Cabinet Agenda Item 164(a)
Subject: Member Questions
Date of meeting: 23 April 2026
A maximum period of fifteen minutes in total shall be made available at each meeting of the Executive for questions from Members of the Council.
The questions included on the list of questions referred to above shall be taken as read at the Cabinet meeting. The question will be answered either orally or at the discretion of the Chair by a written answer circulated after the meeting. Officers may assist the Leader or a Cabinet Member with technical answers to questions. No supplementary questions shall be permitted.
The following written questions have been received from Members:
1. Councillor Meadows - E-scooter trial consultation report
Does the e-scooter trial run until May 2028 or 30 September 2029? There are different dates in paragraphs 2.3 and 3.3.
2. Councillor McNair - E-scooter trial consultation report
How can trialling e-scooters align with the council’s aim of ‘a fair and inclusive city where people feel safe and welcome’ when this council is encouraging more e-scooters to terrorise the elderly and infirm by in effect encouraging e-scooters which will inevitably be ridden on pavements?
3. Councillor Meadows - E-scooter trial consultation report
The part 2 of this report contains a full breakdown of costs and implications with the current provider. Why can’t we as councillors and residents know the financial implications of this scheme?
4. Councillor Meadows - E-scooter trial consultation report
Is there a concern that due to the increasing cost of bus travel for young people, e-scooters will replace bus travel for many despite it being safer and possibly more environmentally friendly?
5. Councillor McNair - E-scooter trial consultation report
Are these e-scooters made in the UK or shipped from overseas?
6. Councillor McNair - E-scooter trial consultation report
Why is it a three-strike sanctions process instead of one-strike? Who is there to enforce the three-strike rule?
7. Councillor McNair - E-scooter trial consultation report
Can the council guarantee Sussex police will be visible in stopping illegal or dangerous e-scooters? How else will the scheme be policed? Will there be regular meetings between the council and police to exchange updates on the scheme's progress?
8. Councillor Meadows - E-scooter trial consultation report
Why aren’t helmets being made mandatory?
9. Councillor Meadows - E-scooter trial consultation report
There were significant concerns about safety, insurance, and helmets among other issues. It may seem to some residents that this scheme was going to be rolled out no matter what the result of the consultation was. What reassurance can residents have that this scheme will be paused or stopped if concerns are realised and insurmountable?
10. Councillor Meadows - King Alfred Leisure Centre Regeneration Project
Paragraph 2.3 agrees to bring forward the allocation of £3.5m from previously agreed project capital budget to fund these works up to November 2026. How long will this funding last and how much more will the council need to borrow to complete just the King Alfred site?
11. Councillor Meadows - King Alfred Leisure Centre Regeneration Project
Paragraph 3.1 reads: At its meeting on 25 September 2025, Cabinet approved recommendations to (i) agree to the design team progressing the King Alfred design proposals up to the submission of the planning application, (ii) agree the overall project budget of £65m, (iii) agree to increase the initial allocation to £5m for professional fees and surveys, and (iv) approve the demolition of the redundant parts of the site.
What is the cost of the demolition? Is this part of the £5m? Where did the £5m funding come from?
12. Councillor Meadows - Temporary Accommodation - Transformation for Financial Sustainability
Would the council agree that using council housing for temporary accommodation is unfair to those who are on the housing register waiting for a home? What will be done to ensure those with disabilities and other vulnerable future tenants will be able to get their lives back on track too? Who will take priority? - those from outside the city or those already on the waiting list?
13. Councillor Meadows - Temporary Accommodation - Transformation for Financial Sustainability
Paragraph 12.2 states that the assessment also identifies potential adverse impacts for some households on the housing register, including existing tenants seeking transfers, arising from the temporary reduction in the availability of settled council housing.
Why is the council happy to impact current protected groups on the waiting list and exacerbate their mental health?
14. Councillor Meadows - Temporary Accommodation - Transformation for Financial Sustainability
Paragraph 2.7 agrees to delegate authority to the Corporate Director of Homes and Adult Social Care, in consultation with Cabinet Member for Housing, to align rents for council owned properties owned or on long leases by the Council and used as TA with any future increases in Local Housing Allowance rates. What are the Local Housing allowances rates now and how do they compare to the government benefits paid for Temporary Accommodation?
15. Councillor Meadows - Temporary Accommodation - Transformation for Sustainability
What is the local Housing Allowance and how far will it go to plugging the gap on Temporary Accommodation?
16. Councillor McNair - Private sector housing enforcement policy
Has the number of privately rented homes increased or decreased since 2010? Since 2023?
17. Councillor McNair - Private sector housing enforcement policy
Are the guidelines the same as apply to council owned property? How do policies differ if they do?
18. Councillor Meadows - Private sector housing enforcement policy
The council is unwilling to remove caravans despite court orders and safeguard concerns because of the cost involved in their removal. Why is the council willing to spend money on enforcement of privately rented homes but not caravans?
19. Councillor McNair - Private sector housing enforcement policy
There are residents in social housing in Patcham & Hollingbury that have freezing cold kitchens, poor or broken outside lights, damp and inadequate windows. Are the guidelines for social housing as strict as for private landlords?
20. Councillor McNair – Asset Strategy
Could we be given precise details on what the key constraints are regarding ecology, open space and biodiversity net gain at Fawcett Fields (para 3.7) that means the site isn't suitable for an affordable housing scheme?
21. Councillor McNair – Asset Strategy
When is Patcham Fawcett site likely to be made available to developers?
22. Councillor Meadows – Asset Strategy
Which school sites have been earmarked for development?
23. Councillor Hill- E-scooter trial consultation report
In Appendix 3 titled ‘Proposed Tariff & Promotions for scooter in BHCC trial’, some of the shorter period promotions that are proposed seem either hard to implement or lack any detail. It does not say explicitly, looks to me like these promotions would include e-bike discounts to specific groups. For example, one short term promotion will give a discount to 'LGBTQ+ during week running up to pride weekend at end of July.' Another gives no detail and just says there will be a short-term promotion for 'BME groups'. I would feel uncomfortable getting a e-bike discount during the week before Pride due to being transgender. Can you explain how this would be implemented and why people might find this uncomfortable?
24. Councillor McLeay – Temporary Accommodation - Transformation for Sustainability
The EIA acknowledges that using Housing Revenue Account voids as Temporary Accommodation will directly affect council tenants and households on the housing register. What specific risk mitigation and exit plans are in place to prevent disproportionate harm to those already waiting longest for permanent social housing (particularly disabled households, families with children, and lone parents living in unsuitable accommodation), and how will Cabinet ensure that any negative cumulative impacts are being identified and addressed in real time, rather than retrospectively?
25. Councillor McLeay – Temporary Accommodation - Transformation for Sustainability
I note that the Hardship Fund is available only to in scope properties who are not in receipt of full Housing Benefit, a cohort estimated at around 10–20% of households. I also note the guidance that officers should not rely solely on self-referral and should proactively identify households at risk. Given the fund is allocated £203,000 per full financial year, what flexibility or contingency arrangements are in place should demand exceed the estimated 20%, and how will the council ensure vulnerable households are not excluded if need outstrips the allocated funding?
26. Councillor McLeay – Private Sector Housing Enforcement Policy
How will BHCC balance proactive inspections with reactive complaints to make sure enforcement action is not disproportionately complaint led - particularly where language barriers, disabilities, or insecure immigration status prevent tenants for coming forward?
27. Councillor Sykes – The King Alfred Leisure Centre Regeneration Project
The extra £3.5m required will it seems take a more than a third of the risk provision of £9.8m for the whole project, before substantive construction has started. Is there a need now to add additional contingency to the project budget?
28. Councillor West – The King Alfred Leisure Centre Regeneration Project
Given that the recent public meeting held at the King Alfred seemed underwhelmed by the level of leisure facilities this expensive redevelopment will actually provide, and the financial risks associated with the complexity of the site and constraints upon available funding set out in the Risk Implications of this Cabinet report, do Cabinet now regret ignoring the Green Book analysis (18 July 2024 Cabinet report) that clearly showed the benefits achieved for the cost incurred by the redevelopment were not regarded as ‘good’ and that the alternative of developing the LSS site was stated as the much better option.
29. Councillor Sykes – The King Alfred Leisure Centre Regeneration Project
What controls has BHCC put in place with Alliance Leisure in respect of their project /cost management of Willmott Dixon Construction as principal contractor for the forthcoming enabling works?
30. Councillor Sykes- Temporary Accommodation - Transformation for Sustainability
In the absence of national policy or local advocacy on major contributory causes of the housing crisis such as short term lets, second homes, right to buy etc, are these policy proposals to deal with the housing crisis locally not just an increasingly desperate set of sticking plasters?
31. Councillor Shanks – Asset Strategy
What consultation has been done with residents and ward councillors on the sale of assets generally and specifically regarding the sale of open space at Fawcett Fields and Rowan Avenue.
32. Councillor Shanks – Asset Strategy
How were rent arrears allowed t to accrue on the property in Meeting House Lane?
33. Councillor Shanks – Asset Strategy
Why is the land at Downsview not being developed in house with the council as provider as I think the original intention was?
34. Councillor Lademacher – Asset Strategy
Given the extreme housing pressures in Brighton & Hove, how will the asset strategy ensure that opportunities for actually affordable housing are maximised?
35. Councillor Lademacher – Temporary Accommodation - Transformation for Sustainability
The report notes that while the council's housing delivery programme will not address short-term pressures, it will increase overall system capacity over time. How does BHCC plan to manage immediate demand for temporary accommodation in the interim, and given the broad support expressed in the consultation for the principle of using of empty council homes for temporary accommodation, will it expand and prioritise the use of empty council homes for this purpose?