Agenda item

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule No 10 to consider Motions on notice from Members.  Motions must be received in writing or by email to the Monitoring Officer by 12 noon twelve clear working days before the meeting. 

 

The following motions have been submitted.

 

Motion ‘A’ – Proposed by Councillor R Shipman

 

Motion to Improve Bin Collection Services in North East Derbyshire District Council

This Council Notes That:

 

1.     Reliable waste collection services are a fundamental responsibility of local government and vital for maintaining public health, environmental sustainability, and resident satisfaction.

2.     Several residents across North East Derbyshire have expressed concerns about missed collections, inconsistent schedules, and insufficient communication regarding service disruptions.

3.     Increased housing developments and population growth have placed additional pressure on the current waste collection system.

 

This Council Believes That:

 

1.     Improved bin collection services would contribute significantly to cleaner communities and higher resident satisfaction.

2.     Effective waste management is critical to achieving North East Derbyshire’s environmental sustainability goals.

3.     Clear communication with residents is essential to maintaining trust and accountability.

This Council Resolves To:

 

1.          Conduct a comprehensive review of the current waste collection system including:

a. Routes and schedules.

        b. The adequacy of existing resources (vehicles, staff, bins).

        c. Feedback from residents regarding service performance.

 

2.     Develop and implement a strategy to address identified issues, which may include:

 

        a.Optimizing collection routes for efficiency.

        b.Expanding collection days or hours to accommodate growing demand.
c. Investing in new or upgraded collection vehicles with improved capacity and environmental standards.

        d. Introducing real-time updates for residents on collection delays via a digital platform or SMS service.

 

3.     Commit to gathering accurate data and quarterly performance reviews of the bin collection service and publish results to ensure transparency and accountability. 

 

4.     Seek external funding opportunities, partnerships or sponsorships / advertisements on vehicles where possible to finance service improvements without placing undue financial strain on the Council budget.

 

 

Motion ‘B’ – Proposed by Councillor H Liggett

 

North East Derbyshire District Council’s Opposition to the Abolition of District Councils and the Creation of ‘Super Councils’ motion

 

This Council notes with concern the UK Government’s proposals to abolish district councils in favour of creating large unitary authorities or ‘super councils’.

This Council believes:

 

1.     That District Councils, such as North East Derbyshire District Council, play a vital role in delivering high-quality, accessible, and locally-focused services to residents.

 

2.     That local decision-making is essential to ensuring that the voices of communities are heard and reflected in the decisions that affect their daily lives.

3.     That the creation of large ‘super councils’ risks removing decision-making further from local residents, reducing accountability, and eroding the sense of local identity that district councils foster.

 

4.     That smaller, locally-based councils are better placed to respond to the specific needs of their communities compared to larger and more remote administrative bodies.

This Council further notes:

 

1.     That the proposed changes are likely to lead to a loss of local representation, with fewer elected representatives for larger populations.

2.     That creating larger councils could result in the centralisation of resources and services, making it harder for residents, particularly those in rural North East Derbyshire, to access support.

3.     That the process of reorganisation will be costly and disruptive at a time when local authorities are already under significant financial pressures.

 

This Council therefore resolves:

 

1.          To oppose the Government’s proposals to abolish district councils and replace them with larger unitary authorities.

2.     To write to the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, expressing the Council’s concerns and requesting the Government to reconsider its approach to local government reorganisation.

3.     To work with other district councils, local authorities, and relevant stakeholders to make the case for the retention of local councils as vital and effective providers of services and democratic representation.

4.     To ensure that the residents of North East Derbyshire are informed about the potential impact of these proposals and to encourage them to make their voices heard through appropriate channels.

5.     To ask local Members of Parliament to support North East Derbyshire District Council and represent the concerns of their constituents in Parliament.

 

 

Motion ‘C’ – Proposed by Councillor C Cupit

 

Council notes the recent Government announcement of “a sweeping overhaul of local planning committees”, which proposes changes including: “the scope for applications in local development plans to bypass planning committees entirely”, “strengthened decision-making powers for planners to speed up the approval process” and “fast-tracking planning decisions” as well as imposing a national scheme of delegation.

 

Council opposes the Government statements indicating that planning committees are “an unnecessary waste of time and resources” and the drive to provide “greater certainty to housebuilders”, considering this could be at the expense of a vital local say and input on planning decisions.

 

Council therefore resolves for the Leader of the Council to submit a formal response to the Department of Housing, Communities and Local Government outlining concerns over the proposed changes and the language used, which risks victimising and side-lining the right of local communities to have meaningful input right throughout the planning process, and highlighting important local examples of where planning committee decisions have been upheld. Council also resolves to request that the decisions over the operation of planning committees and schemes of delegations remains a local power, to best reflect the individual needs of different districts and areas.

Motion ‘A’ – Proposed by Councillor Ross Shipman

 

Motion to Improve Bin Collection Services in North East Derbyshire District Council

This Council Notes That:

 

1.         Reliable waste collection services are a fundamental responsibility of local government and vital for maintaining public health, environmental sustainability, and resident satisfaction.

2.         Several residents across North East Derbyshire have expressed concerns about missed collections, inconsistent schedules, and insufficient communication regarding service disruptions.

3.         Increased housing developments and population growth have placed additional pressure on the current waste collection system.

 

This Council Believes That:

 

1.         Improved bin collection services would contribute significantly to cleaner communities and higher resident satisfaction.

2.         Effective waste management is critical to achieving North East Derbyshire’s environmental sustainability goals.

3.         Clear communication with residents is essential to maintaining trust and accountability.

This Council Resolves To:

 

1.         Conduct a comprehensive review of the current waste collection system including:

a. Routes and schedules.

            b. The adequacy of existing resources (vehicles, staff, bins).

            c. Feedback from residents regarding service performance.

 

2.         Develop and implement a strategy to address identified issues, which may include:

 

            a. Optimizing collection routes for efficiency.

b. Expanding collection days or hours to accommodate growing demand.
c. Investing in new or upgraded collection vehicles with improved capacity and environmental standards.

d. Introducing real-time updates for residents on collection delays via a digital platform or SMS service.

 

3.         Commit to gathering accurate data and quarterly performance reviews of the bin collection service and publish results to ensure transparency and accountability. 

 

4.         Seek external funding opportunities, partnerships or sponsorships / advertisements on vehicles where possible to finance service improvements without placing undue financial strain on the Council budget.

 

Councillor R Shipman moved the Motion.

 

Councillor D Hancock seconded the Motion.

 

Councillor S Pickering stated that in 2024 the Council was scheduled to empty just under 2.8 million bins and just over 4,600 were missed.  Most bins were not collected because of blocked roads/parked cars or broken-down fleet vehicles.  Councillor S Pickering added that he felt the Motion was not needed and he would vote against.

 

Councillor N Barker, J Stokes, F Adlington-Stringer, A Dale and J Barry spoke to the Motion.

 

Councillor C Cupit suggested that an amendment be made to resolve to send points 1 to 4 to the relevant scrutiny committee for review.

 

Councillor R Shipman said that the current item that was due to be considered at scrutiny was only looking at the reasons for missed bin collections.  The Motion proposed went further and looked at improvements that could be made.  He challenged the figures that Councillor S Pickering had provided.

 

Following the debate Councillor R Shipman agreed to a proposal to amend the proposal to resolve to send to the relevant scrutiny committee points 1 – 4.  The Motion passed.

 

RESOLVED – That this Council resolves to send to scrutiny for review the following:

 

1.         Conduct a comprehensive review of the current waste collection system including:

a. Routes and schedules.

            b. The adequacy of existing resources (vehicles, staff, bins).

            c. Feedback from residents regarding service performance.

 

2.         Develop and implement a strategy to address identified issues, which may include:

 

            a. Optimizing collection routes for efficiency.

b. Expanding collection days or hours to accommodate growing demand.
c. Investing in new or upgraded collection vehicles with improved capacity and environmental standards.

d. Introducing real-time updates for residents on collection delays via a digital platform or SMS service.

 

3.         Commit to gathering accurate data and quarterly performance reviews of the bin collection service and publish results to ensure transparency and accountability. 

 

4.         Seek external funding opportunities, partnerships or sponsorships / advertisements on vehicles where possible to finance service improvements without placing undue financial strain on the Council budget.

 

 

Motion ‘B’ – Proposed by Councillor H Liggett

 

North East Derbyshire District Council’s Opposition to the Abolition of District Councils and the Creation of ‘Super Councils’ motion

 

This Council notes with concern the UK Government’s proposals to abolish district councils in favour of creating large unitary authorities or ‘super councils’.

This Council believes:

 

1.         That District Councils, such as North East Derbyshire District Council, play a vital role in delivering high-quality, accessible, and locally-focused services to residents.

 

2.         That local decision-making is essential to ensuring that the voices of communities are heard and reflected in the decisions that affect their daily lives.

3.         That the creation of large ‘super councils’ risks removing decision-making further from local residents, reducing accountability, and eroding the sense of local identity that district councils foster.

 

4.         That smaller, locally-based councils are better placed to respond to the specific needs of their communities compared to larger and more remote administrative bodies.

This Council further notes:

 

1.         That the proposed changes are likely to lead to a loss of local representation, with fewer elected representatives for larger populations.

2.         That creating larger councils could result in the centralisation of resources and services, making it harder for residents, particularly those in rural North East Derbyshire, to access support.

3.         That the process of reorganisation will be costly and disruptive at a time when local authorities are already under significant financial pressures.

 

This Council therefore resolves:

 

1.            To oppose the Government’s proposals to abolish district councils and replace them with larger unitary authorities.

2.         To write to the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, expressing the Council’s concerns and requesting the Government to reconsider its approach to local government reorganisation.

3.         To work with other district councils, local authorities, and relevant stakeholders to make the case for the retention of local councils as vital and effective providers of services and democratic representation.

4.         To ensure that the residents of North East Derbyshire are informed about the potential impact of these proposals and to encourage them to make their voices heard through appropriate channels.

5.         To ask local Members of Parliament to support North East Derbyshire District Council and represent the concerns of their constituents in Parliament.

 

Councillor H Liggett moved the Motion.

 

Councillor M Roe seconded the Motion.

 

Council debated the Motion.

 

Councillor N Barker responded to the Motion.  He stated that he had been in contact with both local MPs and had a meeting with Louise Jones MP at which he had expressed his concerns regarding the reorganisation proposals.  He concluded that it would be counterproductive to support the Motion at this time and it was important to work to achieve the best outcome for the people of the District.

 

Councillor R Welton spoke on the basis that Town and Parish Councils would continue, and that he opposed the proposed super councils.  He talked about a number of services and what mechanisms would be required to run them. 

 

Councillor A Dale stated that he did not believe this had been inevitable and that the County Council had put a proposal on the table, which the administration of this Council had not.

 

Councillor H Wetherall spoke about large organisations and how they were not as flexible as this Council and these proposals would not address the issues faced.  Councillor D Hancock stated that this was taking democracy away from the people.  Councillor F Adlington-Stringer supported the Motion and stated that the proposals should be opposed.

 

Councillor C Renwick stated that she would not support the Motion.  She added that there was bureaucracy and waste within the public sector and these proposals should be used to look for opportunities. 

 

Councillor R Shipman stated that he believed the best thing for residents was to oppose these proposals. Councillor M Foster stated that he supported the Motion, and the proposals took representation away from residents.

 

Councillor J Barry stated that she understood the concerns about Council staff and staffing issues, but she would not support the Motion.

 

Councillor H Liggett concluded the debate by saying that the proposals were wrong.

 

The Motion was put to the vote and rejected.

 

Motion ‘C’ – Proposed by Councillor Cupit

 

Council notes the recent Government announcement of “a sweeping overhaul of local planning committees”, which proposes changes including: “the scope for applications in local development plans to bypass planning committees entirely”, “strengthened decision-making powers for planners to speed up the approval process” and “fast-tracking planning decisions” as well as imposing a national scheme of delegation.

 

Council opposes the Government statements indicating that planning committees are “an unnecessary waste of time and resources” and the drive to provide “greater certainty to housebuilders”, considering this could be at the expense of a vital local say and input on planning decisions.

 

Council therefore resolves for the Leader of the Council to submit a formal response to the Department of Housing, Communities and Local Government outlining concerns over the proposed changes and the language used, which risks victimising and side-lining the right of local communities to have meaningful input right throughout the planning process and highlighting important local examples of where planning committee decisions have been upheld. Council also resolves to request that the decisions over the operation of planning committees and schemes of delegations remains a local power, to best reflect the individual needs of different districts and areas.

 

Councillor C Cupit moved the Motion.  In moving the Motion, Councillor C Cupit stated that the proposed changes to planning committees was a threat to local democracy, with the plan to strip local planning committees of much of their decision-making powers a great concern.

 

Councillor K Tait left the meeting.

 

Councillor A Dale seconded the Motion.  He talked about the importance of planning committees and the opportunity to voice issues and have a public space to debate issues.

 

Councillor N Baker expressed his support for the Motion.  Councillor S Reed stated that the legislation was not fit for purpose, and it was not democratic.

 

Councillor D Hancock stated that this was another example of taking power from the people.  Councillor R Welton expressed his support for the Motion.  Councillor H Wetherall also expressed support for the Motion.

 

Councillor S Pickering stated that he did not support the Motion and talked about the importance of the Local Plan.

 

Councillor F Adlington-Stringer spoke about the need to empower local residents.  Councillor M Foster expressed his support for the Motion and spoke about the new NPPF.  Councillor J Stokes spoke about housing in Clay Cross.

 

The Motion was put to the vote and rejected.