Agenda item - Notices of Motion.

The following Notices of Motion have been submitted by Members for consideration (copies attached).

 

(a)               Council Tax.  Proposed by Councillor A. Norman (copy attached).

(b)              Rail Fare Rises.  Proposed by Councillor Turton (copy attached).

(c)               Protect BBC Local Radio Services.  Proposed by Councillor G. Theobald (copy attached).

(d)              Fair Deal for Pubs.  Proposed by Councillor Randall (copy attached).

(e)               Ultra-Fast Broadband for Our City. Proposed by Councillor J. Kitcat

(a)               Accept The Council Tax Freeze Grant

 

65.1         The Notice of Motion as detailed in the agenda was proposed by Councillor A. Norman on behalf of the Conservative Group and seconded by Councillor G. Theobald.

 

65.2         Councillor Hamilton moved an amendment on behalf of the Labour & Co-operative Group which was seconded by Councillor Mitchell.

 

65.3         The Mayor noted that the amendment moved by Councillor Hamilton had not been accepted by Councillor A. Norman and therefore put the proposed amendment to vote which was lost.

 

65.4         The Mayor then put the following motion to the vote:

 

            “This Council warmly welcomes the offer of Government grant funding worth £3 million that would enable a council tax freeze for Brighton & Hove’s residents in 2012/13. It, therefore, profoundly regrets the Green Administration’s stated intention to turn down this money and instead increase council tax by 3.5% for each of the next 3 years.

 

            The Administration’s refusal to accept the £3 million flies in the face of public opinion. Currently, over 7,000 residents have taken part in the Argus referendum on the subject and 70% have indicated that they would like a council tax freeze. The Argus’ public-spirited campaign to consult as widely as possible with the residents of Brighton & Hove contrasts sharply with the Administration’s consultation exercise which involved only forty eight residents, whilst incurring a cost of almost £10,000.

 

            Therefore, without prejudice to the final decision being taken at the Budget Council meeting, this Council urges the Administration to produce a Budget for the whole city which will take advantage of the £3 million Government grant and deliver a much-needed council tax freeze to the hard-pressed residents of Brighton & Hove in these tough economic times.”

 

65.5         The motion was carried.

 

 

(b)              Rail Fare Rises

 

65.6         The Notice of Motion as detailed in the agenda was proposed by Councillor Turton on behalf of the Labour & Co-operative Group and seconded by Councillor Morgan.

 

65.7         Councillor Davey moved an amendment on behalf of the Green Group which was seconded by Councillor MacCafferty.

 

65.8         The Mayor noted that the amendment moved by Councillor Davey had not been accepted by Councillor Turton and therefore put the proposed amendment to vote which was lost.

 

65.9         The Mayor then put the following motion to the vote:

            “This council notes with regret the recent rises of up to 11% on rail fares, and how this will impact on many of the 33,500 residents of Brighton and Hove who commute out of the city on a daily basis, many of them to London. Rises in the next two years could be up to 13%.

            A Brighton to London season ticket on Southern has risen 7.76%, going up from £3,556 to £3,832, while some off-peak Brighton to London day returns have risen 10.18% to £24.90. A weekly First Capital Connect season ticket from Brighton to London has gone up from £77.60 to £80, and an annual ticket from £3,104 to £3,200 (3.1%).

            This council believes that investment by the taxpayer in the rail network, whether the individual is a user of the rail system or not, is an essential part of encouraging the use of one of the more sustainable forms of transport, and that the cost of investment in the network should not be borne disproportionately by rail users.

 

            This council further believes that the Government’s decision to side with the powerful private train operator lobby against commuter and passengers, for example by train companies more freedom to rig the system of fares, so that the busiest routes get biggest fare increases, shows they are desperately out of touch with the spiralling cost-of-living crisis facing so many hard-working families.

 

            This council further believes that a co-operatively owned rail network, where passengers have a stake and a say in the transport they use, would be a better solution to the long term issues involved in promoting this form of transport.

            This council asks the Chief Executive to write to the Secretary of State for Transport, asking her to review the application of the full increase in fares in the interests of the Brighton & Hove economy, and to consider limiting future rises to 1% above the rate of inflation, as supported by Transport Minister Norman Baker when in opposition.”

65.10    The motion was carried.

 

 

(c)               Protect BBC Local Radio Services

 

65.11    The Notice of Motion as detailed in the agenda was proposed by Councillor G. Theobald on behalf of the Conservative Group and seconded by Councillor Peltzer Dunn.

 

65.12    The Mayor then put the following Notice of Motion to the vote:

 

            “This Council notes with concern the proposals contained within the BBC Trust Service Review of Local Radio. If implemented, the plans would reduce the budget for the BBC's 40 local stations in England, including BBC Sussex, by 19%, or £15m, with the loss of 280 jobs, or up to 20% of staff at individual stations. This will result in a reduction in local output of 22%, including the replacement of local afternoon and evening shows with standardised national content, the switching off of Medium Wave and less local sports and music coverage.

 

            This Council applauds the efforts of the BBC, as a publicly-funded organisation, to make efficiency savings along with the rest of the public sector at a time of economic turbulence. However, this Council believes that such savings should not prevent the BBC from fulfilling its public service remit and urges them to find the money from elsewhere in the organisation, rather than from local radio, which many people, including the elderly and vulnerable, rely upon for information, advice and comfort.

 

            This Council further notes the concern expressed by the Local Government Association about the detrimental impact the BBC’s proposals could have on the ability of local authorities to manage in emergencies. In times of crisis such as flooding, severe weather or other major emergencies, councils, the police and fire authorities often rely on local radio to keep residents informed and issue safety advice.

 

            The proposals for local radio come hot on the heels of the regionalisation of local television news coverage and the transfer of part of the operations of the city’s only printed daily newspaper – the Argus – to Southampton.

 

            Therefore, this Council resolves to write to the city’s 3 MPs, outlining the concerns expressed in this motion and requesting that they make representations to Lord Patten – Chairman of the BBC Trust - to safeguard local radio and, above all, to keep it genuinely local.”

 

65.13    The motion was carried.

 

 

(d)              Fair Deal For Pubs

 

65.14    The Notice of Motion as detailed in the agenda was proposed by Councillor Randall on behalf of the green Group and seconded by Councillor Duncan.

 

65.15    The Mayor then put the following Notice of Motion to the vote:

 

            “This council recognises the important role community pubs play in the life of the many villages that make up our city, supporting local activities and organisations and providing a safe and regulated environment for consumers.

 

            It also recognises the many financial and other pressures faced by pubs, chief among them the rip-off that sees the big pub companies (PubCos) overcharge their tied tenants for beer, wine and spirits and restrict access to local ales, all of which has a disastrous impact on the pub trade.

 

            Furthermore, it is concerned that the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills' proposals for reform of the pub industry relies heavily and naively on self-regulation and believes only a statutory code of practice, which includes a free-of-tie option with an open market rent review and an independent adjudicator, will resolve the corrosive contractual problems between the pub companies and their lessees

 

            In addition, it notes the threat to the survival of pubs by the sale of alcohol across the city in off-licences, local shops and national supermarket chains at ‘pocket-money prices’ (1) that also fuels alcohol-related health problems and social damage (2).

Council therefore:

(1)    Supports the Fair deals for pubs motion passed unanimously in the House of Commons earlier this month, which calls on the Government to commission a review of self-regulation of the pub industry in the autumn of 2012 to be conducted by an independent body approved by the House of Commons Business, Innovation and Skills Committee.

(2)    Urges the government to introduce a minimum price for alcohol sales in England to stop the sale of cheap alcohol in shops and supermarkets and address the disparity between shop and pub prices, thus encouraging consumers to drink in the safe and regulated environment of the local community pub.

Notes:

(1)     In a letter to the Daily Telegraph (13 December 2011) 19 medical experts urged the Government to bring in a minimum price for alcoholic beverages, saying that 'pocket money prices' should be a thing of the past. Thousands of lives could be saved if cheap alcoholic drinks were made more expensive, they argued.

(2)     It is estimated that alcohol harm in the UK costs the health, police and other services £25 billion a year. The estimated annual figure for Brighton and Hove is £106 million.

65.16    The motion was carried.

 

 

(e)               Ultra-Fast Broadband For Our City

 

65.17    The Notice of Motion as detailed in the agenda was proposed by Councillor J. Kitcat on behalf of the Green Group and seconded by Councillor MacCafferty.

 

65.18    Councillor Kitcat noted that since the submission of the notice of motion the position had changed and therefore he wished to amend it to reflect the change and was therefore happy to include the amendment has circulated in the agenda.

 

65.19    The Mayor noted that Councillor Kitcat had accepted the amendment and put the following motion as amended  to the vote:

 

            “Ultra-fast broadband is key to enabling the development of new services and innovative new businesses. Countries and areas with fast, affordable Internet connections have a clear record of strong economic development including South Korea, Finland and Silicon Valley. Ultra-fast broadband is defined as connections having download speeds of at least 80 megabits per second.

 

            Brighton & Hove is a hub of start-up and established new media businesses covering numerous burgeoning sectors such as video games, mobile apps, web development, online media, social media and many more. Our city has the highest level of digital business per head of population; the sector is growing here three times faster than the national average and creating the majority of new local jobs. More than ever given the difficult economic times it is critical that we support and nurture this sector to support economic development and good local jobs for our residents.

 

            This Council notes the government's proposals for a fund to support the roll-out of ultra-fast broadband into a network of super-connected UK cities, each with more than 150,000 homes, a plan which does not include our city.

 

            This Council agrees that as Brighton & Hove is a unique new media hub with it should have been included in the list of eligible cities for the government's broadband funding.  The Council notes recent comments by Jeremy Hunt MP refusing our city’s inclusion in the super-connected cities fund, but agreeing to support other avenues for achieving ultra-fast broadband for our city.

 

            Hence this Council agrees to:

 

1)     Thank the city’s local MP’s and business groups for their campaign to "Let Brighton Bid";

 

2)     Ask the Chief Executive to write to the minister responsible, seeking support for ultra-fast broadband funding in our city;

 

3)     Ask the city's Members of Parliament to continue urgently lobbying Ministers on this issue.”

 

65.20    The motion was carried.