cut bus services for the people of Sheffield;
(b) recognises that an affordable and reliable public transport service is essential in order to offer a viable alternative to car usage and that this in turn could reduce congestion and bring environmental benefits;
(c) believes that these latest fare increases may contribute to increased congestion, as some regular users may no longer use bus services to travel around Sheffield and South Yorkshire, preferring to use private transport and notes that the news followed the present administration’s announcement of a blitz on drivers in an attempt to get more people on to public transport;
(d) believes that more of a holistic, co-ordinated and pro-choice approach is needed to Sheffield’s transport policy and therefore regrets that the major opposition group’s suggestion of setting up a multi-agency think tank named ‘Sheffield on the Move’ was voted down at the last working Council and therefore urges the present administration to re-think their position; and
(e) directs that a report is commissioned, to be considered at the next meeting of Council, which looks into how the Council works with FirstBus and makes recommendations on how communication can be improved and specifically explores the option of setting up a think tank named ‘Sheffield on the Move’ which would incorporate bus operators, relevant businesses, the public, the Council, motoring organisations and train and tram representatives.
12. NOTICE OF MOTION GIVEN BY COUNCILLOR JILLIAN CREASY
That this Council :-
(a) notes that:
(i) the G8 countries are the most rich and powerful in the World but represent only one tenth of its population;
(ii) the G8 meetings are a caucus for this self-selected group to discuss strategy outside electorally accountable bodies such as the United Nations or World Trade Organisation; and
(iii) the G8 Justice and Interior Ministers are interested in supporting the war on terror on the “home front” by introducing measures which restrict our civil liberties (such as identity cards and detention and control orders), and by the inhumane treatment of asylum seekers;
(b) believes that:-
(i) the G8 visit will put Sheffield on the map as a place which welcomes undemocratic and repressive tendencies at the highest level;
(ii) the security measures being put in place for the G8 visit (secrecy, exclusion zones, issuing of passes) are themselves an indication of this style of government; and
(iii) the desire to be internationally recognised should not outweigh the rights and well- being of local people and businesses; and
(c) therefore:-
(i) regrets the lack of consultation preceding the decision to host the G8 visit;
(ii) supports the right of organisations such as Make Poverty History, Sheffield Stop the War Coalition and Sheffield Dissent Network to peacefully demonstrate their views;
(iii) undertakes to explain to the people of Sheffield exactly what the G8 Justice and Interior Ministers’ agenda is and how precisely their visit befits and benefits the City; and
(iv) in the interests of closing the gap internationally, instructs the Chief Executive to look into the possibility of hosting a meeting for the G77 – a caucus of the World’s poorest nations.
13. NOTICE OF MOTION GIVEN BY COUNCILLOR PETER PRICE
That this Council: -
(a) welcomes the enthusiasm with which Sheffield people support sporting activity in Sheffield;
(b) notes that whatever sporting activity is undertaken, at whatever level, is of great benefit to the health of the participants, for example, the recent 'Race for Life'; and
(c) applauds the achievements of all our competitors, both individuals and teams.
Dated this 23rd day of May, 2005
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