Agenda item

Councillor Nunn - Leader of the Council - 60+ mins

Minutes:

Few high profile items that need to be discussed.

 

We have a new chief exec starting on 30th April. We had a long recruitment process which involved many different people.

 

Gave apologies for what happened at Sixfields – because of this there has been a lot of positive changes within the council.

 

The chief executive who worked here for the 6 previous months was very good and we are moving forward and learning from previous mistakes. We are hoping that this leads to better service.

 

New exec has been a theatre manager, his work in Shropshire has been mostly working on improving on the town and the facilities.

 

Northampton has changed recently, the retail option is not the only reason for people to come here. We have so much history and heritage that we need to capitalise on and display for people to see.

 

The new contract coming in – Veolia – in June, should make the town a cleaner area. There are now subtractors who will be working with Veolia to provide a better service.

 

The news at the county council has not been good for anyone but the books here are balanced. There have been changes to council tax and weekend parking.

 

The government suggest Northampton go to a unitary council. The PFI’s that are left from the county council and are moved onto the responsibility of the other councils that will need to be figured out.

 

All political parties are coming together as one united front to help Northampton/Northamptonshire move forward.

 

Q: if in the business world you go bust, you can’t honour the contract signed, and the money owed is not shifted onto another individual. Why may this be the case in the council?

A: as it is signed off as a central government decision.

 

Forum councillors discussed the difficulty of being able to build new homes because of the many rules.

 

JN: We are trying our best to make the town as attractive to people as possible, whether residents/businesses, we need to do our best.

 

BO: It seems as though we may go unitary and we need to figure out the best deal possible.

 

JN: All councils agree and we need to work out the best options, social care should no longer be a local council responsibility and it should be a health care issue.

 

SB: Northampton is the biggest town in the country, there are places that will be involved in a unitary council in Northampton that do not have any similarities so it is difficult for all to agree.

 

NS: There is a bit of confusion with the bus station safety check, it says the motion has been passed but it hasn’t been passed.

 

JN read through the minutes of a previous meeting passed on from Norman about the bus station.

NS: It is a health and safety issue that the bus bays are on a gradient.

JN: Health and Safety approval was given by professionals, so the station was built.

 

AT: There is often a lack of communication to tenants of certain areas. There are often people such as drug addicts getting into buildings as the locks aren’t working.

AT: Also, there are certain things such as sheds being built, without tenants knowing much information about them or who has ownership of them. This is responsibility of NPH, however say they will respond but they do not, this leads to contacting NBC councillors even though it is not their responsibility.

 

JN: I have not heard many complaints about NPH, however, these are everyday queries that many people have so there needs to be a more satisfactory response as you and other residents are having issues.

 

Q: Why are the lights on in the multi-storey car parks all day?

A: Not entirely sure, often a safety precaution.

 

JN: I only do my job because I want to make the town as vibrant as possible. Consultations are important and things cannot always go to vote because there has to be work and research so we can get it right.

 

The minimum criteria for a unitary council is 300,000.

 

Q: Community Centres are currently owned by the Borough, if unitary does happen, what does the future look like then, would there be re-negotiations?

A: The answer is we do not know until it happens. It seems as though the contracts might stand but it is all to be seen in time. This would apply to a lot such as the Market Square and Delapre Abbey for example.

 

BN: The only complaint I have with the new bus interchange is the drapery bus stops are always busy and people are likely to get soaked. Another criticism is that the pick off and drop off point for the coaches is not close enough to other public transport.

Also, the public do still not know what happened to the money that went to the Cobblers.

 

JN: There is an investigation ongoing by the Police. This is the most thorough way of carrying this investigation out. When the Police find out information and whether there was wrongdoing, more news will then be announced. Also assets will be returned if the Police deem there has been criminal activity.