Agenda and minutes

A special meeting has been convened to confer the title of Honorary Freewoman upon Nicola White by resolution of not less than two thirds of the members voting, as nominated by Full Council on the 7^th September 2016 in accordance with Section 249 (5) of the Local Government Act 1972, in recognition of her role as an ambassador for the Borough.

It is anticipated the meeting will reconvene at 6.00pm or at a time thereafter to be declared by the Mayor.

Councillor Stretton MOVED and Councillor Sykes SECONDED that, pursuant to Section 249(5) of the Local Government Act 1976, as nominated by Council on 7^th September 2016, Nicola White to receive the title of Honorary Freewoman of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham as a token of the high esteem in which she was held by the townspeople and in recognition of her eminent services and inspiring achievements to the Borough and its people.

RESOLVED that Nicola White be admitted as an Honorary Freewoman of the Borough as agreed by at least two-thirds of members voting.

The meeting convened at 6.00 p.m. for the business of the Council meeting.

(15 minutes for public questions and 25 minutes for Councillor questions)

The Mayor advised the meeting that the next item on the agenda was Public Question Time. The questions had been received from members of the public and would be taken in the order in which they had been received.  Council was advised that if the questioner was not present then the question would appear on the screens in the Council Chamber.

The following questions had been submitted.

1.       Question received from Catherine Birtles via email:

“I wish to ask a question ‘How can we trust this man’ Councillor Azad has been found guilty of breaking the immigration rules and falsifying paye records.  How can this man be trusted to act in a morale manner when he has proved he is willing to break the law.”

Councillor Jean Stretton, Leader of the Council responded that she had responded to previous emails from Mrs. Birtles and that the Council had no powers to force Councillor Azad to stand down.  A Councillor was only automatically disqualified if the offence was criminal and a sentence of more than three months was given.  She had already assured Mrs. Birtles that she did not condone the breaches of HMRC and Immigration rules referred to.  For that reason the Labour party had invoked its own disciplinary procedures and as the process was ongoing, the Leader was unable to provide further detail at this stage.

2.       Question asked by Denis Baker:

“I wish to ask this question at Council on 9/11/16.  I am not happy about the parking restriction for the houses and flats on Britannia Avenue about supposed charge to parking.  Also this consultation is very restrictive in that you need a computer to make your views so I have to let you know my feelings.  I do not drive or have a car it is saying I am going to have to pay so I can have Visitors Park outside my house.  This is not right.  I only have a few people come over the month and now they’ll not want to come because of this fear of having a ticket.”

Councillor Fida Hussain, Cabinet Member for Environmental Services responded that at this moment in time charging for passes in residents schemes was a proposal at consultation stage.  The consultation would close on 18 November when all responses would be collated and considered before any final decisions were made.  Comments received by letter were also being noted and the points raised by Mr. Baker would be considered as part of this process.  When consultation letters were sent out, it would be followed up.

3.       Questions received from Melanie Platt via email, Jackie Stanton via email and Dennis Graham via email:

“In the light of the recent announcement can the council confirm that Marks & Spencers are still intending to come to Oldham, and that the store will be opening on time in the early part of 2017?  Work does not appear to have commenced on the site and M&S head office have on two separate  ...  view the full minutes text for item 2.

Apologies were received from Councillors Azad, Ames, Brock and Hudson.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the Council meeting held on 7^th September 2016 be approved as a correct record.

In accordance with the Code of Conduct, elected members declared the following interests:

Councillor McCann declared a personal interest at Item 15a by virtue of his appointment to the MioCare Board and the Unity Partnership Board.

Councillor Sykes declared a personal interest at Item 15a by virtue of his appointment to the Unity Partnership Board.

Councillor Harrison declared a personal interest at Item 15a by virtue of her appointment to the MioCare Board.

Councillor Jabbar declared a personal interest at Item 15a by virtue of his appointment to the Unity Partnership Board and Oldham Leadership Board and at Item 13 by virtue of his appointment as a Governor at Oldham College.

Councillor Stretton declared a personal interest at Item 15a by virtue of her appointment to the Unity Partnership Board and Oldham Leadership Board and at Item 13 by virtue of her appointment to Oasis Academy Oldham.

Councillor Price declared a personal interest at Item 15a by virtue of her appointment to Oldham Community Leisure Board.

Councillor Chauhan declared a personal interest at Item 15a by virtue of his appointment to the MioCare Board.

Councillor Steven Bashforth declared a pecuniary interest at Item 13 by virtue of his employment at Radclyffe School.

Councillor Marie Bashforth declared a pecuniary interest at Item 13 by virtue of her employment at Royton and Crompton School.

Councillor Dean declared a personal interest at Item 15a by virtue of his appointment to the Unity Partnership Board.

Councillor Ginny Alexander declared a personal interest at Item 15a by virtue of her appointment to the MioCare Board.

Councillor Fielding declared a personal interest at Item 13 by virtue of his appointment to the Interim Executive Board of Failsworth School.

Councillor Mushtaq declared a personal interest at Item 13 by virtue of his appointment as Chair of Governors, Oldham College.

Councillor Moores declared a personal interest at Item 13 by virtue of his appointment as Chair of Governors at the Blue Coat School, Director of the Cranmer Trust and Governor at the Radclyffe School.

Councillor Fida Hussain declared a personal interest at Item 13 by virtue of his appointment as a Governor at Kingfisher Special School.

Councillor Gloster declared a personal interest at Item 13 by virtue of his appointment as a Governor at Crompton House School.

Councillor Shuttleworth declared a personal interest at Item 13 by virtue of his appointment as a Governor at Limehurst School.

Councillor Williams declared a personal interest at Item 13 by virtue of his appointment as a Governor at New Bridge School.

Councillor Rehman declared a personal interest at Item 13 by virtue of his appointment as a Governor at Hulme Grammar School.

Councillor McLaren declared a personal interest at Item 13 by virtue of his appointment as a Governor at Radclyffe School.

Councillor Ur-Rehman declared a personal interest at Item 13 by virtue of his appointment as the Chair of Governors at Hathershaw College.

Councillor Ahmad declared a personal interest at Item 13 by virtue of his appointment as a Governor  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

There were no items of urgent business.

The Mayor referred to the recent death of a member of staff, Philip Buckley, who had made contributions to the Borough in a number of ways.  Council expressed their sympathies to the family.

The Mayor referred to his appointment as a Champion of Peace and a report had been prepared for circulation for members to make Oldham a more peaceful borough and the international interest gained.

The Mayor referred to the success of the Council in the Northwest in Bloom event he had attended with the Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods and Co-opeartives.  Oldham Council had been successful in the City Category, Best Town Centre, Environmental Award for Local Authorities and the Britain in Bloom Gold Award.  The Council had now been nominated to take part in the Champion of Champions Competition in 2017.

The Deputy Chair was in the Chair for this item.

The Deputy Mayor advised that three petitions had been received for noting by Council:

Economy, Skills and Neighbourhoods

Collapse of Building on King Street (Coldhurst Ward) (received 26 Sep 2016) (80 signatures) (Ref 2016-13)

Petition Against Proposed Parking Permit Charges (Royton South Ward) (received 20 October 2016) (125 signatures) (Ref 2016-14)

Petition against Licensing Application (Alexandra Ward) (received 28 October 2016) (221 signatures) (Ref 2016-15)

RESOLVED that the three petitions received since the last meeting of the Council be noted.

(time limit 15 minutes).

Motion 1

Councillor Dearden to MOVE and Councillor Ur-Rehman to SECOND:

The U.K has the highest level of obesity in Western Europe, with one third of children overweight or obese by the time they leave primary school.

Local councils now have responsibility for health and wellbeing, health promotion and prevention of ill health, so it is incumbent upon us to debate this and make our views known.

We note with great disappointment this government's long-awaited Obesity Strategy, published in August 2016 , during parliamentary recess and in the midst of the Rio Olympics, and the lost opportunity to improve our health and wellbeing.

Medical experts and campaigners have criticised the strategy as 'weak and embarrassing' and accused policy makers of throwing away the chance to tackle our culture of unhealthy eating that is crippling the NHS.

The government proposals, centred on the sugar tax announced by George Osborne in May 2016, rely on voluntary action by the food and drink industry and contain no restrictions on junk food marketing and advertising. The sugar tax will not be introduced for another two years. 

This Council recognises that local campaigning and awareness raising programmes are most successful when backed by legislative changes, as with the ban on smoking in public places. 

This Council therefore resolves that the following measures be taken:

1. Oldham Council, led by our Public Health officers and the Health and Wellbeing Board, (which includes partners such as Housing, Doctors, Hospitals, Oldham Community Leisure , Voluntary groups) , will campaign to ban all high sugar foods and drinks available in our buildings and will encourage schools , community organisations and local employers to do the same; 
2. Oldham Council to continue to promote healthy lifestyles and healthy eating through our local campaigns such as 'Get  Oldham Growing, Feeding Ambition',  'Go for a Walk', Oral Health, Breastfeeding and other initiatives .  

In addition, we request that the Chief Executive writes to the borough’s three MPs to inform them of our actions and to ask them to campaign for stronger legislation. 

Motion 2

Councillor Roberts to MOVE and Councillor J Larkin to SECOND:

Speed kills: speed is one of the main factors in fatal road accidents. A pedestrian is four times more likely to die if hit at 40mph than at 30mph. In 2014, 282 people were killed in crashes in the UK involving someone exceeding the speed limit and a further 126 people died when someone was travelling too fast for the conditions.

Residents, including those who attend the Community Forums, regularly express their concern about speeding traffic both on main roads and also in residential areas. Councillors have responded by supporting speed measurement measures, changes to road and junction layout to improve safety, improvements to pedestrian crossings and most recently by funding Vehicle Activated Signs.

However, motorists continue to speed and drive too fast for road conditions and local circumstances.

This Council resolves to

·         mount a campaign of driver education to explain the impact of  ...  view the full agenda text for item 9.

The Mayor informed the meeting that there were two items of outstanding business form the previous meeting.

Motion 1

Councillor Dearden MOVED and Councillor Ur-Rehman SECONDED the following motion:

“The U.K. has the highest level of obesity in Western Europe, with one third of children overweight or obese by the time they leave primary school. 

Local councils now have responsibility for health and wellbeing, health promotion and prevention of ill health, so it is incumbent upon us to debate this and make our views known.

We note with great disappointment this government’s long awaited Obesity Strategy, published in August 2016, during parliamentary recess and in the midst of the Rio Olympics, and the lost opportunity to improve our health and wellbeing.

Medical experts and campaigners have criticised the strategy as ‘weak and embarrassing’ and accused policy makers of throwing away the chance to tackle our culture of unhealthy eating that is crippling the NHS.

The government proposals, centred on the sugar tax announced by George Osborne in May 2016, rely on voluntary action by the food and drink industry and contain no restrictions on junk food marketing and advertising.  The sugar tax will not be introduced for another two years.

This Council recognises that local campaigning and awareness raising programmes are most successful when backed by legislative changes, as with the ban on smoking in public places.”

Councillors Mushtaq spoke in support of the motion.

Councillor Bates spoke in support of the motion.

Councillor Dearden did not exercise her right of reply.

A vote was taken on the MOTION.

On being put to the vote, the MOTION was CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

RESOLVED that:

1.       Oldham Council, led by our Public Health officers, and the Health and Wellbeing Board (which included partners such as Housing, Doctors, Hospitals, Oldham Community Leisure, Voluntary Groups), would campaign to ban all high sugar foods and drinks available in our buildings and would encourage schools, community organisations and local employers to do the same.

2.       Oldham Council would continue to promote healthy lifestyles and healthy eating through our local campaigns such as “Get Oldham Working, Feeding Ambition”, “Go for a Walk”, Oral Health, Breastfeeding and other initiatives.

3.       The Chief Executive be requested to write to the borough’s three MPs to inform them of our actions and to ask them to campaign for stronger legislation.

At this point in the meeting, the Mayor advised that the time limit for this item had expired.

Motion 2

Councillor Roberts MOVED and Councillor J. Larkin SECONDED the following motion:

“Speed kills: speed is one of the main factors in fatal road accidents.  A pedestrian is four times more likely to die if hit at 40mph than at 30mph.  In 2014, 282 people were killed in crashes in the UK involving someone exceeding the speed limit and a further 126 people died when someone was travelling too fast for the conditions.

Residents, including those who attend Community Forums, regularly express their concern about speeding traffic both on main roads and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

(time limit 20 minutes)

Every year the United Kingdom Youth Parliament (UKYP) holds a UK-wide ballot called ‘Make Your Mark’.  Make Your Mark allows all young people to express which issues are most important to them and vote on what they think Members of the Youth Parliament should campaign on for the year ahead. In Oldham we have 2 MYPs in Amber Powell and Georgia Loynds.

On the 11th November 2016 Members of Youth Parliament will come together, at the UKYP House of Commons sitting, to debate the top 5 issues from ‘Make your Mark’ then decide and vote the most important issues to campaign on for the year ahead.

This year the Make Your Mark ballot papers included:

·         Votes at 16. Give 16 and 17 year olds the right to vote in all public elections

·         A Curriculum to prepare us for life. Schools should cover topics including finance, sex and relationships and politics in the curriculum.

·         First Aid Education for All Young People.  All young people should learn basic First Aid, on a regular basis, including CPR, and all schools in the UK should have a defibrillator.

·         Mental health. Services should be improved with young people’s help and mental health education should be compulsory and challenge stereotypes.

·         Transport. Make public transport cheaper, better and accessible for all.

·         Stop cuts that affect the NHS. Funding that affects the NHS shouldn’t be cut.  We must keep up vital services to protect young people.

·         Fund our youth services, don’t cut them. Youth services provide us with vital support, development opportunities and positive activities.

·         Body Image.  More needs to be done to raise awareness on body image issues, particularly the effects of negative body image on mental health.  Bullying connected to body image should be challenged and reduced.

·         Raising Awareness of Sexual Harassment in schools. Let’s raise awareness of sexual harassment in schools so that young people affected don’t suffer in silence and can get support from schools and teachers.

·         Tackling racism and religious discrimination, particularly against people who are Muslim or Jewish. All young people should work together to combat racism andother forms of discrimination, and ensure we know the dangers of such hatred.

Make Your Mark in Oldham was co-ordinated by Oldham Youth Council with our Youth Councillors and support staff contacting the schools and asking them to complete ballots in form time or assemblies. The Youth Councillors then took the ballot papers to youth groups and organisations to capture those young people not educated in Oldham or whose school did not participate. 

Make Your Mark 2016 was, once again, a success in Oldham.  Out of the 16 mainstream secondary schools and colleges, Make Your Mark was delivered in 15 of them.  While not all schools had great turnouts it was good to see schools recognising the need for democracy and political education for their students.  We would also like to make special mention for North Chadderton School, Saddleworth School and The Hathershaw College all who balloted  ...  view the full agenda text for item 10.

The Youth Council attended the meeting and addressed the Council on the following motion:

“Every year the United Kingdom Youth Parliament (UKYP) holds a UK-wide ballot called ‘Make Your Mark’.  Make Your Mark allows all young people to express which issues are most important to them and vote on what they think Members of the Youth Parliament should campaign on for the year ahead.  In Oldham we have 2 MYPs in Amber Powell and Georgia Loynds.

On the 11^th November 2016 Members of Youth Parliament will come together, at the UKYP House of Commons sitting, to debate the top 5 issues from ‘Make your Mark’ then decide and vote the most important issues to campaign on for the year ahead.  This year the Make Your Mark ballot papers included:

·       Votes at 16.  Give 16 and 17 year olds the right to vote in all public elections

·       A Curriculum to prepare us for life.  Schools should cover topics including finance, sex and relationships and politics in the curriculum.

·       First Aid Education for All Young People.  All young people should learn basic First Aid, on a regular basis, including CPR, and all schools in the UK should have a defibrillator.

·       Mental health.  Services should be improved with young people’s help and mental health education should be compulsory and challenge stereotypes.

·       Transport.  Make public transport cheaper, better and accessible for all.

·       Stop cuts that affect the NHS.  Funding that affects the NHS shouldn’t be cut.  We must keep up vital services to protect young people.

·       Fund our youth services, don’t cut them.  Youth services provide us with vital support, development opportunities and positive activities.

·       Body Image.  More needs to be done to raise awareness on body image issues, particularly the effects of negative body image on mental health.  Bullying connected to body image should be challenged and reduced.

·       Raising Awareness of Sexual Harassment in schools.  Let’s raise awareness of sexual harassment in schools so that young people affected don’t suffer in silence and can get support from schools and teachers.

·       Tackling racism and religious discrimination, particularly against people who are Muslim or Jewish.  All young people should work together to combat racism and other forms of discrimination, and ensure we know the dangers of such hatred.

Make Your Mark in Oldham was co-ordinated by Oldham Youth Council with our Youth Councillors and support staff contacting the schools and asking them to complete ballots in form time or assemblies.  The Youth Councillors then took the ballot papers to youth groups and organisations to capture those young people not educated in Oldham or whose school did not participate.

Make Your Mark 2016 was, once again, a success in Oldham.  Out of the 16 mainstream secondary schools and colleges, Make Your Mark was delivered in 15 of them.  While not all schools had great turnouts it was good to see schools recognising the need for democracy and political education for their students.  We would also like to make special mention for North Chadderton School,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.

The Leader of the Main Opposition, Councillor Sykes, raised the following two questions:

Question 1: 

“My first question to the Leader this evening concerns the recently launched public consultation on the Greater Manchester Spatial Framework.

Not a very catchy title I am sure you will agree, but nonetheless a document that should command the attention of every member in this Chamber – and particularly any with an interest in the future of our Borough’s Green Belt.

The ten local authorities in Greater Manchester have drawn up plans to meet the projected future need for 227,000 new homes in the county, some 13,700 in this Borough.

This may seem an awful lot for Oldham, but Shaw & Crompton and Royton is really being targeted by the developers and may be even Oldham Council as we shall be expected to accommodate almost three thousand new homes plus vast tracks of land for industrial development.

These plans represent a massive land grab in our area and the devastation of our local Green Belt as new properties will be built at Cowlishaw, in the Beal Valley, Rushcroft, the Whitefield Farm area over to Newhey and around Gravelhole and Low Crompton.

Oldham Liberal Democrats firmly believe that our precious Green Belt should be protected.

Our Green Belt and open spaces are one of the things that makes us unique in Greater Manchester.  Some of us are old enough to remember those posters ‘Oldham A town in the country’ – it was true 20 odd years ago and is even truer now.

New homes should be built on former industrial Brownfield sites.

Existing planning permissions need to be actioned.

We should first look to build on derelict and unloved sites in our town centres and districts, convert every empty mill and factory into housing, force developers to build on sites already given planning permission, and bring Empty Homes back into use.

Only when all of these things have been done should we even consider developing vast tracks of our Green Belt.

We miles away from that stage yet.

And we also need to take account of the massive additional burden this will place on our local services and infrastructure.  These new houses will mean a lot more cars ono our busy roads, many more children needing local school place, more demand for medical centres, shops, and leisure facilities.

I recognise that everyone has the right to live in their own home and be adequately housed but the local burden seems to have been placed disproportionately on Shaw and Crompton and to be fair Royton.

So can the Leader tell me tonight what this Council will be doing to fight to protect our precious Green Belt from wanton development and what representations will be made to press the demand that there will be sufficient advanced investment to meet the increased demand placed onto our facilities and infrastructure in Shaw and Crompton and elsewhere in our Borough?”

Councillor Jean Stretton, Leader of the Council, responded that the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 11.

(time limit 20 minutes):-

a) 22^nd August 2016

b) 19^th September 2016

The minutes of the Cabinet meetings held on 26^th August 2016 and 19^th September 2016 were submitted. 

Members raised the following questions:

1.       Councillor McCann – Cabinet Meeting, 22^nd August 2016, page 49, Item 9:  Revenue Monitor and Capital Investment Programme 2016/17 Quarter 1, June 2016.  Councillor McCann asked about the comparison on the use of reserves for the introduction of new self-financing to give adult services the help it needs.  The service was always under pressure and was demand led with a projected overspend.  He also asked for confirmation of the 2% increase allowed by the Government which did not yield enough in Councils such as Oldham.

          Councillor Jabbar, Cabinet Member for Finance & HR responded that the pressure on adult social care related to in-year demand of the service.  He had sat with colleagues to look at the issues in detail and everything was being done to manage the pressure.  The service was based on demand which could not be controlled, reserves had been earmarked for the service to relieve the pressure.  This was reviewed on a regular basis with the Director of Finance.  In terms of the 2% precept, this provided £1.5m, in Stockport the precept had provided £2.5m which was a cumulative difference and comes back to the question of growing the council tax base.  The living wage had also been introduced.  Councillor Jabbar said the situation was being addressed.  Councillor Jabbar agreed to meet separately with Councillor McCann.

2.       Councillor Williamson – Cabinet, 22^nd August, page 46, Item 7:  Home to School Transport Consultation and Review.  Councillor Williams asked that as she had done a few Home to School Transport appeals recently, and asked about mobility benefits and asked if this had had an impact on Home to School Transport appeals?

          Councillor Chadderton, Cabinet Member for Education & Early Years responded that the changes just came into practice in September.  This would be reviewed in six months and she would be able to provide a full answer at that time.

3.       Councillor Bates – Cabinet, 19^th September 2016, page 51, Item 6:  Oldham Council Efficiency Plan for FY 16/17 to 19/20.  Councillor Bates drew attention to the emergency fund released by government whereby Surrey would get £24m.  How could Oldham qualify?

          Councillor Jabbar, Cabinet Member for Finance & HR, responded that the Council had to accept the government settlement for the next four years and put forward a proposal to accept projected grants.  He was not aware of any emergency fund and would look into if anything was available. 

Members raised the following observations:

1.       Councillor Steven Bashforth, Cabinet, 19^th September 2016, page 53, Item 9:  Priority School Build Programme Phase 2 (PSBP2) – Royton and Crompton School.  Councillor Bashforth commented on how hard it was to get a new school up and running, linked with the GMSF and the situation where the Council could build in additional places.  The Council needed to find the money to make up the difference.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 12.

(time limit 30 minutes)

Motion 1

Councillor Chadderton to MOVE and Councillor J Larkin to SECOND:

Oldham Council notes recent announcements from both the Prime Minister Theresa May and Secretary of State for Education Justine Greening, that this government intends to reintroduce grammar schools and allow academic selection based on ability as measured at the age of 11.

The evidence is clear that the reintroduction of Grammar Schools would be a retrograde step. Grammar schools do not aid social mobility, they do not raise standards across the board and they inhibit the progress of able students from less affluent backgrounds.

A further consequence of the reintroduction of grammar school may be the rise of the old secondary moderns, leading once again to a system where children will be divided into academic and non-academic at the age of 11.

Raising education standards for every child in Oldham is a key priority for Oldham Council, this can be seen in our commitment to the Oldham Education & Skills Commission and the subsequent recommendations from the commission. We do not wish to see a return to selective education and believe this would be to the detriment to a significant number of Oldham’s children.

The reintroduction of Grammar Schools was not featured anywhere in the Conservative party election manifesto presented to electors prior to the 2015 general election and we urge the government to abandon these plans.

Council resolves to

·         Continue to invest in world class facilities for all of our children.

·         Ask the Chief Executive to write to the Shadow Education Secretary Angela Rayner MP pledging our support for the ‘Education not Segregation’ campaign.

·         Ask the Chief Executive to write to the Education Secretary, the Right Honourable Justine Greening MP, setting out our opposition to her plans.

Motion 2

Councillor Briggs to MOVE and Councillor Ali to SECOND:

This Council welcomes the continuing development of the Metrolink network and the increasing numbers of visitors it brings to Oldham, but is concerned at proposals which will see Oldham deprived of a direct service to and from Piccadilly station and the proposed Piccadilly “Hub”.

Anything less than  a direct  connection to the  Piccadilly 'hub' would leave Oldham disadvantaged in terms of access to and from main line train services, the proposed HS2, Manchester Airport and employment opportunities in the regional centre such as the  proposed Mayfield Development.

Therefore, the Council instructs the relevant officers to pursue our concerns with Transport for Greater Manchester (TFGM) as a matter of urgency.

Motion 3

Councillor Moores to MOVE and Councillor Harrison to SECOND:

The Motor Neurone Disease (MND) Association has launched a Charter to gain support as the Association works towards their vision of securing the right care, at the right time and in the right place for those who suffer with MND, and their carers.

Achieving quality of life, dignity and respect for people with MND and their carers must be something we strive for, and adopting the Charter will help us to understand and support  ...  view the full agenda text for item 13.

Motion 1

Councillor Steven Bashforth and Councillor Marie Bashforth declared a pecuniary interest in this item.  They left the Chamber and did not participate in the discussion or vote thereon.

Councillor Chadderton MOVED and Councillor J. Larkin SECONDED the following motion:

“Council notes recent announcements from both the Prime Minister Theresa May and Secretary of State for Education Justine Greening, that this government intends to reintroduce grammar schools and allow academic selection based on ability as measured at the age of 11.

The evidence is clear that the reintroduction of Grammar Schools would be a retrograde step.  Grammar schools do not aid social mobility, they do not raise standards across the board and they inhibit the progress of able students from less affluent backgrounds.

A further consequence of the introduction of grammar school may be the rise of the old secondary moderns, leading once again to a system where children will be divided into academic and non-academic at the age of 11.

Raising education standards for every child in Oldham is a key priority for Oldham Council, this can be seen in our commitment to the Oldham Education & Skills Commission and the subsequent recommendations from the commission.  We do not wish to see a return to selective education and believe this would be to the detriment to a significant number of Oldham’s children.

The reintroduction of Grammar Schools was not featured anywhere in the Conservative party election manifesto presented to electors prior to the 2015 general election and we urge the government to abandon these plans.”

AMENDMENT

Councillor Turner MOVED and Councillor Harkness SECONDED the following amendment.

“Insert as a new Paragraph Two:

‘Furthermore, Council is concerned for the future education of its disabled pupils.  In the consultation paper, ‘Schools that Work for Everyone’, there is not a single mention of disabled pupils and the Department for Education has failed to carry out an equality impact assessment of its proposals as required under the Equality Act 2010.’

And insert as a new Paragraph Five:

‘In addition, the Alliance for Inclusive Education has claimed that the policy of increasing selective schools is contrary to new guidance from the United Nations which urges the replacement of segregated education with ‘inclusive classroom teaching in accessible learning environments with appropriate supports’ and that it may constitute a breach of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.’

The original Paragraph Four now becomes Paragraph Six.

The original Paragraph Five now becomes Paragraph Seven.

The original Paragraph Six now become Paragraph Eight.

Insert as a new Paragraph Nine:

‘Council welcomes the recent abandonment of Government plans to force schools to become academies and to abolish parent governors after local authorities and teaching unions made clear their opposition to these proposals.  Council is therefore confident that concerted and co-ordinated pressure may also force this Government to abandon plans for grammar schools.’

The final paragraph containing the resolution is to be amended to include a new third bullet point:

‘Ask the Chief Executive to write  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.

(time limit 30 minutes)

Motion 1

Councillor Blyth to MOVE and Councillor Sykes to SECOND:

This Council notes that:

• Over many months, residents in this borough, particularly residents in Shaw and Crompton, have experienced noise and disturbance from large agricultural tractors pulling large trailers containing spoil on public highways from early in the morning until late at night
• In addition, these vehicles are at times driven recklessly and at speed, posing at danger to other road users and pedestrians
• If these tractors and trailers were HGV’s they would be covered by a commercial vehicle operator’s licence and other legislation that would control their environmental impact on local residents
• At present they are exempted from licensing requirements
• Council believes that tractors used for the purpose of road haulage should be covered by the same licensing requirements as apply to other goods vehicles.

Council resolves to:

• Ask the Chief Executive to write to the Secretary of State asking the Government to sponsor a change in the Goods Vehicle (Licensing of Operators) Act to make tractors used for this purpose subject to the same licensing and legislative requirements as apply to other good vehicles.
• Ask the Chief Executive to copy in the Local Government Association and the three Members of Parliament for this borough and request that they also make representations to the Secretary of State on this matter.
• Ask the Chief Executive to write to the Chief Executive of the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency asking for any assistance they can provide in carrying out road side checks to make sure operators in Oldham are operating safe and road worthy vehicles.
  
  

Motion 2

Councillor Tuner to MOVE and Councillor Sykes to SECOND:

This Council notes with dismay that:

• Puppy farming (unlicensed dog breeding) is rife in the UK with only 1 in 10 puppies bred by licensed breeders.
• The Government has yet to act upon the challenge issued one year ago today by Liberal Democrat Defra Spokesperson, Baroness Kate Parminter, to outlaw puppy farming.
• The Government has yet to bring forward the necessary legislation to prohibit the sale of puppies and kittens from pet shops where the mother is not present.

Council therefore resolves to:

• Work in partnership with the RSPCA and other animal welfare agencies to:

Ø  Investigate any reports, adverts in local papers or websites that offer puppies for sale in the area, alerting other local authorities and agencies, as appropriate.

Ø  Find and prosecute puppy farmers and other unlicensed breeders.

·         Support and promote on the Council’s website and in its publications:

Ø  The Pup Aid campaign “Where’s Mum?”

Ø  The Dogs Trust campaign against “battery farmed dogs”.

Ø  The Kennel Club Assured Breeder scheme.

·         Advise residents at public events, especially in the run up to Christmas, on best practice for buying puppies or dogs, encouraging them not to buy puppies or dogs from anyone selling in suspicious circumstances; to report such incidents immediately to the Council’s Animal Health and Welfare Service; and to consider purchasing puppies and dogs  ...  view the full agenda text for item 14.

Motion 1

Councillor Blyth MOVED and Councillor Sykes SECONDED the following motion:

“This Council notes that:

·       Over many months, residents in this borough, particularly residents in Shaw and Crompton have experienced noise and disturbance from large agricultural tractors pulling large trailers containing spoil on public highways from early in the morning until late at night

·       In addition, these vehicles are at times driven recklessly and at speed, posing a danger at danger to other road users and pedestrians

·       If these tractors and trailers were HGV’s they would be covered by a commercial vehicle operator’s licence and other legislation that would control their environmental impact on local residents

·       At present they are exempted from licensing requirements

·       Council believes that tractors used for the purpose of road haulage should be covered by the same licensing requirements as apply to other goods vehicles.”

Councillor Steven Bashforth spoke in support of the motion.

Councillor Gloster spoke in support of the motion.

Councillor Shuttleworth spoke in support of the motion.

Councillor Blyth exercised his right of reply.

A vote was taken on the MOTION.

On being put to the vote, the MOTION was CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

RESOLVED that:

1.       The Chief Executive be asked to write to the Secretary of State asking the Government to sponsor a change in the Goods Vehicle (Licensing of Operators) Act to make tractors used for this purpose subject to the same licensing and legislative requirements as apply to other goods vehicles.

2.       The Chief Executive be asked to copy in the Local Government Association and the three Members of Parliament for this borough and request that they also make representations to the Secretary of State on this matter.

3.       The Chief Executive be asked to write to the Chief Executive of the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency asking for any assistance they can provide in carrying out road side checks to make sure operators in Oldham are operating safe and road worthy vehicles.

4.       A meeting be convened for Shaw & Crompton and Royton Councillors.

Motion 2

Councillor Turner MOVED and Councillor Sykes SECONDED the following motion:

“This Council notes with dismay that:

·       Puppy farming (unlicensed dog breeding) is rife in the UK with only 1 in 10 puppies bred by licensed breeders.

·       The Government has yet to act upon the challenge issued one year ago today by Liberal Democrat Defra Spokesperson, Baroness Kate Parminter, to outlaw puppy farming.

·       The Government has yet to bring forward the necessary legislation to prohibit the sale of puppies and kittens from pet shops where the mother is not present.

Councillor Bates spoke in support of the motion.

Councillor Fida Hussain MOVED and Councillor Jabbar SECONDED the MOTION be put to the vote.

Councillor Turner exercised her right of reply.

A vote was taken on the MOTION.

On being put to the vote, the MOTION was CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

RESOLVED that:

1.       Council work in partnership with the RSPCA and other animal welfare agencies to:

·       Investigate any reports, adverts in local papers or websites  ...  view the full minutes text for item 14.

(time limit 7 minutes)

The minutes of the Partnership meetings were submitted as follows:

Health and Wellbeing Board                   21^st June 2016

Unity Partnership Board                         28^th June 2016

MioCare                                                11^th July 2016

Oldham Leadership Board                     22^nd September 2016

Question from Councillor Harkness, Health and Wellbeing Board Minutes, Item 15 – Manchester Single Hospital Review and his question related to North Manchester General Hospital and sought clarity if the hospital were to close or transferred to the Central Manchester Trust, how would this impact on the Pennine Acute Trust?

Councillor Dearden, Chair of the Health and Wellbeing Board, responded that this was still under consultation and no decision had yet been made.

There were no observations on the minutes.

RESOLVED that:

1.       the minutes of the Partnership meetings as detailed in the report be noted.

2.       the question and response on the Partnership meetings be noted.

(time limit 8 minutes):-

The minutes of the Joint Authorities were submitted as follows:

Transport for Greater Manchester                              15^th July 2016

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue               23^rd June 2016

Authority                                                         8^th September 2016

Greater Manchester Combined Authority                    26^th August 2016

(GMCA)                                                          30^th September 2016

Joint GMCA/AGMA Executive                          26^th August 2016

National Park Authority                                    1^st July 2016

Greater Manchester Waste Disposal                10^th June 2016 (AGM)

Authority                                                         15^th July 2016

Question from Councillor Chauhan – Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, 23^rd June 2016, Item 22 – Quarter 4 Performance Review 2015/16 – could the spokesperson explain the reasons for the increase in special service costs?

Councillor Williams responded that a Memorandum for Understanding had been signed with North West Ambulance Service on turning out for cardiac arrests.  Life expectancy reduced by 10% over certain periods of time, in Greater Manchester services can respond in a short period of time.  From 15 September, GMFRS had responded to 35 cardiac arrests and had attended over 3000 calls which had saved 63 lives and 77 other neuro outcomes. 

Question from Councillor Brownridge – Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, 8^th September 2016, Item 43 – Chief’s Activity Report 2016/17 – reference was made to hostilities towards firefighters.  Could the spokesperson comment on the experiences over the Halloween weekend which had been referenced in the press?

Councillor Williams responded that he had been in attendance with the crews when responding to dangerous and controlled burning calls and said the hostility towards the crews was immense which could not be explained.  CCTV was in place on the fire service appliances and community safety may need to offer advice.

Councillor Gloster observed that this sort of behaviour should be condemned towards any part of the emergency services.

RESOLVED that:

1.       The minutes of the Joint Authorities as detailed in the report be noted.

2.       The questions and responses on the Joint Authority minutes be noted.

3.       The observation on the Joint Authority minutes be noted.

Consideration was given to a report of the Director of Legal Services which informed members of actions that had been taken following previous Council meetings and provided feedback on other issues raised at the meeting.

Councillor Sykes raised the response received from Royal Mail and stated that it was innacurate and bore little resemblance to what reality was. 

Councillor Stretton responded and asked for the full details and a letter would be sent to Royal Mail with the inaccuracies.  It was unacceptable for Council to be provided with inaccurate responses.

RESOLVED that:

1.       the update on the actions report be noted.

2.       a further letter be sent to Royal Mail which set out the inaccuracies of the first response.

Consideration was given to a report of the Leader of the Council which outlined a proposed alternative option in response to the Boundary Commission for England’s review of Parliamentary Constituencies.

The Boundary Commission for England (BCE) announced the review and was required to report back to Parliament in September 2018.  The Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Act 2011 had been introduced which required a fixed number of 600 constituencies for the whole of the United Kingdom and 501 had been allocated to England.  Every constituency in England was to have an electorate no smaller than 71,031 and no larger than 78,507. 

The BCE proposals for the constituencies for Oldham were outlined in the report.  The proposed Littleborough and Saddleworth constituency did not take into account physical geographical considerations and presented difficulties in affording all constituents the ability to have reasonable access to their MP.  The proposed Failsworth and Droylsden constituency drew from four existing constituencies and was geographically incoherent.   The proposed three new constituencies would be drawn from four local authority areas.  This brought administrative challenges, in particular for elections and election counts.  The BCE proposals also ignored strong local ties.   This included the separation of the two Royton Wards and the separation of Saddleworth West and Lees from Saddleworth North and Saddleworth South. 

An alternative proposal was proposed which allowed for two parliamentary constituencies whole contained within Oldham Metropolitan Borough.  This allowed for the retention of the existing constituency names and kept the electoral size limit and involved minimum disruption.  The proposal addressed geographical considerations, local government boundaries as they existed in May 2015, boundaries of existing constituencies and local ties.  The proposal included bringing the Failsworth East and Failsworth West wards into the Oldham West and Royton Constituency and moving Medlock Vale ward into Oldham East and Saddleworth Constituency.

The options considered were:

Option 1 – Do Nothing.

Option 2 – For Full Council to make a submission to the BCE making the case for the alternative Parliamentary Boundaries as set out in the report.

Councillor Stretton in moving the report requested that full Council agree an amendment to the report for the retention of existing Constituency names and should read “Oldham East and Saddleworth” and “Oldham West and Royton”.

RESOLVED tha the alternative option proposal as outlined in the report be approved with the amendment at Figure One which should read “Oldham East and Saddleworth” instead of “Oldham East” and “Oldham West and Royton” instead of “Oldham West”.

Consideration was given to a report regarding the annual accounts for the Oldham Distress Fund for 2015/16.  The Oldham Distress Fund was a registered charity operated by Oldham Council with the terms of reference to relieve poverty and hardship of people living in the Borough of Oldham.  In 2012 it was used in response to the gas explosion in Shaw.

RESOLVED that the Oldham Distress Annual Report which included the Financial Statement for year ended 31^st March 2016 be noted.

Consideration was given to a report of the Director of Legal Services which set out the draft Calendar of Meetings for the 2017/2018 Municipal Year.

RESOLVED that:

1.       The Council’s Calendar of Meetings for the Municipal Year 2017/18 as set out in Appendix 1 of the Report be approved.

2.       Approval of any outstanding dates be delegated to the Chief Executive in consultation with Group Leaders.