Minutes:
Councillor Mason advised Members that this update encompasses agenda items 9 and 10. He advised the Overview and Scrutiny Panel that he was asked as Chairman of Overview and Scrutiny to waive the Forward Plan notice period and subsequent call in period in relation to the Portfolio Holder decision, to enable the Cabinet Member, Councillor Sue Wallwork, to take a decision in relation to four Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPO’s) in Wisbech.
The PSPO’s in Wisbech were agreed by Cabinet in 2017. These orders need to be reviewed every three years to be either extended, amended or deleted. A consultation has taken place and all stakeholders including the Town Council unanimously agreed the Orders should be extended for a further three years.
It was originally thought this was an officer decision as an extension to the original Order that was agreed in 2017, however, to ensure we are taking a legal decision, officers decided the decision is required to be taken by a Cabinet Member. All key decisions are required to be advertised on the Council’s Forward Plan for 28 days, however due to change of mind on the most appropriate governance process, this item did not appear on the Forward Plan for the full 28 days. It would have been on the forward plan for 20 days.
The reason this decision was so urgent is the Orders expired on 20th October 2020 therefore a decision was required before then to extend the Orders otherwise they would have lapsed, and the powers would no longer be enforceable to control alcohol related issues in Wisbech.
Councillor Mason added that he was keen for Members to understand the rationale behind his decision to utilise his delegated urgency powers in this instance.
Carol Pilson added that this had been an unfortunate set of circumstances and she was very grateful to Councillor Mason for his consideration on the matter and making that decision so that we did not have to go back through consultation and allow those powers to lapse.
Members made comments, asked questions and received responses as follows:
1. Councillor Booth said he agreed the Order should have been put through and the use of emergency powers was appropriate, but this was the third instance this year where the orders had to be used. He understands that the pandemic has been in part responsible but as a long-term member of the Overview and Scrutiny Panel these powers have not really be used up until this year. He would not like to see this become a regular occurrence and asked for assurance from officers that this is not going to become the norm. There should be a series of checks and balances to ensure Council business is conducted in the appropriate manner. Carol Pilson said that officers do their utmost not to call upon these urgency powers and the appropriate provision is set out in the constitution which for this situation has a defined set of rules, which includes the reporting today as a safeguard for when these rules have to be called upon. However, she understands Councillor Booth’s point that these powers have been used several times recently and added that as Monitoring Officer responsible for good governance, it is certainly not a position she nor her colleagues would want to encourage regularly. Unfortunately, these situations do sometimes arise though, and these powers are the best use for the best outcome for the council and the community although we would like to use them to a minimum. Councillor Booth said he did not disagree with the decisions made but reiterated it is a matter of checks and balances to be used appropriately but thanked Carol Pilson for her answer.
2. Councillor Miscandlon said that he was involved in one of the previous emergency powers when COVID-19 struck. He said that he fully supports the actions taken this time with the appropriate safeguards as he did previously. He can assure the Panel that prior to authorising the emergency powers, he knew there was a lengthy discussion with the legal officer in an attempt not to use or overuse the powers that were available.
Members confirmed that they were happy with the use of the urgency powers available in this instance.