Agenda item - Procedural Matters

(a)          Declaration of Substitutes: Where Councillors are unable to attend a meeting, a substitute Member from the same Political Group may attend, speak and vote in their place for that meeting.

(b)       Declarations of Interest:

(a)   Disclosable pecuniary interests;

(b)   Any other interests required to be registered under the local code;

(c)   Any other general interest as a result of which a decision on the matter might reasonably be regarded as affecting you or a partner more than a majority of other people or businesses in the ward/s affected by the decision.

In each case, you need to declare

(i)    the item on the agenda the interest relates to;

(ii)   the nature of the interest; and

(iii) whether it is a disclosable pecuniary interest or some other interest.

If unsure, Members should seek advice from the committee lawyer

or administrator preferably before the meeting.

(c)          Exclusion of Press and Public: To consider whether, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted, or the nature of the proceedings, the press and public should be excluded from the meeting when any of the following items are under consideration.

NOTE: Any item appearing in Part Two of the Agenda states in its heading the category under which the information disclosed in the report is exempt from disclosure and therefore not available to the public.

A list and description of the exempt categories is available for public

inspection at Brighton and Hove Town Halls.

The Chair stated:

Welcome to this virtual P&R Urgency Sub-Committee meeting. The meeting itself has been called as a matter of urgency to deal with the five items listed on the agenda.  

To assist the members of the public, press and councillors who are interested in the items on the agenda and to endeavour to maintain our openness and transparency for the democratic process the meeting is also being webcast.

I want to repeat our thanks all council staff across the departments who are working flat out and around the clock to deliver vital services to our residents in difficult circumstances. We are working hard to keep fundamental and critical services running; protecting our most vulnerable residents.

We’re urgently reviewing the government’s recovery strategy document to work out how best to manage the new guidance. Our priority, as always, is to keep people who live in the city safe. We need to make sure residents can continue to use all the city’s open spaces safely, and we are still asking people who don’t live here not to travel to Brighton & Hove. We need a steady and safe progression towards lifting the restrictions, which means maintaining physical distancing and protecting lives. That’s why I am urging visitors to stay away from Brighton & Hove, because my top priority is to keep people living in the city safe.

This urgency sub-committee has been called to progress some urgent business, which I believe will benefit our city.

There is the Transport Strategy report, to allow us to set up an interim Local Cycling & Walking Infrastructure Plan fit for the response to COVID-19, and to create more space for residents to walk and cycle at a safe social distance. 

There is a report to allow us to provide emergency support to Home to School Transport operators, so they can survive the impact of the COVID-19 crisis and resume the essential service they offer when schools re-open. There is also a report to agree the next steps of accommodating the homeless and rough sleepers by occupying University of Brighton student accommodation units, to try and ensure people do not return to the streets when current restrictions are lifted.

All of the reports before us today will aid the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and support the residents we serve, and I hope they gain cross-party support.

1               Procedural Business

(a)              Declarations of Substitutes

1.1       There were none.

(b)              Declarations of Interest

1.2       There were no declarations of interests in matters listed on the agenda.

(c)              Exclusion of Press and Public

1.3       The Committee considered whether the press and public should be excluded from the meeting during the consideration of any of the items listed on the agenda.

1.4       RESOLVED: That the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the items contained in part two of the agenda.