Agenda item

Members asked questions of Portfolio Holders in accordance with Procedure Rules 8.1 and 8.2 as follows:

·         Councillor Connor addressed Councillor Murphy and stated that he would like to congratulate Adam Pratt and his team of Refuse and Recycling operatives as well as Street Cleansing Operatives and Rapid Response crew for the excellent work that they carry out. He added that he has never heard any negativity from residents only words of praise for the work that they undertake in all types of weather. Councillor Connor commented that they are all a credit to the Council, and he asked for his sentiments to be fed back to the staff.

·         Councillor Connor addressed Councillor Wallwork and asked if she could pass on his thanks and appreciation to the Environmental Health Officers for the excellent work that they undertake in often challenging situations. He added that Dawn Sadler has gone over and beyond in her duties to get several difficult cases dealt with to reach a satisfactory conclusion in a timely and proactive manner and he asked for his thanks to be passed on.

·         Councillor Hoy stated that she was surprised over the weekend to see an open letter from the Chief Executive of the County Council, in which he called into question the professionalism of the Senior Officers Team at Fenland. She said that she has always found the officers to be very professional and whilst sometimes there maybe differences of opinion, they always act in a professional manner, and she made the point that she has no complaints about them and holds them in extremely high regard. Councillor Hoy asked whether Councillor Boden agrees with her statement, and whether he would refute the claims which were made. She added that she is genuinely concerned about how the letter came to light as she cannot ever recall this type of incident taking place in the 14 years that she has been a councillor. Councillor Hoy stated that it may be that a code of conduct complaint may be required but that will not become apparent until an investigation is conducted and asked Councillor Boden whether he will be prepared to investigate this matter further on behalf of the Council? Councillor Hoy added that, in her view, it is important to do so due to the fact as employers there is a duty to defend its employees when they have their reputation tarnished unfairly in such a way. Councillor Boden stated that he was also sent a copy of the open letter on Friday which Councillor Hoy has referred to and he explained that he does not want to exacerbate a situation which has already gone regrettably further than it should have done. He said he fully endorses the comments made by Councillor Hoy and has 100% confidence in the professionalism of the Senior Officer Team at Fenland. Councillor Boden added that he will be drafting an email to the Chief Executive of Cambridgeshire County Council, the content of such will be kept private and he has every intention of investigating further the potential breaches of the Councillors Code of Conduct, the Code of Conduct between officers and members as well as the Code of Conduct which relates to the release of information to the press within Cambridgeshire County Council. He explained that if he needs to initiate any appropriate action at County level, then he will do so, but that will be undertaken personally and not on behalf of the Council as that would be inappropriate to do so.

·         Councillor Booth referred to the report from Councillor Mrs French with regards to Civil Parking Enforcement and the fact that there is a £500,000 shortfall and he has been made aware that the Council did receive an amount of money from what was known as Cambridgeshire Horizon, along with additional funding from DEFRA associated with drainage levies although he believes that money has gone into general reserves. He asked whether there are any other avenues which can be investigated to find the funding shortfall and that the detail concerning the deficient regulation orders is decades old and there are some issues which are 30 or 40 years old which need to be rectified before it can be progressed within the Fenland area. Councillor Mrs French stated that no money or any promise of any money has been received from Cambridgeshire Horizon and the money that the Council did receive, there has been no decision to date with regards to how that is going to be spent. She added that she agrees with the point raised by Councillor Booth concerning the out-of-date Traffic Order which dates back to 1984 and explained that it is hoped to introduce the 2004 regulations, but unfortunately it is not just the financial aspect which needs to be considered there is also the unreasonable contract which the County Council wish to impose on the Council which involves the Council becoming responsible for the maintenance of the lines and signs for perpetuity along with various other unreasonable conditions. Councillor Mrs French explained that Fenland officers are in discussions with officers from the County Council.

·         Councillor Patrick asked Councillor Mrs French if she can provide a timescale of when Civil Parking Enforcement can be pursued further as he has spoken to several people who are disappointed that this is not being carried through due to the fact that as a Council it was stated that it was a priority. Councillor Mrs French stated that officers are in discussions with the ongoing issues and made the point that the applications can only be submitted twice a year, once in April and again in October, so the Council will not be able to do that until next year and she explained that she is also frustrated since this was first discussed in 2019. She explained that South Cambridgeshire District Council have implemented it but that is because the Cambridge Greater Partnership have financed the £1million for the lines and signs and they have also agreed to financially support them for the next five years which is not something that Fenland has the luxury of.