Havant Borough Council Cabinet Meeting

There were no apologies for absence.

There were no declarations of interests relating to matters on the agenda.

Resolved that the minutes of the meeting of Cabinet held on 14 December 2023 be approved as a true record and signed by the Chairman.

The Chairman welcomed Councillor Robinson in her new role as Deputy Leader of the Council following the resignation of Councillors Bains and Thain - Smith from the Council.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the Portchester Crematorium Joint Management Committee meeting held on Monday 12 December 2022 be noted.

Proposed by Councillor Rennie and seconded by Councillor Pike, it was

RESOLVED that

(a)      the appointments set out in Appendix A as submitted be confirmed; and

(b)      all appointments to have effect until the first meeting of the Cabinet in the 2023/24 municipal year.

Proposed by Cllr Bowerman, and seconded by Cllr Pike, it was

RESOLVED that the following councillors be appointed to the Shareholder Sub-Committee:

·                     Cllr Alex Rennie (Leader)

·                     Cllr Tony Denton (Cabinet Lead with responsibility for Finance)

·                     Cllr Lulu Bowerman

·                     Cllr Clare Satchwell

·                     Cllr Gwen Robinson

Reserves

·                     Cllr Tim Pike

·                     Cllr Elizabeth Lloyd

Cabinet considered a revised report, circulated a supplementary report prior to the meeting, giving an update on the proposed regeneration of Bulbeck Road multi story car park and requesting new funding for this project.

It was reported that the officers were in the process of analysing the tenders submitted for this project.

Cabinet noted that the purpose of the project was to determine a design for the regeneration of Bulbeck Road and that it was proposed to draw down up to £135,000 of the regeneration reserve.

A proposal by Councillor Rennie and seconded by Councillor Bowerman to agree the recommendations set out the report was agreed. It was therefore

RESOLVED to drawdown £135,000 of the revenue Regeneration Reserve in order to unlock £1.65M Government funding under the Brownfield Land Release Fund (BLRF).  The purpose of BLRF is to demolish and remediate the Bulbeck Road site ready for redevelopment.

Cabinet received a report setting out the options available for the delivery of the future ICT infrastructure and security provision following the expiration of the five councils’ contract.

Cabinet noted that, at its meeting held on 11 January 2023, the Overview and Scrutiny Committee considered the options set out in the officer’s report and decided to support option1.

In response to questions raised by members, Cabinet was advised that

1.                  option 1 would enable the Council to maintain more flexible and reliable systems;

2.                  it was anticipated that a new contract would be less bespoke, a simpler process and be for a shorter timespan; and

3.                  details of the exit clause would be submitted for consideration when the terms of the final contract had been drafted.

Cabinet considered that option 1 would provide a more agile and flexible service.

The officers were thanked for their work on this project.

It was proposed by Councillor Pike and seconded by Councillor Bowerman to agree the recommendations set out in the report.

It was therefore:

RESOLVED that

A          Cabinet accepts the recommendation of Option 1 – Seek to contract to a single, new supplier (prime contractor) as the strategy for developing the future ICT infrastructure and security provision for the council;

B          the Executive Head of Commercial (acting in consultation with the Cabinet Lead, S151 Officer and Monitoring Officer) be delegated the authority to facilitate the development and procurement of the future provision of ICT infrastructure and security for the Council in accordance with Option 1 and the approved Digital Strategy design principles;

C          the Executive Head of Commercial, in consultation with the Cabinet Lead S151 Officer and Monitoring Officer, will arrange for a quarterly report to be presented to Cabinet by way of progress report on the development and procurement of the future provision of ICT infrastructure and security;

D          the Executive Head of Commercial, in consultation with the Cabinet Lead S151 Officer and Monitoring Officer, will present a fully costed business case for the procurement of the future provision of ICT infrastructure and security for Cabinet approval; and

E          the decision made by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 11 January relating to the submitted report be noted.