Agenda item

For questions to be put to members of the Cabinet by oppositon and non-Cabinet Members in accordance with Standing Order 35.

Members are asked to note that four advance notice questions have been received under this item, which have been attached along with the written responses provided.

Members are asked to note that this session will also include an opportunity (within the time available) for other non-Cabinet members to ask questions of Cabinet Members.

NOTED

1.      The written and supplementary verbal response provided by the Deputy Leader to a question submitted by Councillor Ahmed regarding the continued support being provided for local residents and businesses as part of the Covid-19 recovery programme.

2.      The written and supplementary verbal response provided by the Lead Member for Environment to a question submitted by Councillor Hylton in relation to the progress being made in building back better as part of the commitments contained within the Council’s Climate Emergency Strategy and involvement of local businesses in the Brent Environmental Network.

3.      The written and supplementary response provided by the Lead Member for Housing & Welfare Reform regarding progress in addressing the findings contained within the report from the Independent Poverty Commission and with specific reference to food poverty.

4.      The written and supplementary verbal response provided by the Lead Member for Environment to a question submitted by Councillor Maurice regarding representations being made to TfL on extension of the ULEZ and its impact on residents accessing the Household Waste and Recycling Centre  at Abbey Road.

Responses were also provided by the relevant Lead Members on the following additional questions raised during the open session of this part of the meeting:

·                Councillor Kelcher regarding residents’ concerns around noise and pollution from the funfair in Roundwood Park.

·                Councillor Georgiou regarding the support available to help home-based small and micro businesses during the pandemic.

·                Councillor Kennelly regarding the support available to leaseholders affected by the cladding scandal and efforts to ensure it did not happen again.

·                Councillor Thakkar regarding what had been learned from the vaccination rollout and concerns around the effects of Long Covid.

·                Councillor Afzal regarding how the Council would be working with its partners to tackle discrimination and abuse in football on social media.

·                Councillor Mahmood regarding the introduction of ULEZ charges in the borough.

·                Councillor Choudhary regarding the actions being taken by the Council to provide a Covid-19 economic recovery programme.

·                Councillor Long regarding how the Council would be working with Thames Water to resolve rainwater drainage issues across the borough and specifically within Willesden Green.

·                Councillor Kennelly regarding the funding available to tackle violent crime within hotspots identified in the north of the borough.

·                Councillor Georgiou regarding whether the Deputy Leader would be willing to meet with residents who had felt excluded from pandemic-related grant funding.

Before moving on to consider the questions submitted by non-Cabinet members, the Mayor reminded Members that a total of 30 minutes had been set aside for this item, which would begin with consideration of the written questions submitted in advance of the meeting along with any supplementary questions. Once these had been dealt with, the remaining time available would then be opened up for any other non-Cabinet members to question Lead Members (without the need for advance notice) on matters relating to their portfolio.

The Mayor advised that four written questions had been submitted in advance for response by the relevant Lead Member. The written responses supplied had been circulated within the agenda. The Mayor invited supplementary questions from the Members who had submitted the written questions.  The following questions were raised and responses provided:

10.1   Without raising any specific supplementary question Councillor Ahmed took the opportunity to thank Councillor McLennan, as Deputy Leader, for her response to his question and noted the continued support being provided for local residents and businesses as part of the Covid-19 recovery programme.

10.2   Councillor Hylton thanked Councillor Krupa Sheth, as Lead Member for Environment, for the written response in relation to her question on the Council’s efforts to build back better from the pandemic and deliver on its climate emergency commitments.  Councillor Hylton then asked a supplementary question seeking details on the involvement of local businesses as part of the Brent Environment Network.

In response, Councillor Krupa Sheth advised that a number of local businesses had signed up to the Brent Environment Network and that the Council had regular meetings with these businesses to support them to fulfil their climate obligations.

10.3   Councillor Grahl thanked Councillor Southwood, as Lead Member for Housing and Welfare Reform, for the written response to her question in relation to the Council’s efforts to tackle poverty within the borough. Councillor Grahl then asked a supplementary question on the work being undertaken to tackle food poverty.

In response, Councillor Southwood highlighted the extent to which food poverty was an issue providing the example locally of food banks within Brent having supported over 13,000 residents.  She advised that the Council would continue to work alongside foodbanks to ensure relevant support could be accessed. Moving forward, she also highlighted the work being undertaken by the Council to support fresh food projects and community gardens as an additional means of promoting healthy and sustainable food sources.

10.4   Councillor Maurice thanked Councillor Krupa Sheth, as Lead Member for Environment, for the written response to his question in relation to the impact of the Ultra-Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) charge on users of the Household Waste and Recycling Centre at Abbey Road.  Councillor Maurice then asked a supplementary question seeking further clarification on the answer provided and whether the Council would make representations to Transport for London seeking an exemption from the charge for Brent residents using the Household and Recycling Centre.

In response, Councillor Krupa Sheth advised that Brent had made a commitment to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030 but highlighted that difficult choices would be required in order to reach this objective which may unfortunately inconvenience residents.  Whilst the boundaries for the ULEZ had now been set, other options were available for those residents likely to be impacted in terms of use of the Household Waste and Recycling Centre at Abbey Road which it was pointed out also included the Council’s bulky waste service and community skips.

The Mayor thanked members for their written questions and Lead Members for the responses provided to the supplementary questions.  She then advised that the remainder of the time available would be used for an open question time session to the Cabinet.  The following questions were raised and responses provided:

(i).                Councillor Kelcher sought details on action being taken to address residents’ concerns around noise, pollution and anti-social behaviour from a funfair at Roundwood Park.

Councillor Knight, as Lead Member for Community Safety and Engagement, responded by advising that the Council had sought assurances from the operators of the event that sound protective cladding would be fitted to their generators and that alternative locations for the generators would be considered, if necessary. Additionally, members were advised that the operators had outlined their commitment to engaging with local residents regarding noise concerns and that the Council’s Nuisance Control team were also available to visit and investigate any further complaints.  Whilst no specific anti-social behaviour complaints had been received by the Council, members were encouraged to report any further concerns they may have to ensure they were properly investigated.

(ii).            Councillor Georgiou sought further detail on the support available to help home-based small and micro businesses during the pandemic.

Councillor McLennan, as Deputy Leader and Lead Member for Resources, advised that the Council had discharged over £100 million pounds in business grant support and continued to look at the ways in which it could support local businesses. She also highlighted that further detail on the support being made available to local businesses, as the Council moved forward into the recovery phase of the pandemic, had been included in the Covid-19 recovery paper to be considered later on the agenda.

(iii).          Councillor Kennelly referring to local protests within the borough on the issue, sought further detail on the approach being taken by the Council and support available to leaseholders affected by the cladding scandal along with efforts being made to ensure the problems identified were addressed and could not happen again.

In response, Councillor Tatler, as Lead Member for Regeneration, Property & Planning, provided assurance that the Council continued to lobby central government to ensure adequate support was provided for leaseholders affected by the cladding scandal. Regarding planning applications, she advised that the Council’s remit did not allow it to consider the past history of developers as landlords. She encouraged all Members (including those from the Conservative Group) to join the Administration in their continued efforts to lobby central government to ensure the issue was properly addressed and funded.

(iv).                Councillor Thakkar was keen to explore what had been learned from the vaccination rollout and concerns around the effects of Long Covid.

In response, Councillor Nerva, as Lead Member for Public Health, Culture and Leisure, advised that whilst the Council was not directly responsible for the vaccine rollout it was supporting its health partners in the process. He thanked everyone who had come forward to receive their vaccination, as well as the NHS and volunteers who were administering them. He advised that the Council had been working in partnership to ensure vaccines were taken up throughout the community, for example by using vaccination buses and collaborating with community leaders. Regarding Long Covid, he advised that the Council and its partners were awaiting the outcome of the mass pilot events and studies on the effects of Long Covid with further updates on any implications in terms of the future planning and provision of local services to be provided for the Health & Wellbeing Board.

(v).                Councillor Afzal referring to the recent incidents of racial abuse on social media directed towards members of the Enfield Football squad sought further details on how it was felt the Council could support and work with its partners to tackle the issue of discrimination and abuse on social media.

In response, Councillor Krupa Sheth, as Lead Member for Environment, assured members of the Councils stance against hate and discrimination of any kind.  Referring back to the statement made by the Chief Executive earlier in the meeting, she advised that further discussions were planned with the Stadium Safety Group and partners to ascertain what had happened in the build up to the UEFA European Championship Final and how any issues identified could be addressed going forward.  She ended her response by also thanking all Council staff for the work they had undertaken to support delivery of the tournament at Wembley Stadium.

(vi).                Referring to the concerns highlighted earlier in the session, Councillor Mahmood queried what support was being provided for residents likely to be impacted by introduction of ULEZ charges in the borough.

In response, Councillor Krupa Sheth, as Lead Member for Environment, advised members of the initial support likely to be available from the GLA for those residents in financial hardship who may be impacted by the introduction of the ULEZ charge and potential for the Council to also look at other forms of support over the longer term.

(vii).                Councillor Choudhary sought further details on the actions being taken by the Council to develop its Covid-19 economic recovery programme.

Taking the opportunity to highlight what he felt had been the limited response from central government to provide adequate support for local residents during the pandemic and impact of ongoing reductions in funding for local services, Councillor M.Butt, as Leader of the Council, assured members of the Council’s continued commitment to supporting the most vulnerable residents in the borough.  Highlighting the various approaches being developed to support residents moving forward, he again (in response to the specific question) referred members to the detail contained within the Covid-19 recovery paper to be considered later on the agenda.

(viii).                Councillor Long highlighting specific issues within Willesden Green, sought details about how the Council would be working with Thames Water to resolve rainwater drainage issues across the borough.

In response, Councillor Sheth, as Lead Member for Environment, advised that the concerns expressed had been raised direct with Thames Water with the Council keen to work with them in order to ensure the issues highlighted were progressed and improvements were secured in terms of their operation across the borough.

(ix).                Highlighting concerns about recent local social media content, Councillor Kennelly sought details on the funding available to tackle violent crime within hotspots identified in the north of the borough.

Councillor Knight, as Lead Member for Community Safety and Engagement, outlined the work being undertaken by the Council and funding available to tackle crime within a range of identified hotspots across the borough. She asked Councillor Kennelly to forward any information he may have regarding the specific incident highlighted so that it could be investigated further.

(x).                Following on from his previous question, Councillor Georgiou asked the Deputy Leader whether she would be willing to meet with residents who had advised they felt excluded from access to pandemic-related grant funding.

In response, Councillor McLennan, as Deputy Leader and Lead Member for Resources, advised that she would be happy to meet with any residents who felt they had felt excluded from the range of support which had been made available during the pandemic.

At this stage in the proceedings, the Mayor advised that the time available for the open question session had expired. She therefore thanked all members for their contributions and advised that she would now move on to the next item.