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Agenda item

Motions

Meeting of Full Council, Tuesday, 20th March, 2018 6.00 pm (Item 221.)

Note:

Under the Council’s constitution, 30 minutes are available for the consideration of motions. In practice, this realistically means that there is usually only time for one, or possibly two motions to be considered. With the agreement of the Lord Mayor, motion 1 below will be considered at this meeting, and motion 2 is likely to be considered, subject to time. Details of other motions submitted, (which, due to time constraints, are very unlikely to be considered at this meeting) are also set out for information.

MOTION 1 - BUILD BRISTOL ARENA AT TEMPLE MEADS NOT FILTON

Motion to be moved by: Cllr Stephen Clarke, Green, Southville ward

“Full Council notes that:

· The Mayor has stated on numerous occasions that he is determined to construct an arena in Bristol.

· More recently it has become clear that he is apparently undecided where that arena should be located despite the many millions of pounds spent on preparatory work at Temple Quarter (Arena Island) behind Temple Meads.

· Cardiff has currently granted planning permission for a second arena in that city.

Full Council believes (on the basis of information currently in the public domain) that if there is to be an arena it should be built at Arena Island because:

1. It is in a central position allowing many locals to walk, cycle, or take public transport to the venue. In particular, it is located next door to Bristol Temple Meads train station, bus routes from all over the city and a new MetroBus stop. This would mitigate pollution and congestion. With the availability of many multi-storey car parks in the vicinity, and the growing availability of Park and Ride sites with direct access to Temple Meads, car access will be perfectly possible.

2. Historically South Bristol is under-served by access to facilities, work and opportunities which are mainly located in North Bristol. The Arena Island would enable fairer access from across the city.

3. The building of an arena on Arena Island will create jobs and opportunities in some of our key inner city areas that will be within walking distance of the new arena.

4. So much money has already been spent on the site; for example many millions have been spent to purchase and clear the site and in preparing the infrastructure.

5. The arena would be owned by Bristol City Council and profits could be put back into funding local services.

6. An arena building in the city centre would become an iconic emblem adding to the city's reputation, feeding the city-scape and helping to bring more international recognition to our great city; a site next to South Glos would not have that same setting or impact.

Full Council also believes (on the basis of information currently in the public domain) that it doesn't make sense for YTL to build the Arena at Brabazon Hangar in Filton because:

1. As the Chairman of YTL said on 9 March 2018,”Without the transport infrastructure [requiring public investment of over £100million] The Filton Arena isn’t viable”

2. It would be almost entirely car-centric and, given the current lack of travel alternatives (which we recognise could potentially be helped by spending further large amounts of money on rail links to Filton Abbey Wood), would go against the attempts of all of the political groups in the city to create a more environmentally friendly city and reduce air pollution which is already at illegal levels.

3. Roads across the city would be gridlocked with thousands of people attempting to cross the city from the south, centre, west and east.

4. The likely economic benefits will be passed on to South Gloucestershire rather than the more deprived areas of Central and South Bristol.

5. The Brabazon is privately owned by YTL, a Malaysian group and they would retain the vast majority of the profits.

Full Council therefore resolves that:

· The Mayor should consider the individual concerns raised in this motion very carefully and give them due weight when making his decision.

· He should also consider the strong expressions of support for the Arena being built on Arena Island expressed by members of the public in deprived areas of Inner and South Bristol and elsewhere.

· Finally, he should ensure that the views of the petitioners to this Full Council are listened to and acted upon.”

MOTION 2 - EXIT FROM THE EUROPEAN UNION

Motion submitted by Councillor Clare Campion-Smith, Liberal Democrat, Westbury-on-Trym and Henleaze ward

“Full Council Believes:

1. That there is mounting and undisputable evidence of damage that ‘Brexit’ would cause both to the national economy and to our regional economy.

2. The damage to our international relationships, the reducing influence with other states and the complete loss of say and control over the rules of the European Single Market and Customs Union, the largest market in the world.

3. That the Government has totally mismanaged the Brexit negotiations and has failed to work closely with large cities such as Bristol and listen to our concerns on the direction followed.

4. That businesses within the region, like those elsewhere in the UK, are reconsidering investment plans in new production and new jobs while they await the Brexit deal.

5. That the current rights of EU citizens living in the UK should always be fully protected and not used as a bargaining chip by the UK Government.

Full Council Notes:

1. The increasing problems that the NHS is having in recruiting nurses and doctors since the decision to leave the European Union was made and that this is having a real impact on the health of local residents.

2. With concern the potential impact of Brexit both on our local economy and on established mutually beneficial partnerships and links with European cities.

3. That the UK economy is now the slowest growing economy in Europe, reducing the prosperity of the UK and Bristol residents;

4. That new investment in the region is being jeopardised and new job opportunities are being lost;

5. That Inflation caused by Brexit-related depreciation of the pound is driving up living costs for the poorest residents a further squeezing of living standards.

6. That Brighton Council and Hammersmith and Fulham Council have already passed motions that back a referendum on the final deal and an option to stay within the European Union.

Full Council Resolves to:

1. Ask the Mayor and Party Group leaders to write to Bristol’s four MPs and Sajid Javid, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, expressing this Council’s and this city’s strong desire for a referendum on the final terms of a Brexit deal, including the option to maintain full EU membership.

2. Ask the Mayor to write to the Prime Minister asking that she meet with him and other core city leaders to discuss city leaders’ concerns about Brexit.

3. Ask the Mayor and party group leaders meet with West of England Mayor and the regions MPs to discuss how best to mitigate the effects already being felt by Brexit and how Bristol and the region can be kept within the Single Market and Customs Union.

4. Ask the Mayor to write to all Leaders of Local Authorities in the UK urging them to also adopt a policy calling for a referendum on the final terms of Brexit including an option to maintain full EU membership.”

Details of other motions submitted (which, due to time constraints, are very unlikely to be considered at this meeting) are set out below for information:

MOTION 3 - TRIAL OF RECYCLED PLASTICS FOR BRISTOL ROADS

Motion submitted by: Cllr Claire Hiscott, Conservative, Horfield ward

"Council notes with great interest the innovative road surfacing experiment currently being trialled in London which utilises recycled plastics.

In 2016, Cumbria County Council became the first authority in the country to use this material on its roads. It was found to be an affordable, more environmentally friendly alternative repair resource to address their road repair problems. For their project, resurfacing the A7 in Carlisle, the volume of plastic applied was equivalent to 500,000 plastic bottles and more than 800,000 one-use plastic carrier bags.

Council understands that many benefits are derived from these 'plastic roads' which can be constructed entirely out of recycled plastic or as a composite mix with traditional mineral aggregates and asphalt. For example, as well as obviously reducing resort to landfill, it uses a material which is plentiful, cost effective, easy to apply and proven durability.

With the LGA estimating it will cost around £11.8 billion to bring the nation's roads up to standard, any viable cheap alternative must be considered by cash-strapped authorities.

Accordingly, in order to better evaluate these claims, Council calls on the Mayor to commission a detailed report on this subject for scrutiny members, with particular attention given to the Enfield project and special consideration given to conducting our own trial(s) here in Bristol. Any such local study should also seek to identify those component combinations which maximise surface noise reduction.

No doubt, the recent spate of bad weather will have taken a heavy toll on the city’s road network. So, now would seem to be especially timely to try out these plastic formulations as a repair solution.”

MOTION 4 - BRISTOL SAFER DRUG CONSUMPTION ROOM AND HEROIN ASSISTED TREATMENT

Motion submitted by Councillor Cleo Lake, Green, Cotham ward

“Full Council notes that:

1. Drug related deaths in Bristol have significantly increased over the past four years, with a record high of 37 individuals registered in 2016 according to the Office of National Statistics. In the latest figures for 2017, 41 people in Bristol have died from suspected drug related deaths, with 10 in October alone - the most ever recorded in a single month.

2. Sharing needles puts people at risk of catching Blood Borne Viruses, most prominently HIV, hepatitis C (HCV) and hepatitis B (HBV). In Bristol 66.4% of injecting drug users have Hepatitis C - well above the national average.

3. There is a widespread problem in Bristol with discarded needles and street drug use – impacting the public and business community.

4. Street drug use and the resulting impacts have major cost implications for policing, health, businesses and a range of council services.

5. The government's expert advisory group - the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) - has called for both Safer Drug Consumption Rooms (DCR) and Heroin Assisted Treatment (where heroin is prescribed in a clinic). They note that the evidence demonstrates that these interventions reduce death rates, blood borne disease infections and other health problems, hospital stays, emergency call-outs, discarded drug litter, and street drug use. They also improve engagement and retention in treatment for otherwise difficult to reach vulnerable people, and do not lead to increased use.

6. In its response to the ACMD, the Government recognised there is evidence supporting: “the effectiveness of drug consumption rooms in addressing the problems of public nuisance associated with open drug scenes, and in reducing health risks for drug users.” and that; “It is for local areas in the UK to consider, with those responsible for law enforcement, how best to deliver services to meet their local population needs.”

7. Heroin Assisted Treatment is recommended for people for whom other forms of treatment have not worked, by Public Health England and in the Home Office Modern Crime Reduction Strategy. 44% of acquisitive crime is committed by dependent heroin users, and research from UK trials in Brighton, London and Darlington showed that Heroin Assisted Treatment can reduce acquisitive crime to pay for drug use by two-thirds. It can also cause a substantial fall in overall crime, and lead to a reduction in street dealing, and street sex work. It also reduces the profits organised criminals accrue from the heroin trade.

8. The ACMD and numerous cost-benefit analyses have concluded that both Safer Drug Consumption Rooms and Heroin Assisted Treatment are cost effective. A business case carried out by the NHS in Glasgow in 2017 concluded a proposed facility there, combining both, would lead to millions of pounds worth of savings.

9. A range of public service budgets stand to benefit from the positive impacts of Safer Drug Consumption Rooms and Heroin Assisted Treatment - including policing, ambulance services, the wider NHS, council waste services etc. Long term funding for the proposed Glasgow facilities will be drawn proportionately from all these areas to ensure that all contribute and benefit fairly.

Full Council believes that:

1. Many of the most vulnerable people in Bristol are dying, while measures that have been shown to save both lives and money, and are recommended by the Government’s expert advisers, have not been fully considered.

2. The evidence shows that Safer Drug Consumption Rooms and Heroin Assisted Treatment deliver significant health, social and economic benefits, not just to people who use drugs, but to the wider public and businesses. Implementing these measures has also been shown to deliver savings across health, crime and policing, business, parks and street cleaning, and other areas, that are substantially higher than the running costs. Therefore, on social and economic grounds, an assessment should be conducted as to the feasibility of delivering these measures in Bristol.

Full council resolves to ask the Mayor:

1. To publicly endorse the work of the Substance Misuse Team in carrying out a feasibility study in house to assess whether Heroin Assisted Treatment and/or a Safer Drug Consumption Room would have net benefits for Bristol as supported by Safer Bristol Executive at their meeting in January.

2. To ensure that this study draws on existing research to assess the likely impacts on: drug related deaths, street drug use, discarded drug litter, anti-social behaviour, health, crime etc. It should also indicate which budgets, both within the council and beyond, would make cost-savings - e.g. policing, emergency services, hospital admissions etc. This is to identify stakeholders who could be asked to contribute financially, to ensure fair, long term funding that benefits all those involved.

3. Most importantly, to commit to fully implementing the findings and recommendations of the feasibility study so that the people of Bristol benefit as soon as possible – especially our most vulnerable citizens.”

MOTION 5 - FOOD SECURITY AND SUSTAINABILITY

Motion submitted by Councillor Charlie Bolton, Green, Southville ward

“Full Council notes:

• Empty shelves in Bristol’s shops and supermarkets during the recent cold spell.

• The ‘just-in-time’ nature of stocking of goods, particularly food, in supermarkets.

• The tendency – due to the free market and globalisation – for goods, particularly food, to be transported over increased distances.

• The madness of Brexit and all the uncertainty that goes with it.

• Climate change – which will produce, amongst other things – more extreme weather events.

• Peak oil, soil erosion and an increasing population are factors which will all have an impact on food security in the future.

As such, it is clear that cities, including Bristol, will become increasing vulnerable to not having a sufficient supply of food in extreme weather events, or in other politically unstable circumstances.

Council therefore calls on the Mayor to:

• Take the appropriate action to ensure Bristol will not face food shortages from such events.

• Adopt/confirm its commitment to the principles described in ‘Who feeds Bristol?’, the ‘Good Food Plan’ and the ‘Good Food Charter’.

• Sign Bristol up to the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact.

• Ensure that food security and sustainability are key elements of the One City Plan and Resilience Strategy.

• Work with the Food Policy Council and Food Policy Network to become a Gold standard Sustainable Food City.

• Support our regional producers, and make a major contribution to food security in the longer term, by enabling them to sell into the city’s procurement markets through the adoption of a Dynamic Purchasing System (approved by DEFRA and others).

• As a matter of priority, work to i) enable city residents to increase the amount of fresh fruit and vegetables they consume; ii) secure the supply of fresh fruit and vegetables into Bristol via the St Philips Wholesale market; and iii) safeguard land for food production at three levels - within new housing developments as gardens, allotment sites, smallholding sites and tenant farms.

• Research and develop zoning plans to legally safeguard best quality agricultural land for food production in the future, thus allowing for the scaling up of urban and peri-urban fruit and vegetable production.

• Demonstrate progress towards this before the Global Parliament of Mayors later this year.”

MOTION 6 - SUPPORT FOR THE HUMAN RIGHTS ACTS

Motion submitted by Councillor Stephen Clarke, Green, Southville ward

“Full Council notes:

• The positive impact that the Human Rights Act has had on the protection of the rights of individuals in the UK.

• The valuable guidance the Act provides for public authorities in ensuring policies are developed in line with international human rights standards.

Full Council believes:

• The UK should be proud of respecting the human rights of its citizens and should not be considering diluting their statutory protections at this time of increased threat to civil liberties.

Full Council resolves to call on the Mayor:

· To lobby the Government to retain the Act, the protections within it, and the UK's international obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights.

· To request that the leader of the opposition publically voices support for the retention of the Human Rights Act in future negotiations or statements on Brexit.”

MOTION 7 – CLOSING THE COLD HOMES LOOPHOLE

Motion submitted by Councillor Martin Fodor, Green, Redland ward

“Full Council notes:

1. The private rented sector is a major source of housing for families in the city, with many living in fuel poverty due to poor energy efficiency standards. Fuel poverty is defined by having to spend at least 10% of income after housing costs on fuel bills. For many it means a choice of ‘heat or eat’. An estimated 25,000 people in Bristol are classed as being in fuel poverty, many in the private rental sector.

2. After many years of delay, Government regulations will now require landlords of poorly insulated properties to upgrade them in order to make life more comfortable for their tenants and to cut carbon emissions. Homes rated in energy bands F and G (e.g. the coldest) must be brought up to band E.

3. However, an exemption exists allowing landlords to not undertake this work if it will cost them money - which it almost certainly will since government energy efficiency schemes that they could have applied to have mostly closed or been significantly scaled down. As long as this loophole is open, the hardest to heat homes in the city will be left uninsulated.

4. Living in a cold home is bad for your physical and mental health; it damages children's educational development and affects many families in the city as well as many older people who then risk hypothermia.

5. The Mayor has done commendable work so far in bringing together Fuel Poverty stakeholders and with winter approaching more must now be done.

Full council believes:

1. With colder weather risking residents’ health and budgets the campaign to close the loophole that allows private rented sector landlords to duck their obligations to make their homes warmer has been very timely.

2. There should be a replacement for the Green Deal Finance scheme which enabled investment to be made to upgrade homes at no upfront cost to the landlord or owner (with financing costs being paid for out of savings gained for the occupier from improved energy efficiency and lower bills – this is known as a Pay As You Save Scheme).

3. There also needs to be work with the network of private sector landlords in the city to press them to upgrade properties they rent out.

Full Council resolves to call on the Mayor to:

1. Support a national campaign by climate change charity 10:10 which is campaigning to close the loophole.

2. Write to all the local MPs and ask them to press the government to remove the exemption and provide a source of finance for landlords to upgrade their homes as required by the legislation.

3. Look into what the Council can do to further alleviate fuel poverty and encourage insulation through the Private Housing team, using Eco funds and other sources of investment that can be made available to landlords.

4. Support Warm Up Bristol to play a role in this.

5. Work with partner organisations who can advise tenants of the ways to combat high tariffs and access help and advice including their right to get their home treated.”

MOTION 8 – PUBLIC SECTOR PAY/NJC

Motion submitted by Councillor Mark Brain, Labour, Hartcliffe & Withywood ward

“Full Council notes that:

1. For most workers in local government and schools, pay and other terms and conditions are determined by the National Joint Council (NJC) for local government services.

2. On average, across the country, NJC basic pay has fallen by 21% in real terms since 2010.

3. NJC workers had a three-year pay freeze from 2010-2012 and have received only 1% pay increase annually since then.

4. NJC pay is the lowest in the public sector.

5. Differentials in pay grades are being squeezed and distorted by bottom-loaded NJC pay settlements needed to reflect the increased Statutory National Living Wage.

6. The likelihood of rising inflation following the vote to leave the European Union will worsen the current public sector pay inequality.

7. The drastic ongoing cuts to local government funding and calls on the Government to provide all additional resources to ensure local authorities can fund a decent pay rise for NJC employees and the pay spine review.

Full Council believes that:

1. The NJC pay claim for 2018, submitted by Unite, UNISON and the GMB on behalf of council and school workers should be supported and calls for the immediate end of public sector pay restraint. NJC pay cannot be allowed to fall further behind other parts of the public sector.

2. The joint review of the NJC pay spine to remedy the turbulence caused by bottom-loaded pay settlements is welcome.

Full Council resolves to:

1. Call on the Mayor to write to the LGA asking it to make urgent representations to Government to fund the NJC claim and the pay spine review.

2. Write to the Prime Minister and Chancellor supporting the NJC pay claim and seeking the additional resources needed to fund a decent pay rise and the pay spine review.

3. Write to local NJC union representatives to convey support for the pay claim and the pay spine review.”

MOTION 9 - ADULT SOCIAL CARE/DEMENTIA

Motion submitted by Councillor Helen Holland, Labour, Hartcliffe & Withywood ward

“Full Council notes that:

1. In Bristol an estimated 4,500 people over the age of 65 are living with dementia: 2,160 of those living with dementia have received a formal diagnosis, which is often the key to accessing appropriate support services.

2. Two-thirds of people living with dementia are living in the community, and nearly 70% of people with dementia feel lonely and trapped in their own homes, with limited or no social networks.

3. A healthy diet, regular physical exercise, and avoiding smoking and drinking may reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer’s Disease and vascular dementia, but 64% of people are not aware of this.

4. The societal cost of dementia in the UK is estimated at an average cost per person of £32,250; of the total estimated cost of dementia in the UK, it is estimated that £11.6 billion is contributed through the work of unpaid carers.

5. The number of dementia patients in Bristol is estimated to increase by 23% over the next two decades.

6. The present administration is delivering across the board in relation to its manifesto commitments around adult social care, as well as recent investment totalling more than £1 million to improve agile working for around 700 workers in the council’s social care teams.

7. The repeated avoidable crises in both in social care and in our NHS under the current government, the meagre support for local government in the form of optional council tax precepts, and the absence of any additional funds for social care contained in the recent Local Government Finance Settlement.

8. By 2020, faced with the continuing austerity started by the Tories and Lib Dems, it is estimated that local councils will be spending 60% of their overall budgets on social care – up by half since 2010 – putting more pressure on other local council services.

Full Council believes that:

1. The work of the Bristol Ageing Better (BAB) partnership and the Bristol Dementia Action Alliance – who since their founding in 2013 have enabled more than 700 independent retailers to become ‘Purple Angels’, registered more than 2000 ‘Dementia Friends’, and run more than 50 workshops with local organisations – should be celebrated and continued.

2. The work of the present council administration, led in this area by Councillor Helen Holland, through the Better Lives programme and a series of other measures to improve outcomes has the potential to be truly transformational for local people.

3. The Government’s appointment of a Minister for Loneliness is a welcome step forward.

4. A councillor should be appointed as the authority’s ‘Dementia Champion’.

5. The council should continue to work towards making council practices and buildings more dementia friendly, encouraging staff and elected members to become a ‘Dementia Friend’.

6. Local risk reduction and public health campaigns, including clear messaging in ongoing campaigns regarding exercise, alcohol, smoking, and/or diet benefit Bristol.

7. Recent events at Northamptonshire Council, where officers have expressed concerns that 2,000 people have their care cases unassigned, should serve as a wake-up call for the national government.

Full Council resolves to:

1. Back moves by the council to make more information about local dementia services as accessible as possible.

2. Restate its commitment to this administration’s corporate strategies, including that to ‘become all-age friendly’, and support the work of the local authority as an active member of the UK Network of Age Friendly Communities.

3. Fully endorse plans due to be considered by the next cabinet meeting which kick-start the process for Bristol to become a World Health Organisation Age-Friendly City and to join the Global Network for Age-Friendly Cities and Communities.

4. Call on the Government to properly fund social care and consider, as suggested by Bristol’s Mayor and the Core Cities, a radical raft of further devolution deals along the lines of the £6bn health and social care settlement in Greater Manchester.”

Minutes:

Motion 1: Build Bristol Arena at Temple Meads not Filton

Councillor S Clarke moved the following motion:

“Full Council notes that:

• The Mayor has stated on numerous occasions that he is determined to construct an arena in Bristol.

• More recently it has become clear that he is apparently undecided where that arena should be located despite the many millions of pounds spent on preparatory work at Temple Quarter (Arena Island) behind Temple Meads.

• Cardiff has currently granted planning permission for a second arena in that city.

Full Council believes (on the basis of information currently in the public domain) that if there is to be an arena it should be built at Arena Island because:

1. It is in a central position allowing many locals to walk, cycle, or take public transport to the venue. In particular, it is located next door to Bristol Temple Meads train station, bus routes from all over the city and a new MetroBus stop. This would mitigate pollution and congestion. With the availability of many multi- storey car parks in the vicinity, and the growing availability of Park and Ride sites with direct access to Temple Meads, car access will be perfectly possible.