Agenda and minutes
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Contact: Bryan Searle, Jisa Prasannan or Andrew Spragg
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APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE AND SUBSTITUTIONS
Minutes: Apologies were received from Mark Brett-Warburton, David Ivison, Chris Townsend, Keith Witham and Victoria Young. Colin Kemp, Nick Harrison, Margaret Hicks and Richard Wilson acted as substitutes. |
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MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS MEETING: 5 March 2014
To agree the minutes as a true record of the meeting. Minutes: These were agreed as an accurate record of the meeting. |
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DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
To receive any declarations of disclosable pecuniary interests from Members in respect of any item to be considered at the meeting.
Notes: · In line with the Relevant Authorities (Disclosable Pecuniary Interests) Regulations 2012, declarations may relate to the interest of the member, or the member’s spouse or civil partner, or a person with whom the member is living as husband or wife, or a person with whom the member is living as if they were civil partners and the member is aware they have the interest. · Members need only disclose interests not currently listed on the Register of Disclosable Pecuniary Interests. · Members must notify the Monitoring Officer of any interests disclosed at the meeting so they may be added to the Register. · Members are reminded that they must not participate in any item where they have a disclosable pecuniary interest. Minutes: There were no declarations of interest. However, Eber Kington asked for it to be noted that he volunteered as Chairman for Fundraising for the Epsom & Ewell Citizen’s Advice Bureau. |
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QUESTIONS AND PETITIONS
To receive any questions or petitions.
Notes: 1. The deadline for Member’s questions is 12.00pm four working days before the meeting (27 March 2014). 2. The deadline for public questions is seven days before the meeting (26 March 2014). 3. The deadline for petitions was 14 days before the meeting, and no petitions have been received. Minutes: Declarations of interest: None.
Witnesses: None.
Key points raised during the discussion:
1. The Committee had received a number of questions from Hazel Watson. These questions and responses were tabled at the meeting and are included as an appendix to these minutes.
2. Hazel Watson asked a supplementary question about when and by whom the decision on the future use of the Runnymede site was made. It was agreed that a written response would be provided following the meeting.
Recommendations:
None.
Actions/further information to be provided:
A response to Hazel Watson’s supplementary question will be circulated to the Committee following the meeting.
Committee Next Steps:
None.
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RESPONSES FROM THE CABINET TO ISSUES REFERRED BY THE SELECT COMMITTEE
The Committee made a number of recommendations to Cabinet concerning the Medium Term Financial Plan 2014-19 at its last meeting. These were considered at the Cabinet meeting on 25 March 2014 and a response is attached. Additional documents: Minutes: Declarations of interest: None.
Witnesses: None.
Key points of the discussion:
1. The Committee noted the responses given at the Cabinet meeting on 25 March 2014. The Chairman proposed that the matters related to this response were discussed alongside the budget monitoring item.
Recommendations:
None.
Actions/further information to be provided:
None.
Committee Next Steps:
None. |
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REPORT OF THE WELFARE REFORM TASK GROUP: THE IMPACTS OF WELFARE REFORM IN SURREY
Additional documents: Minutes: Declarations of interest: None.
Witnesses: Mary Burguieres, Policy and Strategy Partnership Lead Manager Jisa Prasannan, Scrutiny Officer Ben Robinson, Strategic Partnership Manager
David Harmer, Chairman of the Task Group David Hodge, Leader of the Council
Key points raised during the discussion:
1. The Chairman of the Welfare Reform Task Group presented the report to the Committee, outlining the key findings of the group’s work. It was explained that there were a number of concerns regarding the assessment of those eligible for Employment and Support Allowance (ESA). It had been identified that a high number of assessments were being challenged through the appeals process, and a significant number of these appeals had been successful. It was commented by the Chairman of the Task Group that this represented a significant waste of public money, and also suggested that the assessment process was not robust. The Chairman of the Task Group also highlighted the injustice to claimants caused by the time it takes to get from assessment to appeal.
2. It was highlighted that ATOS Healthcare had indicated that its contract to undertake the face to face assessments for the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) would be coming to an end. The Committee discussed concerns regarding the future commissioning of this work, given the reputational and operational risk attached to this high profile area.
3. The Leader of the Council gave an early oral response to the recommendations of the Welfare Reform Task Group. This included a commitment to:
(i) protect the Local Assistance Scheme (LAS) funding under spend from 2013/14 in a separate reserve;
(ii) lobby central government through the Local Government Association and the County Council’s Network on improving the delivery and roll out of Universal Credit, in particular simplifying the application process; and
(iii) work with the members of the Welfare Reform Task Group and officers to take forward recommendation 12, writing to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions explaining the County Council’s concerns over the Employment and Support Allowance and work capability assessments for claimants.
4. The Committee discussed the role of the Citizen’s Advice Bureau (CAB) in supporting those affected by welfare reform. It was noted that there was evidence of an increase in the number of enquiries since the introduction of the reforms. However, some Members expressed the view that these were showing signs of stabilising. It was recognised that an increase would be anticipated during any significant period of change in welfare reform. The Committee praised the work of the CAB, and a number of Members commented that the Council should continue to develop strong partnership working with the organisation. The Leader of the Council stressed the importance of local support such as the Local Assistance Scheme which utilises the Surrey Re-Use Network and CABs, in helping mitigate the impact of welfare reform.
5. The Committee raised a number of questions regarding the commissioning of getWIS£, in particular whether the contract had a set of identified success criteria for the amount invested. Further ... view the full minutes text for item 26/14 |
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BUDGET MONITORING REPORT
Purpose of the report:
This report presents the revenue and capital budget monitoring up-date for January 2014 with projected year-end outturn. Additional documents: Minutes: Declarations of interest: None.
Witnesses: Kevin Kilburn, Deputy Chief Finance Officer
David Hodge, Leader of the Council John Furey, Cabinet Member for Transport, Highways & Environment
Key points raised during the discussion:
1. The Chairman of COSC informed the Committee that the Sub-Group had considered COSC’s recommendations and the Leader’s response on the budget, and discussed their concerns about the response not addressing specific concerns around savings identified as part of the Family, Friends and Community Support project, with the Deputy Leader. The Sub-Group had felt that the way COSC's scrutiny recommendations were responded to by Cabinet had not been satisfactory.However, further to the discussion with the Deputy Leader at the Sub-Group meeting, there was some acceptance that things could have been handled differently.
2. The Committee reviewed the Cabinet response in relation to the Medium Term Financial Plan (MTFP) 2014-19 and noted the projected outturn for 2013/14. Members queried what management action savings had been identified in Adult Social Care for 2013/14 and whether these had been achieved. Officers agreed to provide a written response outlining the nature of the savings, as well as confirmation of whether they had been achieved once the financial outturn report for the year had been produced.
3. The Committee expressed concern about the ability of Family, Friends and Community Support to deliver savings for 2014/15. It was queried whether there had been progress on an Invest to Save bid to increase capacity within the directorate. Officers commented that they invited bids to the Invest to Save panel from the directorate, but that it would require the development of a robust business case. The Committee commented that there was a need to ensure action was taken in a timely fashion in order to meet the savings targets in year.
4. There was a discussion around the MTFP and the role of Select Committees in making recommendations in the budget setting process. The Leader of the Council acknowledged that there had been changes to the MTFP and that reserves had been allocated to reduce the savings requirements for Adult Social Care in 2014/15. This was to enable the directorate to develop and implement the work of the Family, Friends and Community Support project.
[David Hodge left at 12.15pm]
5. The Committee was informed that the flooding report to Cabinet in July 2014 would outline the final costs, as well as proposal around how these costs were met. It was highlighted that a number of announcements were still being made by central Government, and that the final cost to the council would be clearer following negotiations. The Committee was informed that the uncertainties around cost would not delay responses or road repairs, as it was important to ensure that work was undertaken and completed before next winter. The Cabinet Member for Transport, Highways & the Environment gave assurances that work would commence in mid-May 2014 and complete in October of the same year. It was further highlighted that £10 million of capital spending had been allocated to ... view the full minutes text for item 27/14 |
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RECOMMENDATION TRACKER AND FORWARD WORK PROGRAMME
The Committee is asked to monitor progress on the implementation of recommendations from previous meetings, and to review its Forward Work Programme. Additional documents: Minutes: Declarations of interest: None.
Witnesses: None.
Key points raised during the discussion:
1. The Committee noted its recommendation tracker and forward work programme. There were no further comments.
Recommendations:
None.
Actions/further information to be provided:
None.
Committee Next Steps:
None.
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DATE OF NEXT MEETING
The next meeting of the Committee will be held at 10.30am on 30 April 2014. Minutes: The Committee noted that its next meeting would be on 30 April 2014 at 10.30am. |