| Item | Description | Resolution |
|---|---|---|
| PART 1 - PUBLIC | ||
| C 05/027 |
Declarations of interest. |
There were no declarations of interest made. |
| C 05/028 |
Minutes |
RESOLVED: That the Minutes of the proceedings of the meeting of the Council held on 10 May 2005 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Mayor. |
| C 05/029 |
Mayor's Announcements. |
The Mayor announced that he had received a letter of condolence from the Mayor of Le Puy en Velay following the tragic events in London on 7 July 2005. He congratulated the officers involved on the success of the Festival of Music and Fireworks held at Tonbridge Castle on the evenings of 8, 9 and 10 July. He advised Members that the visit by civic representatives from Le Puy over the weekend 24-26 June had also been successful. The Mayor reported on recent events attended by himself and by the Deputy Mayor and he advised Members about a number of events with particular reference to the Celebration of 300 years of Cricket in Kent being held by Town Malling Cricket Club between 19 and 31 July. |
| C 05/030 |
Questions from the public pursuant to Council Procedure Rule No 5.6. |
No questions were received from the public pursuant to Council Procedure Rule No 5.6. |
| C 05/031 |
Questions from Members pursuant to Council Procedure Rule No 5.5. |
Councillor Rowe asked the following question under Council Procedure Rule No 5.5 "I know that I am not the only Member receiving considerable amounts of undesirable material via TMBC email arrangements. I generally delete any material coming from TMBC unless it clearly identifies what the message is about. Would the Leader of the Council please update Members on what robust arrangements are being put in place to filter out spam sent to Members via TMBC. Can he assure me that Tumbleweed is robust enough to end Members' concern about the receipt of often disgusting material via TMBC email and allay my fears that I should now be able to use TMBC email and forwarding arrangements without undue concern." To which Councillor Baldock, Cabinet Member for Efficiency and Innovation, replied as follows:- "The ever-increasing volume of spam emails has become a major worldwide problem with the generally accepted statistic of something like 80% of emails received now being classified as spam. All businesses are continually having to increase the amount of resources spent on combating this issue and this Council is no exception. Several free or low-cost anti-spam software options have been used in the past to prevent or at least reduce the number of spam emails sent to individual Members and officers. These have not proved to be very efficient or robust at coping with this increasing problem, although no anti-spam software can be 100% effective. A number of market-leading anti-spam products have therefore been tested and evaluated over recent months and the Tumbleweed product has now recently been implemented. This product will block known spam emails from being sent to individuals at all. This will include undesirable ones that have been received by some people and although some of these senders initially succeeded in circumventing the controls put in place, these undesirable emails should now have been blocked. It will also identify other possible spam emails and individual Members and staff have control over whether or not they wish to receive emails from particular senders in future. Members who do not have direct access to their council mailbox can do this by informing the IT Help Desk of which emails they would like blocked in future." Councillor Rowe asked the following question under Council Procedure Rule No 5.5. "I`m sure that the Leader of The Council would like to join me in congratulating the British Olympic delegation on achieving success by getting London selected for the 2012 Olympics. At this early stage, is he able to say, in what ways Tonbridge and Malling could benefit from the Olympic Games being held in London, in 7 years time and whether or not he envisages that the event may cause us any problems." To which Councillor Worrall, the Leader of the Council, replied as follows:- "I agree with Councillor Rowe that congratulations are due to Lord Coe and his team on this superb result. I am sure that the London Olympics will provide a great opportunity to engage the interest of the next generation and increase their passion for participation in sport and in this event in particular. This Council has supported London's Olympic bid on our website and the homecoming parade for Kelly Holmes last year was partly funded by the London 2012 team in recognition of the valuable contribution this event made towards the London bid. My view is that our residents will have the greatest sporting spectacle in the world taking place on their doorstep, and the Games will present major opportunities for businesses, tourism, leisure and the arts. This Council, in partnership with others, will be continuing to provide excellent sports facilities, programmes and opportunities, with a view to enhancing young people's participation in sport and hopefully producing more Olympic Champions in 2012. On a more personal note, I would also welcome the Para-Olympics which will succeed the above event and wish the competitors great success in their chosen sport. At this early stage, I don't anticipate that the event will pose particular problems for us. However, we will be participating in a thorough planning process with our colleagues from the County Council, other districts and Medway Council so as to ensure that any implications for us are fully evaluated and planned for and also so that the opportunities for us are fully realised." |
| C 05/032 |
Leader's Announcements. |
The Leader commended the Mayor on his Civic Service held on 5 June, which had been inspirational and had provided a splendid start to his term of office. He also congratulated the Director of Leisure and his team of officers on the Festival of Music and Fireworks held at Tonbridge Castle and advised that, while a number of telephone calls had been received suggesting that it would be inappropriate for this event to go ahead following the tragic events in London on 7 July, he hoped that Members would endorse the view that the best response to terrorist action was to continue with life as normal. The Leader commented that the first West Kent Partnership Conference, held at East Malling, had been very well attended and that the official speakers had been both eloquent and informative. He expressed his gratitude to Mark Raymond for organising such a successful event. He commended Brian Gates and his team on the recent provision of seminars for all Members on the Local Development Framework and requested that, if Members have any outstanding concerns, they notify the Director of Planning and Transportation prior to the meeting of the Local Development Framework Steering Panel on 21 July. The Leader commended Housing Services on the achievement of the 'Fit for Purpose' rating for a second year. He also welcomed the positive benefits which would ensue from the investment in the landscape of the Medway Valley of the £2.4 million grant. The Leader advised that an extraordinary meeting of the Council would be held on 10 August to consider an issue arising from Area 3 Planning Committee and the tiling at Tonbridge Swimming Pool. Finally, the Leader expressed his apologies to both Members and local residents for the cancellation of the Alcohol and Entertainments Licensing Panel on 7 July and he thanked the Chief Solicitor for the advice provided. He suggested that a letter should be sent to the relevant Minister requesting a longer consultation period be allowed for the general public to comment on alcohol and entertainments licences. |
| C 05/033 |
Statement of Community Involvement Item CB 05/024 referred from Cabinet minutes of 22nd June, 2005 . |
The Council received proposals from the Cabinet in respect of this item in relation to the Council's budget and policy framework and RESOLVED: That the recommendation at Minute CB 05/024 be adopted. |
| C 05/034 |
Planning Delivery Grant and Allied Development Control Matters Item PE 05/018 referred from Planning and Transportation Advisory Board minutes of 23rd May, 2005 . Item CB 05/025 referred from Cabinet minutes of 22nd June, 2005 . |
RESOLVED: That the recommendation at Minute CB 05/025 be adopted. |
| C 05/035 |
Tonbridge Swimming Pool - Outdoor Pool Item CB 05/026 referred from Cabinet minutes of 22nd June, 2005 . |
RESOLVED: That the recommendation at Minute CB 05/026 be adopted. |
| C 05/036 |
Democratic Services Officer - Hours Item GP 05/022 referred from General Purposes Committee minutes of 27th June, 2005 . |
RESOLVED: That the recommendation at Minute GP 05/022 be adopted. |
| C 05/037 |
Development Control Establishment Proposals - Planning Delivery Grant Item GP 05/023 referred from General Purposes Committee minutes of 27th June, 2005 . |
RESOLVED: That the recommendation at Minute GP 05/023 be adopted. |
| C 05/038 |
Scrutiny Committee Annual Report |
The Chairman of the Scrutiny Committee presented the annual report on the work undertaken by the committee since May 2004, as required by the Council's Constitution. He paid tribute to the thorough approach adopted by members of the committee and thanked his Vice-Chairman for her support over the last year. RESOLVED: That the report be received and noted and Councillors Hickmott and Mrs Bowden be commended for the work they had undertaken as Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the Scrutiny Committee during the past municipal year. |
| C 05/039 |
Policy and Best Value Committee Annual Report |
The Chairman of the Policy and Best Value Committee presented the annual report on the work undertaken by the commmittee since May 2004, as required by the Council's Constitution. He paid tribute to the thorough approach adopted by members of the committee and of the Best Value Sub-Committees. RESOLVED: That the report be received and noted and Councillors Bolt and Thornewell be commended for the work they had undertaken as Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the Policy and Best Value Committee during the past municipal year. |
| C 05/040 |
Sealing of Documents |
RESOLVED: That authority be given for the Common Seal of the Council to be affixed to any instrument to give effect to a decision of the Council incorporated in these Minutes and proceedings. |