Agenda and minutes

To appoint a Chairman for the remainder of the 2025/26 municipal year.

It was proposed by Councillor Miscandlon, seconded by Councillor Murphy and resolved that Councillor Woollard be elected as the Chairman of Overview and Scrutiny for the rest of the municipal year 2025/26.

To appoint a Vice-Chairman for the remainder of the municipal year of 2025/26.

It was proposed by Councillor Miscandlon, seconded by Councillor Murphy and resolved that Councillor Foice-Beard be elected as Vice-Chairman for the rest of the municipal year 2025/26.

To confirm and sign the minutes of the meeting of 1 December 2025.

The minutes of the meeting of 1 December 2025 were confirmed and signed.

To review the Council’s Fees and Charges for 2026/27, in line with the Budget Strategy considered by Cabinet on 15 December 2025.

Members considered the Review of Fees and Charges 2026/27, presented by Councillors Boden, Seaton, and Tierney.

Members made comments, asked questions and received responses as follows:

·       Councillor Murphy asked why the charges for the Whittlesey Fair are lower in cost than any of the other main towns? Councillor Seaton stated that the cost is reflected by the size of the Fair and the amount of time the Fair spends in the towns. He continued for Whittlesey this is a small Fair held over a couple of days using limited space which is why the charges are lower than other towns in the area.

·       Councillor Roy stated that the garden waste charge is increasing to £49 for direct debit, whereas if the customer is paying cash or card it will be increasing to £60, which is significantly higher, which he feels is discriminatory due to the fact that they are paying £60 as opposed to £49 given that there are areas of deprivation and people are struggling to balance their budget, and feels this needs some consideration. He made the point that there is a cost of £40 for the bulky waste, which is a reasonable price to take away five items, however, there has been evidence that on a weekly basis councillors are contacting the fly tipping team with issues in their area and suggested considering having an amnesty once a year where people can come and drop their rubbish at the dump in larger vehicles at a reduced rate. Councillor Tierney responded that the reason the prices are different for the Brown Bin garden waste is because the Council would like to encourage people to pay by direct debit which a lot of businesses and organisations are undertaking now as it is easier and cheaper with less to pass onto the taxpayer, however Fenland does still remain to be the cheapest in the East of England where this is concerned. He continued when thinking about the suggestion of an amnesty he recommended that O&S think about this separately and propose a full plan to the Council to see if this is a feasible option.

·       Councillor Booth stated that a report was taken to Cabinet regarding the Port and asked if the action plans are going to be implemented this year as there has been several reviews and as, yet no action plans have been put in place. Councillor Boden responded that action has been taken but agreed it has been slow, as of today the Council are awaiting responses from interested parties concerning the Port, but discussions have not yet been concluded and until these discussions are concluded, a report will not be possible to be submitted to the Cabinet. Councillor Booth suggested that under commercial fees where it stated, ‘a review of operations’, this means that a decision is going to be made once the actions have been completed. Councillor Boden agreed that this is something worth thinking about but was not going to prejudice anything at  ...  view the full minutes text for item OSC35/23

To consider and make any appropriate recommendations to Cabinet on the Draft Medium Term Financial Strategy, Draft General Fund Budget 2026/27 and Draft Capital Programme 2026/29 for consultation.

Members considered the Revised General Fund Budget and Capital Programme 2025/26, Draft General Fund Budget Estimates 2026/27 and Draft Medium Term Financial Strategy 2026/27 to 2030/31 and Capital Programme 2026/27 to 2028/29 presented by Councillor Boden and Paul Medd

Members made comments, asked questions and received responses as follows:

·       Councillor Murphy pointed out a typo error on pages 49 and 50 Councillor Boden assured this would be amended before it is submitted to Council.

·       Councillor Barber stated that the Council has a good record for keeping Council Tax low and asked if this will be able to continue? Councillor Boden responded that Council Tax can be a major drain on a family budget and residents in Fenland are very sensitive to change, with the Council having a responsibility to manage this money and make it work as efficiently and effectively as possible plus to keep the Council Tax as low as possible for as long as possible and this is why the Budget Equalisation Reserve Fund was set up to bank any surplus money that was generated each year. He continued that this was, so that the Council could manage when times became more difficult and where costs escalate to the extent that the Council could no longer manage to keep costs down, with this in place the Council could insulate people against future Council Tax increases  and this method has proved to be a success with a two million pound cushion so far. Councillor Boden continued the Council works hard throughout the year to keep Council Tax costs down with the aid of this fund and Council Tax with be a matter for Full Council to decide with updated figures being submitted at the next Council meeting, but he is confident that with the reserves that the Council has in place, it is his hope and intention that Council Tax should not be increasing for 2026/27.

·       Councillor Booth stated that currently it is predicted that the Council has a £300,000 deficit but there is an expectation this will become a surplus, He asked where will this extra funding be coming from to cover the shortfall? Councillor Booth continued that the budget states that there will be a two million deficit for next year and he would like to understand where the Council will be making additional savings? is there a plan in place as to how the Council are going to cover that shortfall and if so, can this be shared with members? Councillor Boden responded, in relation to the first question, every year there is a pattern of going from significant deficits being budgeted for to projected outturns ending up as surpluses, which is due to be over cautious in certain areas which can lead to a six-figure sum which the Council benefits from. He continued that he has put forward for the next Cabinet meeting a recommendation which will need to go to Full Council in February for the creation of a new LGR reserve which he  ...  view the full minutes text for item OSC36/23

To comment on the draft Business Plan for 2026/27.

Members considered the Draft Business Plan 2026/27 presented by Councillors Boden and Tierney.

Members made comments, asked questions and received responses as follows:

·       Councillor Booth commented that the Council has put in place the performance measures but was not sure if the business plan has been looked at alongside the performance measures as a dedicated item and this could be something that the committee could consider for the future looking at all the KPI’s together as a whole. Councillor Foice-Beard agreed that this could be looked at when putting the plan together for next year.

Members noted the information provided.

To provide notice of decisions taken without the need for notice to be given on the Forward Plan and/or for the call-in procedures to be applied.

Members were provided with details of the one decision that the former Chairman had waivered the need for notice to be given on the Forward Plan and for call-in procedures.

Members made comments, asked questions and received responses as follows:

·       Councillor Miscandlon stated that the use of waives should be used minimally and only on special occasions.

·       Councillor Boden agreed that the waiver process should only be used minimally and sometime things are unexpected or are unanticipated, and the waiver process is there to provide a degree of democratic control over decisions which are made in such circumstances, both in terms of the decision being made itself but also on it being reported to the Overview and Scrutiny Panel so that late decisions can themselves be subject to scrutiny if necessary.

Members noted the waiver permitted by the former Chairman since the date of the last meeting.

Members to receive an update on the previous meeting’s Action Plan.

Councillor Booth asked for his question from the last meeting to be chased and an answer provided.

To consider the Draft Work Programme for Overview & Scrutiny Panel 2025/26.

Councillor Booth asked if there has been any conformation that Vision Zero will be attending the next meeting as he felt it important that they attend. Amy Brown confirmed she has been in contact with the relevant officers about attending and that this will be a combined presentation with the Road Safety Partnership.