Agenda item

Council is proud of its record delivering high quality social care services for adults and children in Leeds, as well as delivering more affordable housing for Leeds residents and providing more school places. 

Council believes it is held back from making further improvements in these areas by a lack of action from central Government.  Council was disappointed that the Government failed to use the recent Queen’s Speech to put forward plans to address the national social care, school buildings or housing crises.

Council therefore requests the Prime Minister use his upcoming budget to provide funding to tackle the social care, school buildings and housing crises, and to thereby enable the council to make further improvements to these services for the people of Leeds. 

It was moved by Councillor Charlwood, seconded by Councillor Pryor that Council is proud of its record delivering high quality social care services for adults and children in Leeds, as well as delivering more affordable housing for Leeds residents and providing more school places. 

Council believes it is held back from making further improvements in these areas by a lack of action from central Government.  Council was disappointed that the Government failed to use the recent Queen’s Speech to put forward plans to address the national social care, school buildings or housing crises.

Council therefore requests the Prime Minister use his upcoming budget to provide funding to tackle the social care, school buildings and housing crises, and to thereby enable the council to make further improvements to these services for the people of Leeds. 

An amendment was moved by Councillor Andrew Carter, seconded by Councillor C Anderson

Delete all after ‘Council’ and replace with:

‘notes the recent record of delivering quality social care services for adults and children in Leeds, attempts to deliver more affordable housing for Leeds residents and provision of additional school places in the city. Council thanks staff for their continuing efforts in these areas and believes that the Queen’s Speech, and forthcoming Budget, offer a huge opportunity to deliver a genuine step change in service delivery and enhanced infrastructure in Leeds.

Council believes the Queen’s Speech sets out an ambitious programme that will re-focus and reinvigorate the UK as it moves towards leaving the European Union. In particular Council welcomes the following measures introduced through the Queen’s Speech:

·  On health a commitment to lock in £33.9bn of health spending over the next four years, deliver 40 new hospitals and deliver 50,000 new nurses and 6,000 new doctors, a further commitment on innovation in medicine and a move to scrap hospital parking charges for the most ill.

·  On education a school funding guarantee to areas that have lost out in the past

·  On crime a commitment to tougher sentencing that will ensure serious offenders are not released early from prison in addition to the additional 20,000 new police officers announced earlier in the year

·  On housing a new homes pledge that will see 1 million new homes created over the new parliament as well as support for first time buyers through a local discount to enable more home ownership and additional protections for those in rented properties.

·  On social care a commitment to invest an additional £1bn in each year of the new parliament

·  On business rates additional discounts for small businesses that will support local high streets throughout Leeds

These amongst a range of other measures makes this a hugely ambitious Queen’s Speech and through the planned legislation on Brexit shows that the People’s Government will listen to the public and deliver against the mandate they secured in December.

Finally Council looks forward to the Budget in March where plans to reform the so called ‘green book’ will be unveiled. This will see investment rebalanced towards the north by changing the current formula that favours investment in London.

Council therefore calls for an Executive Board report to be brought to the March meeting that looks at how Leeds can take advantage of the forthcoming investment in infrastructure.’

A second amendment was moved by Councillor Golton, seconded by Councillor Campbell,

 In the first paragraph remove all after “Council” and replace with:

“recognises the commitment of all groups on the Council to the provision of high quality social care services for adults and children, the delivery of more affordable housing and the provision of more school places.”

The amended White Paper will then read:

“Council recognises the commitment of all groups on the Council to the provision of high quality social care services for adults and children, the delivery of more affordable housing and the provision of more school places.

Council believes it is held back from making further improvements in these areas by a lack of action from central Government.  Council was disappointed that the Government failed to use the recent Queen’s Speech to put forward plans to address the national social care, school buildings or housing crises.

Council therefore requests the Prime Minister use his upcoming budget to provide funding to tackle the social care, school buildings and housing crises, and to thereby enable the council to make further improvements to these services for the people of Leeds.”

The amendments in the name of Councillor Andrew Carter and Councillor Golton were declared lost and upon being put to the vote it was

RESOLVED – That Council is proud of its record delivering high quality social care services for adults and children in Leeds, as well as delivering more affordable housing for Leeds residents and providing more school places. 

Council believes it is held back from making further improvements in these areas by a lack of action from central Government.  Council was disappointed that the Government failed to use the recent Queen’s Speech to put forward plans to address the national social care, school buildings or housing crises.

Council therefore requests the Prime Minister use his upcoming budget to provide funding to tackle the social care, school buildings and housing crises, and to thereby enable the council to make further improvements to these services for the people of Leeds. 

On the requisition of Councillor Dowson and Councillor Lewis the voting on the motion in the name of Councillor Charlwood was recorded as follows;

YES - 60

Akhtar, Almas, Arif, Bithell, A Blackburn, D Blackburn, Blake, Brooks, Campbell, Carlill, Charlwood, Coupar, Cunningham, Dawson, Downes, Dowson, Drinkwater, Dye, Forsaith, Gabriel, Garner, Garthwaite, Goddard, Golton, P Grahame, R Grahame, Groves, Hamilton, Harland, Hayden, Heselwood, Howley, Hussain, Illingworth, Iqbal, Jenkins, Khan, Knight, Lay, Lennox, J Lewis, Maqsood, Marshall Katung, McKenna, Midgley, Mulherin,  Nash, Pryor, Rafique, Renshaw, Ritchie, Scopes, Shahzad, Sharpe, Smart, Truswell, Venner, Walshaw, Wenham and Wray.

NO - 23

B Anderson, C Anderson, Buckley, Amanda Carter, Andrew Carter, Cohen, Collins, Firth, Flynn, Harrand, Harrington, M Harrison, Lamb, G Latty, P Latty, Richards, Robinson, Seary, Shemilt, Smith, Stephenson, J Taylor and Wadsworth.

ABSTAIN – 2

Elliott & Finnigan