Agenda and minutes

(a)  The Lord Mayor welcomed members to this meeting of Full Council and also journalism students from Leeds Beckett University and reminded those present that the meeting was to be streamed live.

(b)  The Lord Mayor informed Council of the recent installation of the new lights in the Chamber. 

(c ) The Lord Mayor informed Council that this would be the last meeting of Council  for a number of Councillors as they would not be standing at the local elections in May. The Lord Mayor thanked the Councillors concerned for 120+ years of public service.

 (d)  The Lord Mayor reported that this was a National Day of Reflection which marked the anniversary of the first Covid-19 lockdown and asked members to stand in memory of those who had lost their lives during the pandemic.

 Council stood in silent tribute.

It was moved by Councillor Lennox, seconded by Councillor Cohen and

RESOLVED - That Council Procedure Rule (CPR) 22.1 (Suspension of CPRs), that CPR 12.2 (motions and amendments) be suspended to allow the introduction of  an additional not for debate White Paper on Ukraine to be heard at the start of the meeting and an additional for debate White Paper which would be heard as the first for debate White Paper.

It was moved by Councillor Lewis, seconded by Councillor Andrew Carter and supported by Councillors Golton, Hutchison and Dobson and

RESOLVED – That this Council shares the shock and concern of Leeds residents at the tragic and worsening humanitarian situation in Ukraine. Council expresses its support and solidarity with the Ukrainian community in Leeds and internationally, as well as with residents who have family and friends in the region.

Council condemns the horrific unprovoked attacks on civilians and infrastructure critical to human life instigated by Vladimir Putin and supports the efforts of the international community to bring an end to the war.

Council confirms its commitment to help any national efforts to support Ukrainian refugees in any way it can.

To approve the minutes of the Council Meeting held on 23^rd February 2022.

It was moved by Councillor Lennox, seconded by Councillor Cohen and

RESOLVED – That the minutes of the meeting held on 23^rd February 2022 be approved.

To disclose or draw attention to any interests in accordance with Leeds City Council’s ‘Councillor Code of Conduct’.

There were no declarations of interests.

To receive such communications as the Lord Mayor, the Leader,  Members of the Executive Board or the Chief Executive consider appropriate.

There were no communications.

To receive deputations in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 10.

Four deputations were admitted to the meeting and addressed Council, as follows:-

1) Leeds Hospitals Charity

2) Hunslet Carr Residents Association 

3) West Pak Residents re Lawnswood Roundabout

4) Save Our Homes/Residents of the Sugar Hill Estate in Oulton

RESOLVED – That the subject matter in respect of deputation 1 be referred to the Director of Resources for consideration in consultation with the relevant Executive Member, that the subject matter in respect of deputations 2 and 3 be referred to the Director of City Development for consideration in consultation with the relevant Executive Member, and that the subject matter in respect of deputation 4 be referred to the Director of City Development & Director of Communities, Housing and Environment for consideration in consultation with the relevant Executive Member.

To consider the report of the Director of Resources introducing the Annual Report of the Climate Emergency Advisory Committee, which demonstrates the work the committee and its working groups has undertaken throughout the 2020/21 municipal year.

It was moved by Councillor Hayden, seconded by Councillor Walshaw and

RESOLVED – That the Annual report of the Climate Emergency Advisory Committee be received and noted.

To consider the report of the Chief Officer Elections and Regulatory presenting to Council the annual report of Entertainment Licensing and Taxi and Private Hire Licensing.

It was moved by Councillor Coupar seconded by Councillor Wray and

RESOLVED – That the Licensing annual report be received.

To consider the report of the City Solicitor presenting to Full Council the annual report of the Standards and Conduct Committee relating to matters within the committee’s terms of reference.

It was moved by Councillor Nash, seconded by Councillor Coupar and

RESOLVED - That the report of the City Solicitor be received and the matters set out in the annual report be noted.

To deal with executive questions in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 11.

Q1  Councillor Buckley to the Executive Member (Public Health and Active Lifestyles):-

Back in December 2020, at a cost of £183,000 in materials alone and not counting officer time, nearly 4,000, 8ft-tall posts were installed at the entrances to parks, topped with tiny Covid signs telling people to socially distance.  Given the recent changes from Government, will the Executive Member for Public Health and Active Lifestyles please advise when this signage will be removed, at what cost, and which funding pot will be paying for it?

The Executive Member (Public Health and Active Lifestyles) replied.

Q2  Councillor Bentley to the Executive Member (Resources):-

The Executive Member will be aware that anti-abortion activists have been targeting a local abortion clinic for their protest activities.  The protests have included placards and pictures and approaches to service users which many find intimidating.  What additional measures can the Council employ to support vulnerable people using the service and prevent intimidation and potential harassment?

The Executive Member (Resources) replied.

Q3  Councillor Garthwaite to the Executive Member (Resources):-

Can the Executive Member update Council on the work being undertaken locally in relation to women’s safety?

The Executive Member (Resources) replied.

Q4  Councillor Hutchison to the Executive Member (Economy, Culture and Education):-

Could the Exec Member for Economy, Culture and Education, please update Council on the preparations for Leeds 2023?

The Executive Member (Economy, Culture and Education) replied.

Q5  Councillor Dowson to the Executive Member (Communities):-

Could the Executive Member please comment on the Ukraine refugee crisis, including how the council intends to respond and how Leeds residents can help?

The Executive Member (Communities) replied.

Q6  Councillor Robinson to the Executive Member (Infrastructure and Climate):-

Will the Executive Member for Infrastructure and Climate please explain why the East Leeds Orbital Road (ELOR) is planned to open all at once, rather than in completed sections which would aid traffic movements, reduce congestion and lessen the difficulties for local residents?

The Executive Member (Infrastructure and Climate) replied.

At the conclusion of question time, the following questions remained unanswered and it was noted that, under the provisions of Council Procedure Rule 11.6, written answers would be sent to each Member of Council:-

Q7  Councillor Chapman to the Executive Member (Communities):-

Q8  Councillor Brooks to the Executive Member (Economy, Culture and Education):-

Q9  Councillor Flint to the Executive Member (Adult and Children’s Social Care and Health Partnerships):-

Q10  Councillor Smith to the Executive Member (Public Health and Active Lifestyles)

Q11  Councillor Campbell to the Executive Member (Infrastructure and Climate).

Q12  Councillor Burke to the Executive Member (Public Health and Active Lifestyles)

Q13  Councillor Robinson to the Executive Member (Environment and Housing).

Q14  Councillor Golton to the Executive Member (Infrastructure and Climate).

Q15  Councillor Foster to the Executive Member (Communities).

Q16  Councillor Chapman to the Executive Member (Communities).

Q17  Councillor Robinson to the Leader of Council

Q18  Councillor Chapman to the Executive Member (Public Health and Active  ...  view the full minutes text for item 94.

To receive the minutes in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 2.2(i).

It was moved by Councillor Lewis, seconded by Councillor Lennox that the minutes be received in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 2.2(i).

RESOLVED – That the minutes be received in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 2.2(i).

Council Procedure Rule 4, providing for the winding up of business, was applied prior to all notified comments on the minutes having been debated.

At the conclusion of this item Council adjourned from 16.40 to 17.10

This Council calls for a comprehensive review of waste management services to ensure they are providing value for money for Leeds residents and meeting our climate goals.

Council regrets that the cost of the refuse collection service rose significantly in 2021/22 at the same time as residents saw a marked drop in performance. It is unacceptable that even now, as pandemic restrictions have eased, many areas are still experiencing an unreliable service with frequent missed collections causing significant disruption.

Council further regrets the length of time it took the administration to finally remove charges for bulky waste collections, something opposition groups have long called for as a way of helping to reduce fly-tipping. The refusal to act earlier undoubtedly had a financial and environmental impact that could have been avoided.

Council welcomes the government’s increased investment in Defra and its support for the near elimination of biodegradable municipal waste by 2028. This includes government funding to implement free local authority food waste collections. But Council believes the Council administration must do more to improve the recycling offer in Leeds.

Council calls for an urgent report to Executive Board setting out the following:

• Development of an action plan to target and rapidly improve performance in areas that have suffered from repeated missed bin collections;
• The scrapping of inert waste charges, as part of wider efforts to reduce flytipping;

·  Implementation of an improved recycling offer for Leeds residents that includes: glass recycling, enhanced garden waste collections, and food waste collections.

It was moved by Councillor Wadsworth, seconded by Councillor Harrington that  this Council calls for a comprehensive review of waste management services to ensure they are providing value for money for Leeds residents and meeting our climate goals.

Council regrets that the cost of the refuse collection service rose significantly in 2021/22 at the same time as residents saw a marked drop in performance. It is unacceptable that even now, as pandemic restrictions have eased, many areas are still experiencing an unreliable service with frequent missed collections causing significant disruption.

Council further regrets the length of time it took the administration to finally remove charges for bulky waste collections, something opposition groups have long called for as a way of helping to reduce fly-tipping. The refusal to act earlier undoubtedly had a financial and environmental impact that could have been avoided.

Council welcomes the government’s increased investment in Defra and its support for the near elimination of biodegradable municipal waste by 2028. This includes government funding to implement free local authority food waste collections. But Council believes the Council administration must do more to improve the recycling offer in Leeds.

Council calls for an urgent report to Executive Board setting out the following:

·  Development of an action plan to target and rapidly improve performance in areas that have suffered from repeated missed bin collections;

·  The scrapping of inert waste charges, as part of wider efforts to reduce flytipping;

Implementation of an improved recycling offer for Leeds residents that includes: glass recycling, enhanced garden waste collections, and food waste collections.

An amendment was moved by Councillor Hart-Brooke, seconded by Councillor Downes

After the final bullet point ending “and food waste collections”, add an additional bullet point to read:

·  Identify technical best practise, key industrial potential partners, suitable locations and provisional costings so that as funds become available Leeds can truly be “Best City” by having shovel ready projects scoped and ready to progress swiftly.

The amended White Paper would then read:

This Council calls for a comprehensive review of waste management services to ensure they are providing value for money for Leeds residents and meeting our climate goals.

Council regrets that the cost of the refuse collection service rose significantly in 2021/22 at the same time as residents saw a marked drop in performance. It is unacceptable that even now, as pandemic restrictions have eased, many areas are still experiencing an unreliable service with frequent missed collections causing significant disruption.

Council further regrets the length of time it took the administration to finally remove charges for bulky waste collections, something opposition groups have long called for as a way of helping to reduce fly-tipping. The refusal to act earlier undoubtedly had a financial and environmental impact that could have been avoided.

Council welcomes the government’s increased investment in Defra and its support for the near elimination of biodegradable municipal waste by 2028. This includes government funding to implement free local authority food waste collections. But Council believes the Council administration must  ...  view the full minutes text for item 96.

This Council recognises the enormous environmental benefit of a large tree-planting programme. As well as providing a vital contribution to carbon capture and storage, tree planting plays an important role in improving biodiversity and making Leeds a cleaner, greener city to live in.

Council supports the aim to plant 50 hectares of woodland on council land every year until 2045, adding 5.6 million trees to the 1,400 hectares of woodland that it already manages.

In light of the scale of this tree planting ambition, however, Council believes it is time for the administration to rethink its approach to tree maintenance in the city. Too often, the concerns of local people living near woodland or residential trees are overlooked, whilst unmaintained and overgrown trees are allowed to continue to have an adverse effect, due to a combination of inflexible policy, lack of staff, and insufficient resources.

Council believes it would be irresponsible to make this situation worse by failing to adequately resource the Forestry Service so that it can meet the tree maintenance demands of existing trees and the millions of new trees due to be planted over the coming years.

Council calls for a report to Executive Board setting out options for a review of policy and resources in this area, to include input from scrutiny, and to be guided by the following key principles:

1.  “Quality of life” of residents, including loss of light complaints, to be given greater emphasis in deciding how tree work is planned and prioritised;

2.  Sufficient resources to be allocated to Forestry such that a greater range and higher volume of work can be carried out more quickly;

3.  Consultation to take place with local ward councillors and communities over the nature and location of tree planting initiatives to ensure future problems are avoided.

It was moved by Councillor Robinson, seconded by Councillor Cohen that this Council recognises the enormous environmental benefit of a large tree-planting programme. As well as providing a vital contribution to carbon capture and storage, tree planting plays an important role in improving biodiversity and making Leeds a cleaner, greener city to live in.

Council supports the aim to plant 50 hectares of woodland on council land every year until 2045, adding 5.6 million trees to the 1,400 hectares of woodland that it already manages.

In light of the scale of this tree planting ambition, however, Council believes it is time for the administration to rethink its approach to tree maintenance in the city. Too often, the concerns of local people living near woodland or residential trees are overlooked, whilst unmaintained and overgrown trees are allowed to continue to have an adverse effect, due to a combination of inflexible policy, lack of staff, and insufficient resources.

Council believes it would be irresponsible to make this situation worse by failing to adequately resource the Forestry Service so that it can meet the tree maintenance demands of existing trees and the millions of new trees due to be planted over the coming years.

Council calls for a report to Executive Board setting out options for a review of policy and resources in this area, to include input from scrutiny, and to be guided by the following key principles:

1.  “Quality of life” of residents, including loss of light complaints, to be given greater emphasis in deciding how tree work is planned and prioritised;

2.  Sufficient resources to be allocated to Forestry such that a greater range and higher volume of work can be carried out more quickly;

3.  Consultation to take place with local ward councillors and communities over the nature and location of tree planting initiatives to ensure future problems are avoided.

An amendment was moved by Councillor Golton, seconded by Councillor Lay

In paragraph 5, delete all after “…setting out” and replace with:

“….proposals for the creation of a Leeds Tree Strategy to build a stronger partnership between the Council and communities that will guarantee a minimum standard of maintenance residents can expect from the Council, and a commitment to enabling residents to take control of their local environment.

This will also include a commitment to fund a team of arboriculturalists to proactively focus on getting our street trees back to a manageable condition, skilling up our current parks staff to do more tree works within our parks themselves, and work with WYCA and local colleges to ensure that forestry management is promoted as a growth area for the new green economy.”

The amended White Paper will then read:

“This Council recognises the enormous environmental benefit of a large tree-planting programme. As well as providing a vital contribution to carbon capture and storage, tree planting plays an important role in improving biodiversity and making Leeds a cleaner, greener city to live in.

Council supports the aim to plant 50  ...  view the full minutes text for item 97.

This Council is very concerned that at a time when real wages are falling due to high inflation, Rishi Sunak has worsened the Cost-of-Living crisis for many families in Leeds through his decisions to increase National Insurance Contributions and require local authorities to raise Council Tax or face further cuts to local services.

Council welcomes actions taken by this Council to help Leeds residents struggling because of the Chancellor’s actions, including action to increase wages for workers in Leeds, investment to reduce home energy costs for residents, and support for families with children through schools and during school holidays.

Council calls on central Government to follow this Council’s lead and take urgent action to tackle the Cost-of Living crisis and put the economy on a path away from their current high tax/low wage approach and spiralling rents in the private sector that is making the crisis worse for so many people in our city.

It was moved by Councillor Harland, seconded by Councillor Coupar that 

this Council is very concerned that at a time when real wages are falling due to high inflation, Rishi Sunak has worsened the Cost-of-Living crisis for many families in Leeds through his decisions to increase National Insurance Contributions and require local authorities to raise Council Tax or face further cuts to local services.

Council welcomes actions taken by this Council to help Leeds residents struggling because of the Chancellor’s actions, including action to increase wages for workers in Leeds, investment to reduce home energy costs for residents, and support for families with children through schools and during school holidays.

Council calls on central Government to follow this Council’s lead and take urgent action to tackle the Cost-of Living crisis and put the economy on a path away from their current high tax/low wage approach and spiralling rents in the private sector that is making the crisis worse for so many people in our city.

An amendment was moved by Councillor Howley, seconded by Councillor Hart-Brooke

Delete all after “This Council is very concerned that at a time when real wages are falling due to high inflation” and replace with:

Council regrets that the current administration is neglecting those most in need during the developing Cost-of-Living crisis including:

1.  Unnecessarily increasing Council House rents

2.  Continuing to charge a DIY tax for inert waste at recycling centres

3.  Failing to improve the failing and expensive public transport system that residents are so dependent on.

The amended White Paper will then read:

This Council is very concerned that at a time when real wages are falling due to high inflation, Council regrets that the current administration is neglecting those most in need during the developing Cost-of-Living crisis including:

1.  Unnecessarily increasing Council House rents

2.  Continuing to charge a DIY tax for inert waste at recycling centre

3.  Failing to improve the failing and expensive public transport system that residents are so dependent on.

A second amendment was moved by Councillor Lamb, seconded by Councillor Stephenson

Delete all after “This Council” and replace with the following:

“notes the range of global factors affecting the cost of living for households nationally and in Leeds and welcomes the actions being taken by the government in response.

“Council welcomes government action that will see a £150 non-repayable reduction in Council Tax bills for all households in Bands A-D in England.

“Council welcomes the unprecedented levels of support provided by the government through the pandemic. In addition, measures announced by the government in the Autumn Budget will help vulnerable households, such as increasing the National Living Wage to £9.50 an hour this April and fuel duty being frozen for the twelfth year in a row.

“In addition Council welcomes the following government support:

·  Holiday Activities and Food programme, worth up to £220m, providing activities and healthy meals to children over the school holidays;

·  £140 million in Discretionary Housing Payments supporting families with rent or housing  ...  view the full minutes text for item 98.

This Council notes the current Administration’s ambition for Leeds to become a ‘car-free city’ and the significant amount of investment in the city centre to achieve this.

However, this Council also notes the continuing decline in bus patronage, the effects of the Coronavirus pandemic on public transport affordability and reliability and the increasing prevalence of ‘home-based’ and ‘flexible’ working arrangements for Leeds residents. Council also notes that leaving the car at home will require a significant focus on accommodating parked cars in residential streets.

This Council believes that the current two-speed approach to transport investment in the city, with the greatest amount currently spent on city centre projects focussed on a ‘9-5’ commuter economy, needs to change to reflect and respond to the above realities, and calls for the development of a transport plan for every ward in the city. 

These transport plans will seek to maximise mobility for all sectors of population on the principles of developing a ‘15 Minute Neighbourhood’ to enable people to access all the local services and amenities they need by foot, bike or public transport within 15 minutes. 

Through the development of such plans, the Council will ensure that access to local neighbourhood centres, parks, education and health venues has as much focus from our transport planners as city centre businesses, and that carers, the elderly, disabled, and young people are valued as much as those more able to enjoy the city’s current city-centre focussed transport system.

Council therefore calls for a paper proposing such an initiative to be brought to the Executive Board for their consideration.

It was moved by Councillor Golton, seconded by Councillor Howley that this Council notes the current Administration’s ambition for Leeds to become a ‘car-free city’ and the significant amount of investment in the city centre to achieve this.

However, this Council also notes the continuing decline in bus patronage, the effects of the Coronavirus pandemic on public transport affordability and reliability and the increasing prevalence of ‘home-based’ and ‘flexible’ working arrangements for Leeds residents. Council also notes that leaving the car at home will require a significant focus on accommodating parked cars in residential streets.

This Council believes that the current two-speed approach to transport investment in the city, with the greatest amount currently spent on city centre projects focussed on a ‘9-5’ commuter economy, needs to change to reflect and respond to the above realities, and calls for the development of a transport plan for every ward in the city. 

These transport plans will seek to maximise mobility for all sectors of population on the principles of developing a ‘15 Minute Neighbourhood’ to enable people to access all the local services and amenities they need by foot, bike or public transport within 15 minutes. 

Through the development of such plans, the Council will ensure that access to local neighbourhood centres, parks, education and health venues has as much focus from our transport planners as city centre businesses, and that carers, the elderly, disabled, and young people are valued as much as those more able to enjoy the city’s current city-centre focussed transport system.

Council therefore calls for a paper proposing such an initiative to be brought to the Executive Board for their consideration.”

An amendment was moved by Councillor Buckley, seconded by Councillor Lamb

Delete all after “This Council” and replace with the following:

“notes the continuing decline in bus patronage, the effects of the Coronavirus pandemic on public transport affordability and reliability and the increasing prevalence of ‘home-based’ and ‘flexible’ working arrangements for Leeds residents.

“In this context, Council is not supportive of measures that seek to penalise car users and believes it is the wrong time to be pursuing anti-car policies that could harm the economic recovery and dissuade visitors from coming into Leeds.

“This Council believes that the current two-speed approach to transport investment in the city, with the greatest amount currently spent on city centre projects focussed on a ‘9-5’ commuter economy, needs to change to reflect and respond to the above realities, and calls for the development of a transport plan for every ward in the city. 

“Council therefore calls for a paper to be brought to Executive Board proposing how transport investment and policy can be better focused on the needs of individual areas, ensuring that all our communities have convenient access to the services and facilities they need.”

A second amendment was moved by Councillor Hayden, seconded by Councillor Lewis

Delete all and replace with:

“This Council supports the ambition for Leeds to become a city where you don’t need to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 99.