(time limit 15 minutes).
Motion 1
Councillor Dearden to MOVE and Councillor Haque to SECOND:
Oldham Council, with its responsibility for Public Health, is determined to improve health outcomes in the borough.
This Council notes:
There are three and a half million overweight or obese children in England.
That one in every seven hospital beds is occupied by someone with diabetes.
The number of admissions in NHS hospitals with a primary diagnosis of obesity has risen over 11 times in the last decade.
That 34 per cent of children in year six in Oldham are overweight or obese.
That 6.4 per cent of Oldham’s population are recorded as having diabetes; this is above the average for England.
The NHS currently spends £1 million an hour on diabetes, equivalent to 10 per cent of its annual budget. If a new government allows local government to reinvest a fifth of existing VAT on soft drinks, fast food and confectionery in activity programmes, it could help to prevent problems such as obesity and diabetes to help reduce the burden of ill health later in life.
This Council Resolves:
To support the Local Government Association’s First 100 days of the next government campaign.
Also to instruct The Chief Executive to write to the leaders of all three parties calling on them to adopt the proposal in ‘100 days’ to help the three and a half million overweight or obese children by reinvesting a fifth of existing VAT on soft drinks, fast food and confectionery on activity programmes.
Motion 2
Councillor Heffernan MOVED and Councillor Williamson to SECOND:
The Council notes that:
· Local authorities are currently obliged by law to sell entries from the open electoral register to marketing companies. This personal information – the names and addresses of electors in this borough – is used by these companies for direct marketing purposes generating junk mail.
· Like nuisance calls, junk mail is an irritant to many residents in this borough.
· 90% of all junk mail is immediately deposited by its recipients in the bin
· 17.5 billion items of junk mail are produced every year in the UK, using 550,000 tonnes of paper and 16.5 billion litres of water. It takes about 17 mature trees to produce a tonne of paper. The equivalent of 550,000 tonnes of paper is therefore 9.35 million trees.
This Council believes that this legal obligation:
· Demeans and cheapens local democracy
· Deters some potential voters from registering to vote by compromising their privacy
· Is damaging to our local environment and runs contrary to the authority’s commitment to reducing its carbon footprint
This Council therefore supports the position of the Local Government Association that:
· The open register be scrapped
· The obligation on local authorities to sell electors’ personal details be abolished
This Council resolves to:
· Request that the Chief Executive write to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, The Rt. Hon. Mr. Eric Pickles MP, outlining the Council’s support for the LGA’s position.
· Request that the Chief Executive also write to our three local MPs asking them to make representations to the Secretary of State supporting this position.
Minutes:
The Mayor informed the meeting that there were two items of outstanding business from the previous meeting.
“Motion 1
Councillor Price MOVED and Councillor Haque SECONDED the following motion:
Oldham Council, with its responsibility for Public Health, is determined to improve health outcomes in the borough.
This Council notes:
There are three and a half million overweight or obese children in England.
That one in every seven hospital beds is occupied by someone with diabetes.
The number of admissions in NHS hospitals with a primary diagnosis of obesity has risen over 11 times in the last decade.
That 34 per cent of children in year six in Oldham are overweight or obese.
That 6.4 per cent of Oldham’s population are recorded as having diabetes; this is above the average for England.
The NHS currently spends £1 million an hour on diabetes, equivalent to 10 per cent of its annual budget. If a new government allows local government to reinvest a fifth of existing VAT on soft drinks, fast food and confectionery in activity programmes, it could help to prevent problems such as obesity and diabetes to help reduce the burden of ill health later in life.
This Council Resolves:
To support the Local Government Association’s First 100 days of the next government campaign.
Also to instruct The Chief Executive to write to the leaders of all three parties calling on them to adopt the proposal in ‘100 days’ to help the three and a half million overweight or obese children by reinvesting a fifth of existing VAT on soft drinks, fast food and confectionery on activity programmes.”
Councillor Dean spoke in support of the motion.
Councillor Harrison spoke in support of the motion.
Councillor McCann spoke in support of the motion.
Councillor Price did not exercise her right of reply.
On being put the vote the MOTION was CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
RESOLVED that:
1. The Local Government Association’s First 100 Days of the next government campaign be supported.
2. The Chief Executive be instructed to write to the leaders of all three parties calling on them to adopt the proposal in ‘100 days’ to help the three and a half million overweight or obese children by reinvesting a fifth of existing VAT on soft drinks, fast food and confectionary on activity programmes.
“Motion 2
Councillor Heffernan MOVED and Councillor Williamson SECONDED the following motion:
The Council notes that:
· Local authorities are currently obliged by law to sell entries from the open electoral register to marketing companies. This personal information – the names and addresses of electors in this borough – is used by these companies for direct marketing purposes generating junk mail.
· Like nuisance calls, junk mail is an irritant to many residents in this borough.
· 90% of all junk mail is immediately deposited by its recipients in the bin
· 17.5 billion items of junk mail are produced every year in the UK, using 550,000 tonnes of paper and 16.5 billion litres of water. It takes about 17 mature trees to produce a tonne of paper. The equivalent of 550,000 tonnes of paper is therefore 9.35 million trees.
This Council believes that this legal obligation:
· Demeans and cheapens local democracy
· Deters some potential voters from registering to vote by compromising their privacy
· Is damaging to our local environment and runs contrary to the authority’s commitment to reducing its carbon footprint
This Council therefore supports the position of the Local Government Association that:
· The open register be scrapped
· The obligation on local authorities to sell electors’ personal details be abolished
This Council resolves to:
· Request that the Chief Executive write to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, The Rt. Hon. Mr. Eric Pickles MP, outlining the Council’s support for the LGA’s position.
· Request that the Chief Executive also write to our three local MPs asking them to make representations to the Secretary of State supporting this position.”
AMENDMENT
Councillor Ahmad MOVED and Councillor Ames SECONDED the following Amendment:
Delete: This personal information – the names and addresses of electors in this borough – is used by these companies for direct marketing purposes generating junk mail.
· Like nuisance calls, junk mail is an irritant to many residents in this borough.
· 90% of all junk mail is immediately deposited by its recipients in the bin
· 17.5 billion items of junk mail are produced every year in the UK, using 550,000 tonnes of paper and 16.5 billion litres of water. It takes about 17 mature trees to produce a tonne of paper. The equivalent of 550,000 tonnes of paper is therefore 9.35 million trees. Deters some potential voters from registering to vote by compromising their privacy
· Is damaging to our local environment and runs contrary to the authority’s commitment to reducing its carbon footprint
Motion will then read:
Local authorities are currently obliged by law to sell entries from the open electoral register to marketing companies.
This Council believes that this legal obligation:
Demeans and cheapens local democracy This Council therefore supports the position of the Local Government Association that:
· The open register be scrapped
· The obligation on local authorities to sell electors’ personal details be abolished
This Council resolves to:
· Request that the Chief Executive write to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, The Rt. Hon. Mr. Eric Pickles MP, outlining the Council’s support for the LGA’s position.
Request that the Chief Executive also write to our three local MPs asking them to make representations to the Secretary of State supporting this position.
No members spoke on the amendment.
Councillor Heffernan did not exercise his right of reply.
Councillor Ahmad did not exercise his right of reply.
A vote was then taken on the AMENDMENT.
On being put to the vote the AMENDMENT was CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
A vote was then taken on the SUBSTANTIVE MOTION.
On being put to the vote the MOTION was CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
RESOLVED that:
1. The Chief Executive be requested to write to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, the Rt. Hon. Eric Pickles MP, outlining the Council’s support for the LGA’s position.
2. The Chief Executive be requested to write to the three local MPs asking them to make representations to the Secretary of State supporting this position.