Meeting

To receive any disclosure of interests from Members or Officers in matters to be discussed.

Note: Councillors are reminded of their obligations to declare disclosable pecuniary interests, personal and/or prejudicial interests in accordance with the Council’s Code of Conduct.

To receive and answer and questions from the public.

(Questions must be received in writing by Democratic Services – democracy@winchester.gov.uk – no later than noon on Thursday 23 November)

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 16, a petition was submitted by Mr D Gibson containing 501 signatures.

“We the undersigned petition the council to Reverse its decision to abolish free parking between 7pm and 8am in Winchester city centre car parks.

At the beginning of July, Winchester City Council introduced a fixed charge of £3.30 for any period of parking that starts between 7pm and 8am. You can reduce this cost to £1.80 if you buy an hour’s worth of parking that runs out after 7pm – you don’t have to pay any more for overnight. Over a year, even the lower charge adds enormously to the costs incurred by people who travel into town for work in the night-time economy and those who participate in community, cultural and religious activities at city-centre venues during the evening. For example, a full-time restaurant worker whose shift ends after the last bus home will pay an extra £9 per week (at the very least) to bring a car to a central car park. And members of a choir that meets weekly during term time in a city-centre venue will have to find an extra £60pa to attend rehearsals and performances. These charges are punitive, will damage the local economy and will discourage participation in community and cultural activities in the city.”

RECOMMENDED:

Council is asked:

1.    To note the comments and recommendations of the Audit and Governance Committee as set out in Appendix 1.

2.    To adopt the proposed amendments to the Council’s Constitution as set out in Appendix 2.

3.    That the Monitoring Officer be authorised to make any necessary further changes to the proposed amendments to the Council’s Constitution in relation to formatting, numbering or such other changes consequential to or incidental to the intentions of Full Council.

RECOMMENDED:

That Cabinet recommends Council:

Approves a capital budget of £610,000 to refurbish 59 Colebrook Street to provide temporary homeless accommodation, funded by £250k grant from HCC, £206k grant from LAHF, and £154k of prudential borrowing.

(Extract of Draft Minutes of Cabinet to follow)

a)         To consider the following Motion to be proposed by Councillor James Batho (seconded by Councillor Jackie Porter):

“Council notes with concern:

·       The increased use of vaping products by children in the UK. Recent data from the ASH Smokefree GB Youth Survey 2022 found that the prevalence of vaping amongst 11-18 year olds is increasing – from 4% in 2021 to 8.6% in 2022 – and a significant number of children buy these vaping products directly from newsagents or supermarkets.

·       The increased number of local authorities who have recently had to take enforcement activity against shops illegally selling vaping products to youngsters. Since September 2023 Hampshire County Council Trading Standards Service have seized over 10,500 illegal vapes, with a retail value estimated at £153,674 and in one instance over £40,000 of stock was removed from a single shop.

·       The marketing of certain vaping products – with bright coloured packaging and flavours such as bubble-gum – that might appeal to children.

·       A significant increase in the availability of disposable and single-use vaping products which are cheaper and easier for children to access and a major source of littering. A report by Material Focus in 2022 states that:

o   14 million single-use vapes are bought each month

o   Over 50% of single-use vapes are thrown away

o   1.3 million single-use vapes are thrown away every week or 5.4 million per month. While each vape contains just 0.15g of lithium, the scale of the waste means about 10 tonnes of the metal, equivalent to the batteries inside 1,200 electric vehicles, is ending up in landfills.

·       In July 2022 the UK Government published, Resilience for the Future: The UK’s critical minerals strategy, which assessed lithium, (among other minerals), as being of high criticality for the UK.

·       More than 700 fires in bin lorries and recycling centres were caused by batteries that had been dumped into general waste.

Council acknowledges:

·       The role vaping products play in aiding adults to stop smoking, and that vaping products carry a small fraction of the risk and exposure to toxins that are associated with cigarettes. However, vaping is not risk free; particularly for those who have never smoked. Vaping products contain nicotine and research shows that most children who use them have never smoked.

·       That in October 2023 the Government announced an Open Consultation on creating a smokefree generation and tackling youth vaping and that this was further referred to in the King’s Speech – but is only ‘considering’ restrictions on the sale and supply of disposable vaping products.

Council believes that disposable vapes are an inherently unsustainable product, meaning an outright ban remains the most effective solution to this problem.

Council therefore resolves:

·       To support the Local Government Association call for a ban on the sale and manufacture of disposable vapes by 2024 and that disposable vaping products be regulated through the Environmental Protection Act 1990 in a similar way as other single-use items, such as bans on plastic straws.

·       That the Leader to write to Secretary of State for Health and Social Care to express Council’s support for the banning of the disposable vaping products detailed in this motion.

·       That the Council should respond to any future consultation on the banning of the sale and manufacture of disposable vaping products by supporting such a ban.”

b)         To consider the following Motion to be proposed by Councillor Stephen Godfrey (seconded by Councillor Caroline Brook):

“This council has already committed to achieving net zero for the Winchester district.  This council further commits to not investing in any carbon neutrality project that does not directly benefit residents by achieving reductions in carbon emissions in real terms.”

c)         To consider the following Motion to be proposed by Councillor Jonny Morris (seconded by Councillor John Tippett-Cooper):

“Winchester City Council does not have any direct investments in fossil fuels but through employer and employee contributions, it currently forms part of around £136 million of investment in the Hampshire Local Government Pension Fund, according to UK Divest.

The commitment of the Hampshire pension fund for its investments to be carbon neutral by 2050 neither reflects the urgency of the climate emergency and this Council’s objective of Winchester becoming a carbon neutral district by 2030 nor the need to rapidly divest from fossil fuel assets.

Carbon budgets produced by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, United Nations and the International Energy Agency show that preventing two degrees of warming relies on not burning the vast majority of all known fossil fuel reserves.

The UN International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts that global oil demand will significantly fall by 2030, leading their Executive Director to refer to oil and gas companies as potential ‘junk investments.’ Action by governments to limit carbon emissions will ultimately leave fossil fuel reserves unburnable.  Former Bank of England Governor Mark Carney has warned that fossil fuel investments risk becoming “stranded assets” as investors exit the sector.

Pension funds have a fiduciary duty to consider the material risks of continued investment in fossil fuels. Fiduciary duty is defined by the Law Commission as “ensuring that pensions can be paid, ensuring that this is undertaken at the best possible value”. This can only be achieved through the rapid divestment of potential stranded assets and junk investments which will become more difficult over time and should be done sooner rather than later.

This Council therefore instructs the Leader to write to the Chair of the Hampshire Pension Fund Panel and Board asking the Board:

a)    To commit the Hampshire Pension Fund to divest from direct ownership and any commingled funds that include fossil fuel equities and corporate bonds as soon as possible with a deadline of 2030; and

b)    To actively seek to invest in companies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, minimise climate risk and where possible provide local environmental benefits,

while ensuring the Fund continues to generate a sufficient level of return to ensure the current and future sustainability of the fund.”

To receive any resignations from committees and to make any necessary re-appointments.

The total time for questions and the answer and supplementaries thereto shall not exceed 30 minutes.