Agenda and minutes

The Council is asked to note any apologies for absence received from Members.

Apologies for absence were submitted on behalf of Councillors Bush, King, Porter and M E Stephenson and also on behalf of the Chief Executive (Ian Davidson).

The Council is asked to approve, as correct records, the minutes of:-

(a)    the ordinary meeting of the Council held on 29 March 2022; and

(b)    the annual meeting of the Council held on 26 April 2022.

It was moved by Councillor Stock OBE, seconded by Councillor G V Guglielmi and:-

RESOLVED that the minutes of the ordinary meeting of the Council held on Tuesday 29 March 2022 and the annual meeting of the Council held on 26 April 2022 be approved as correct records and be signed by the Chairman.

Councillors are invited to declare any Disclosable Pecuniary Interests or Personal Interest, and the nature of it, in relation to any item on the agenda.

Councillor Fairley declared a Personal Interest in respect of Agenda Item 17 (Urgent Matters for Debate – Motion on Notice under Council Procedure Rule 13(p) regarding National Grid’s East Anglia Green Project) insofar as members of her family owned land in the area that was the subject of National Grid’s proposals. However, having consulted the Council’s Monitoring Officer, she stated that she was not precluded from participating in the consideration of this item.

Councillor Stock OBE also declared a Personal Interest in respect of the aforementioned Agenda Item 17 insofar as he owned land in the area that was the subject of National Grid’s proposals.

Councillors G V Guglielmi and V E Guglielmi both declared a declared a Personal Interest in respect of the aforesaid Agenda Item 17 insofar as they were both members of Lawford Parish Council.

The Council is asked to note any announcements made by the Chairman of the Council.

Visit to The Guildhall, Harwich

The Chairman reported that, accompanied by the immediate Past Chairman of the Council, Councillor Bray, he had spent a fantastic, informative afternoon at the historic building, The Guildhall in Harwich. He thanked Councillors Calver and Morrison for arranging the visit and sharing their tremendous knowledge of the building’s history. He encouraged Members to partake in a tour of the building.

Recent Engagements

The Chairman informed Members that he had been proud to represent the Council at recent commemorative events including those for VE Day, 40^th Anniversary of the Falklands War, D-Day and Armed Forces Week at which he had met many veterans’ groups. He reminded Council that, in addition to the RNLI, his charitable efforts would include raising money and awareness for veterans’ charities as well as signposting help for veterans in the District for those in need of help, for example, those suffering from PTSD.

The Chairman stated that a particular highlight had been the opening of a new mobile home in Weeley provided by UK Homes for Heroes, whose function was to provide homes for homeless veterans and/or those in need of respite. He urged Members to become familiar with the work of this charity.

Platinum Jubilee

The Chairman informed Council that he had been privileged to represent TDC at nine different events held across the District. He congratulated District and Town/Parish Councillors who had been involved in putting on these tremendous and memorable civic occasions.

Tendring Veterans and Services Day

The Chairman was pleased and proud to announce that the first ever Tendring Veterans and Services Day would be held on Clacton Greensward on Sunday 7 August 2022 from 11.00 a.m. until 5.00 p.m. with participation from veterans groups and charities and the emergency services. He sincerely thanked Officers for arranging this event from scratch in less than two months and he urged all Members to attend if at all possible.

Council noted the foregoing.

The Council is asked to note any announcements made by the Chief Executive.

There were no announcements by the Chief Executive on this occasion.

The Council is asked to note any statements made by the Leader of the Council. 

Councillors may then ask questions of the Leader on his statements.

Gold Award for Council in Recognition of Support to Armed Forces Personnel

The Leader of the Council (Councillor Stock OBE) was delighted to inform Members that this Council (TDC) had been given a gold award as part of the Ministry of Defence Employer Recognition Scheme. This scheme publicly recognised employers’ efforts to support defence personnel issues, such as employing reservists and veterans, while encouraging other organisations to do the same.

He reported that TDC had previously held a silver award, bestowed in 2019, but that it had recently improved its offer through a number of means, including changes to its leave policy to support reservists and cadet leaders.

Councillor Amos, TDC’s Armed Forces Champion, also made a brief statement to Council on this matter.

Council noted the foregoing.

The Council is asked to note any statements made by Members of the Cabinet (Portfolio Holders).

Councillors may then ask questions of the Portfolio Holders on their statements.

Action on Climate Change Update

The Environment and Public Space Portfolio Holder (Councillor Talbot) made the following statement:-

“Good evening Colleagues,

This is another report intended to inform Members of activity within our respective Council Departments, activity to help meet our Net Climate Zero ambition by 2030.

May I start off this report by quoting Lee Heley in a note to me. Lee had attended a major event, with Climate Change case studies on the agenda, he wrote: “What I took away from the discussions was that the basic rules set in law and guidance from central government are not enough to meet our ambitions to reach net zero – certainly our stretch goal of 2030, and so we are always seeking to try to get ahead of National policy”.   I thought this a very honest comment from someone with no axe to grind!

Now to Tendring:

  *We are seeking a consultant to collaborate with us on our Council houses and buildings, designing renewable energy schemes for some of our buildings. Tenders have been received and are being evaluated. A full report containing recommended options for investment will be taken to a Cabinet meeting in the Autumn.

 *Electric Vehicle charging points in our roads, where parking is controlled, are likely to be an Essex C.C. function. I am personally keen to see this facility in our roads approaching the Sea Front areas for the benefit and even encouragement of our holiday visitors. There is no present indication from ECC of action on this. The Council is engaged with ECC and the NEPP to encourage more on-street EV charging provision. One of the most difficult areas of concern with Electric Vehicles will be supporting residents who do not have off road parking, to charge at home. It could be that coupled with the needs of visitors, in both cases the most likely providers of EV charging are the commercial sector – as currently they provide the fuel at petrol stations.

Off street in car parks is where TDC can help both visitors who require charging before returning home and to assist local residents who do not have off road capability.
At present the main govt. grant scheme - ORCS funding (up to 75% of cost to a maximum of £13,000 per bay) is available to support households without off road capability but is not so readily available to support the special needs of our Tourist / visitor needs. Ian Taylor has secured grant support for EV charging in the proposed new Starlings car park, which is based in an area of terraced properties and without off road provision. The Council had the opportunity to purchase new equipment for the new car park. These last two situations helped the secure the grants success.
It might be that we eventually seek a partnership with the commercial sector via a variety of Charge Point Operators, but these companies still often require 15-year contracts – something that most local authorities are rightly  ...  view the full minutes text for item 22.

The Council will consider any petition(s) received in accordance with the Scheme approved by the Council.

No Petitions had been submitted in accordance with the Scheme approved by the Council on this occasion.

Subject to the required notice being given, members of the public can ask questions of the Leader of the Council, Portfolio Holders or Chairmen of Committees.

The Chairman shall determine the number of questions to be tabled at a particular meeting in order to limit the time for questions and answers to 21 minutes.

One question has been received, on notice, from a member of the public on this occasion.

Subject to the required notice being given, members of the public could ask questions of the Leader of the Council, Portfolio Holders or Chairmen of Committees.

One question had been received, on notice, from a member of the public on this occasion.

Question

Jan Vincent asked the Chairman of the Planning Committee, Councillor John White:-

“Will TDC issue a Section 215 TCPA for Bel-Air Chalet Estate, St. Osyth Beach, to make safe the extremely dangerous roads on the Holiday Park which are unusable by wheelchair users and hazardous to public and holiday makers?

The roads are hidden dangers at night as all street lighting has been disconnected.  The danger is compounded and hidden after rainfall as the potholes become filled with rainwater which is slow to drain as TDC Planning gave permission years ago for the natural drainage dykes to be filled in without any inspection of the works done.  The potholes are so deep a person or child could drown if they fell into a pothole and were rendered unconscious in the fall.  There are no pavements to avoid the danger.  Two Ambulances got stuck in the roads last year causing danger to life by delay of medical treatment.”

Councillor White replied to that question as follows:-

“Thank you, Chairman and thank you Ms Vincent for the Question.

I am aware that you met the Chief Executive and that more recently you had a meeting with the Corporate Director for Operations and Delivery, together with our Assistant Director for Planning, to discuss a variety of issues and concerns about the Bel-Air Estate. This is soon to be followed, by a further meeting with you on site which hopefully will include the Police. The Council is keen to work across its services and in partnership with other agencies to tackle the range of issues that have been identified. It is keen to employ the relevant powers available and most appropriate.

With regards to the use of Section 215 Notices to tackle the particular problems described about the condition of roads at Bel-Air, I am advised that this would not be an appropriate means by which to take action having regard to the purpose of Section 215 Notices under the legislation and the grounds upon which a landowner could appeal against such a Notice. I have asked the Assistant Director for Planning to provide you with the full and technical reasoning for that in writing.

The disconnection of the lighting does not constitute an issue of poor maintenance for which Section 215 Notices are designed to tackle. The potholes affect a private road within the Chalet Estate, is not adopted and is not otherwise available to the general public. Because the amenity enjoyed by the wider public and neighbours is not affected by the condition of the internal road, a Section 215 Notice is not appropriate in this instance.

However, our Officers are exploring other means by which these issues could  be addressed and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 24.

The Council will receive a report on any Cabinet or Portfolio Holder Decisions taken as a matter of urgency in accordance with Access to Information Procedure Rule 16.2, Budget and Policy Framework Procedure Rule 6(b) and/or Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rule 18(i).

In accordance with the requirements of Rule 16.2 of the Access to Information Procedure Rules and Rule 18(i) of the Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rules, Council received a report from the Leader of the Council which notified Members of any recent Executive Decision(s) taken in the circumstances set out in Rule 15 of the Access to Information Procedure Rules and/or Rule 18(i) of the Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rules and/or Rule 6(b) of the Budget and Policy Framework Procedure Rules.

(1)    Discretionary Council Tax Energy Rebate Scheme

It was reported that, on  10 May 2022, the Corporate Finance & Governance Portfolio Holder (Councillor G V Guglielmi) and the Housing Portfolio Holder (Councillor P B Honeywood), in view of the urgency of the issue concerned, and in accordance with Rule 15 of the Access to Information Procedure Rules, had sought and subsequently obtained the Chairman of the Resources and Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee’s (Councillor M E Stephenson) consent that the Corporate Finance & Governance Portfolio Holder’s and Housing Portfolio Holder’s joint decision relating to the adoption of a discretionary Council Tax energy rebate scheme could be taken under the Council’s “Special Urgency” procedure.

The Corporate Finance & Governance Portfolio Holder’s and Housing Portfolio Holder’s joint decision had been as follows:-

(1)    “That a Discretionary Council Tax Energy Rebate Scheme be approved and adopted by Tendring District Council;

(2)    That the Assistant Director (Finance & IT), be authorised under existing officer delegations, as set out in the Scheme of Delegation to determine:

a)    the final ‘top up’ payments to those households in properties with a council tax band of A to D and in receipt of LCTS to fully utilise the associated funding made available by the Government.

b)    any other technical changes required to implement and administer the scheme to reflect any emerging Government guidance as necessary; and

(3)    That any payments made to households under both the mandatory and discretionary are disregarded for the purpose of calculating entitlement to LCTS as a potential interim approach until further Government guidance is made available.”

It had been felt that any delay likely to be caused by the usual key decision forward plan process would have seriously prejudiced the Council’s and the public’s interest for the following reasons:-

“There would be a potential delay in households being able to access a council tax energy rebate payment under the associated discretionary scheme along with opportunities that could be missed by overlapping the administration of the discretionary scheme with the roll-out of the mandatory scheme.”

(2)    North Essex Parking Partnership Joint Committee Agreement

Council was informed that, on  30 June 2022, the Deputy Chief Executive & Monitoring Officer (Lisa Hastings), acting on behalf of the Leader of the Council (Councillor Stock OBE), in view of the urgency of the issue concerned, and in accordance with Rule 15 of the Access to Information Procedure Rules and Rule 18(i) of the Overview & Scrutiny Procedure Rules, had sought and subsequently obtained the Chairman of the Resources and Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee’s  ...  view the full minutes text for item 25.

The Council will receive the minutes of the following Committees:

(a)    Resources and Services Overview & Scrutiny of Monday 14 March 2022;

(b)    Community Leadership Overview & Scrutiny of Monday 21 March 2022;

(c)    Audit of Thursday 31 March 2022;

(d)    Standards of Wednesday 6 April 2022;

(e)    Audit of Monday 25 April 2022;

(f)     Community Leadership Overview & Scrutiny of Monday 9 May 2022;

(g)    Planning Policy & Local Plan Committee of Wednesday 11 May 2022;

(h)    Resources and Services Overview & Scrutiny Committee of Tuesday 24 May 2022; and

(i)     Planning Policy & Local Plan Committee of Tuesday 31 May 2022.

NOTES:         

(1)   The above minutes are presented to Council for information only.  Members can ask questions on their contents to the relevant Chairman but questions as to the accuracy of the minutes must be asked at the meeting of the Committee when the relevant minutes are approved as a correct record; and

(2)   If any recommendations to Council have been made by those Committees, these are included within separate reports for Council to decide upon (i.e. by noting the minutes those recommendations are not approved at this stage of the proceedings).

It was moved by Councillor Stock OBE and:-

RESOLVED that the minutes of the following Committees, as circulated, be received and noted:-

(a)    Resources and Services Overview & Scrutiny of Monday 14 March 2022;

(b)    Community Leadership Overview & Scrutiny of Monday 21 March 2022;

(c)    Audit of Thursday 31 March 2022;

(d)    Standards of Wednesday 6 April 2022;

(e)    Audit of Monday 25 April 2022;

(f)     Community Leadership Overview & Scrutiny of Monday 9 May 2022;

(g)    Planning Policy & Local Plan Committee of Wednesday 11 May 2022;

(h)    Resources and Services Overview & Scrutiny Committee of Tuesday 24 May 2022; and

(i)     Planning Policy & Local Plan Committee of Tuesday 31 May 2022.

The Council will consider any Motions on Notice submitted pursuant to the provisions of Council Procedure Rule 12.

No motions, on notice, had been submitted pursuant to Council Procedure Rule 12 from members of the Council on this occasion.

The Council will consider any recommendations submitted to it by the Cabinet.

No recommendations from the Cabinet had been submitted for Council’s consideration and determination on this occasion.

The Council will consider the proposed work programmes for the two overview and scrutiny committees (i.e. the Community Leadership Overview and Scrutiny Committee and the Resources and Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee) for the 2022/2023 Municipal Year and will note the work carried out by those committees during 2021/2022.

Council considered the respective proposed work programmes for the Community Leadership and the Resources & Services Overview and Scrutiny Committees for the remainder of 2022/23.  Council also received the proposed ‘Annual Report 2021/22’ for overview and scrutiny work undertaken through those Committees.

Members were aware that, under the Council’s Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rules, the Constitution stated, in relation to the Work Programme (Rule 7), that:

“Each Overview and Scrutiny Committee will submit a work programme for the year ahead and a review of the previous year’s activities to the Council for approval.  In addition, it will be responsible for coordinating and prioritising its work programme on an ongoing basis.

In submitting their proposed work programmes for 2022/23, the Overview and Scrutiny Committees had taken into account:-

·      the General Role and Principles of undertaking its functions, as set out in Part 2, Article 6

·      the planned work on the preparation of elements of the Budget and PolicyFramework, as set out in the Council’s Business Plan;

·      the need for statutory timetables to be met;

·      the wishes of all members of the committee;

·      requests from the Cabinet to carry out reviews; and

·      requests from Group Leaders in accordance with Rule 8.

In addition, under Article 6.02 of the Constitution the separate Overview & Scrutiny Committees (OSCs) performed the role of overview and scrutiny in relation to:-

Resources and Services OSC

“the effective use of the Council’s resources including approval of discrete researched and  evidenced reviews on the effectiveness of:

·      Financial Forecast and Budget setting and monitoring (including the General Fund and the Housing Revenue Account)

·      Service Delivery and Performance (where not delegated to the Community Leadership Overview and Scrutiny Committee)

·      Procurement and Contract Management

·      Transformation and Digital Strategies

·      Customer Service and Standards”

Community Leadership OSC

·      Community Leadership - developing the external focus of overview and scrutiny on ‘district-wide issues’ (and where appropriate sub-regional, regional and national issues), in particular through collaborative work with local partner authorities, providers, stakeholders and members of the public.

·      Approval of discrete researched and evidenced reviews on the effectiveness of partnership operating in the area with particular focus on:

o  Community Safety

o  Health and Well-being

o  Economy, Skills and Educational Attainment

o  Community engagement, development and empowerment

o  Leisure and Tourism (except matters relating to budgets)

o  Housing Strategy and Homeless Service (except the Housing Revenue Account)

o  Emergency Planning

In considering the Work Programme of enquiries to submit for approval to Council, the separate Overview and Scrutiny Committees had had regard to the Corporate Plan 2020-24 and the themes of that Corporate Plan.  Those themes were:

•    Delivering High Quality Services;

•    Building Sustainable Communities;

•    Strong Finances and Governance;

•    A Growing and Inclusive Economy; and

•    Community Leadership through Partnerships.

The Overview and Scrutiny Committees had each formally reviewed the work carried out in 2021/22 and had considered items for inclusion in their respective proposed Work Programmes for 2022/23 as follows:

Community Leadership Overview and Scrutiny Committee – 28 June 2022; and

Resources  ...  view the full minutes text for item 29.

To inform Council of changes in the membership of Committees that have occurred since the Annual Meeting of the Council on 26 April 2022.

The Chief Executive formally reported that, in accordance with the wishes of the Leader of the Conservative Group and the authority delegated to him, the following appointments had been duly made since the Annual Meeting of the Council, namely:-

Audit Committee

Councillor Fairley had been appointed to serve in place of Councillor Nash.

Human Resources & Council Tax Committee

Councillor S A Honeywood had been appointed to serve in place of Councillor Chittock.

Planning Committee

Councillor V E Guglielmi had been appointed to serve in place of Councillor Bray.

Planning Policy & Local Plan Committee

Councillor Chittock had been appointed to serve in place of Councillor S A Honeywood.

Resources and Services Overview & Scrutiny Committee

Councillor Skeels had been appointed to serve in place of Councillor Fairley.

Council noted the foregoing.

Subject to the required notice being given, Members of the Council can ask questions of the Chairman of the Council, the Leader of the Council, Portfolio Holders or Chairmen of Committees.

The time allocated for receiving and disposing of questions shall be a maximum of 30 minutes. Any question not disposed of at the end of this time shall be the subject of a written response, copied to all Members the following working day unless withdrawn by the questioner.

Three questions, on notice, have been submitted by Members on this occasion.

Subject to the required notice being given, Members of the Council could ask questions of the Chairman of the Council, the Leader of the Council, Portfolio Holders or Chairmen of Committees.

Three questions on notice had been submitted by Members on this occasion as set out below:-

Question One

Councillor Alan Coley asked Councillor Michael Talbot, the Portfolio Holder for Environment & Public Space:

“This Council has made a firm commitment to reducing carbon emissions and thereby reducing Greenhouse Gases and improving Air Quality in our District.

I am sure, we all welcome the return of TDC supported events such as the Car Rally, the Airshow, and the Tendring Show etc.

So that the Council cannot be accused of conspiracy in ‘Greenwashing’, can the Portfolio Holder provide details of what meaningful Carbon Off-Set mitigations the Organisers and Service Suppliers of these events have committed to, and in particular, where those offsets will be found?”

The Environment & Public Space Portfolio Holder replied as follows:-

“Thank you, Councillor Coley, for your question. I share your positive comments about the return of a full Clacton Airshow this year, together with the Harwich Illuminate Festival, Corbea Seats Rally Tendring and Clacton, the hugely successful Tour Series and all the other quality events planned in Tendring this year. They have a huge benefit to our local economy, and I am delighted to see them back on the calendar.

I am pleased to say that the Council has an ongoing tree planting scheme which offsets the carbon footprint of the Clacton Airshow. That results in around 300-400 trees being planted every year. This autumn that will include an additional one hundred trees as part of the Clacton 150 celebrations and further details will be made available in the next few months. Further to this, the organisers of the Rally are also planning a tree planting scheme as mitigation for their event.

The above is the official answer Alan, but the matter is so important in our overall Climate Change objectives in Tendring, that to show potential critics, that ‘Off-Setting’ is not just an easy excuse to allow such events to take place with a clear conscience, I will pursue more definite information about promised off-setting action by both ourselves and others involved in these activities in Tendring, as such action emerges over the period ahead.”

Councillor Coley then asked a question of clarification to which Councillor Talbot then responded.

Question Two

Councillor Ivan Henderson asked Councillor Neil Stock OBE, the Leader of the Council:

“In the Leader of the Council’s Budget speech he confirmed that his administration was adopting a policy of voting against all budget amendments but that any such amendments would then be considered through the new Corporate Investment Plan.

One such amendment, tabled by me on behalf of the Labour Group, sought to utilise £144,000 of the existing Tendring Community Fund to allow each Member to make available £3,000 of support funding to local charities and organisations assisting vulnerable residents through the cost of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 31.

The Council will consider any urgent matters submitted in accordance with Council Procedure Rules 3(xv), 11.3(b) and/or 13(p).

Earlier on in the meeting (Minute 18 above refers) and for the reasons reported therein, Councillors Fairley, Stock OBE, G V Guglielmi and V E Guglielmi had each declared a Personal Interest in the subject matter of this item as reported below.

The Chairman informed Council that, pursuant to the provisions of Council Procedure Rule 13(p), he had agreed to allow the consideration of an urgent Motion on Notice. That Motion, the text of which had been circulated to all Members of the Council in advance of the date of the meeting, had been submitted by Councillor Stock OBE and read as follows:-

“National Grid’s East Anglia Green Project, proposes an energy transmission route consisting of the construction of 180km of 50m tall pylons carrying 400kV cables through the entire central length of our County (as well as through our neighbours, Norfolk and Suffolk), save for a section of undergrounding at Dedham Vale.  

This Council has already expressed declared a climate emergency and an ambition to be net zero by 2050 so plans for renewable wind farms off the East Anglian coast are welcomed. However, this Council has serious concerns about the nature and short-period of consultation, the route, and how carbon-heavy the proposed scheme of overhead pylons are which rely on 100 year-old technology.

Furthermore, this Council believes that: 

·   There has been insufficient consideration of alternative approaches which would allow for the required infrastructure but without the sheer scale of the damage to the environment, landscape and the difficulties of this project going ahead, all at the same time as multiple large-scale infrastructure projects which have the potential to cause major disruption across the East of England. 

·    New offshore generated electricity should be transmitted offshore, which is why an offshore grid is needed. This is firmly in the interests of both residents and business, offshore windfarms themselves and wider interests e.g. Freeport East. Such an alternative approach would future-proof the network and could avoid all the physical constraints of an above or below-ground solution, retain ease of access for ongoing maintenance and provide a more direct point of connection for any current or future off-shore wind farms. 

·   This pylon infrastructure is neither wanted nor needed considering the viable option of undersea power cables. These cables could transport power to where it is needed, helping future proof energy supplies and boost energy security, without adversely impacting on residents, businesses and communities across Essex. 

This Council therefore calls upon: 

·       Both the Government and National Grid to refocus the East Anglia Green Proposals on an offshore solution and engage in meaningful discussions with Essex and its neighbouring County Councils to achieve this.

National Grid to:

·       Provide this Council with all the information asked for in our response of 16 June by 30 August 2022.

·       Make publicly available full, open and transparent information on all options, including offshore and undergrounding, to enable evaluation and comparisons to be made by Essex residents, businesses, Councils and other stakeholders. This information to be publicly  ...  view the full minutes text for item 32.

Council is asked to consider passing the following resolution:

“That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of Agenda Item 19 on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraph 7 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A, as amended, of the Act.”

It was moved by Councillor Stock OBE, seconded by Councillor G V Guglielmi and:-

RESOLVED that under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of Agenda Item 18 on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraph 7 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A, as amended, of the Act.

The Council will receive the exempt minute of the meeting of the Audit Committee held on Thursday 31 March 2022.

NOTES:         

(1)  The above exempt minute is presented to Council for information only.  Members can ask questions on its contents to the Committee’s Chairman but questions as to the accuracy of the minute must be asked at the meeting of the Committee when the exempt minute is approved as a correct record; and

(2)  If any recommendations to Council has been made by that Committee, these will be included within separate reports for Council to decide upon (i.e. by noting the minute any such recommendations are not approved at this stage of the proceedings).

It was moved by Councillor Stock OBE, seconded by Councillor G V Guglielmi and:-

RESOLVED that the Exempt Minute of the meeting of the Audit Committee held on Thursday 31 March 2022, as circulated, be received and noted.