The Cabinet adopted the officer recommendation which the Group. (ii) Purchasing of Gas and Electricity through a Framework Contract

Transcription

1 OVERVIEW SCRUTINY GROUP 19TH OCTOBER 2015 Report of the Cabinet ITEM 8 OVERVIEW SCRUTINY GROUP PRE-DECISION SCRUTINY - CABINET RESPONSE Purpose of Report To set out the Cabinet s responses to recommendations of the Group on predecision scrutiny items. Action Requested To note the Cabinet s responses to the recommendations submitted by the Group on items considered for pre-decision scrutiny. Policy Context One of the principles of effective scrutiny, identified by the Centre for Public Scrutiny, is provide a constructive critical friend challenge to the Executive. Pre-decision Scrutiny Since the last ordinary meeting of the Group the Cabinet has considered the following items on which the Group undertook pre-decision scrutiny: Enterprise Zone considered at an additional meeting of the Cabinet held on 17th September 2015 Purchasing of Gas and Electricity through a Framework Contract considered at the meeting of Cabinet on 24th September 2015 Human Resources Service considered at the meeting of Cabinet on 24th September Details of the Group s consideration of these items as reported to the Cabinet on 17th September 2015 and 24th September 2015 are set out in the appendix to this report. In the absence of a representative from the Overview Scrutiny Group, the Leader of the Council drew the Cabinet s attention to the Committee s report at the Cabinet s meeting on 17th September In the absence of the Chair and Vice-chair of the Group, Councillor Parton attended the Cabinet s meeting on 24th September 2015 to present the Committee s report to the Cabinet. 1

2 Cabinet Response The Cabinet considered the Group s reports and acknowledged the work undertaken and the views of the Group. In particular the Cabinet responded as follows to each of the reports: Enterprise Zone The Cabinet adopted the officer recommendations which the Group Purchasing of Gas and Electricity through a Framework Contract The Cabinet adopted the officer recommendation which the Group Human Resources Service The Cabinet adopted the officer recommendations which the Group Financial and Legal Implications None Risk Management No risks have been identified in connection with this report. Background Papers: None Officer to contact: Nicky Conway Democratic Services Officer nicky.conway@charnwood.gov.uk 2

3 Reports Considered by the Cabinet Following Pre-Decision Scrutiny APPENDIX A ENTERPRISE ZONE That the Cabinet be informed that the Group supports the recommendations set out in the report of the Chief Executive. Having considered the report of the Chief Executive and the information provided by the Head of Planning and Regeneration and the Team Leader: Regeneration and Economic Development in response to questions asked by the Group, the Group concluded that the development of an Enterprise Zone would be in the best interest of Charnwood Borough and that the Leader and the Chief Executive should be entrusted with ensuring that the Council is protected against financial loss should the bid be successful. (v) The undeveloped land referred to in the report was within the boundaries of the Charnwood Campus and was an area that had been allocated for industrial purposes for over thirty years. It was anticipated that improvements to the A512 and the access roundabout would be funded in the first instance by the developer of the West of Loughborough Sustainable Urban Extension and that under an Enterprise Zone regime, business rates would be utilised to fund the necessary infrastructure as appropriate. There was no guarantee that a large inward investor would come forward or that a joint venture deal could be achieved. The pooling of business rates was a more assured way of creating a large pot of funds, allowing the timescales for development to be brought forward along with the associated benefits to the Borough. The successes achieved by the UKs existing 24 Enterprise Zones in attracting business growth and investment showed the type of benefits that the Borough could receive should the bid be successful. Should it sign up to the agreement and a bid be successful, the Council would not be expected to make any financial contribution to the delivery of the Enterprise Zone other than the foregoing of business rates. However, the foregoing of those business rates was hypothetical as they would only have been accrued if successful development had taken place without the formation of an Enterprise Zone, for which there was no guarantee. The Council would take all necessary measures to ensure that it was protected against potential financial loss. Other local authorities that had already signed up had made agreements with the LLEP to put such guarantees in place. 3

4 (vii) (viii) (ix) Loughborough University were very supportive of the development of the Science Park, which they would have strong links with. The relationship between jobs and homes had been covered in detail during the Core Strategy examination process. It was likely that an Enterprise Zone would accelerate development in this respect. It was estimated that up to 9000 jobs could be created through the development of the Science and Enterprise Park along with Charnwood Campus as elements of a multi-site Enterprise Zone B PURCHASING OF GAS AND ELECTRICITY THROUGH A FRAMEWORK CONTRACT That the Cabinet be informed that the Group supports the recommendation set out in the report of the Strategic Director of Corporate Services. Having considered the report and asked questions of the Procurement Manager on the matter, the Group concluded that the recommendation would allow the Council to benefit from economies of scale provided by using ESPO members combined budgets and buying power. (v) The Council had a mix of standard and smart meters (automatic meter read AMR) and 5 sites with half hourly meters (HH). The Council s five HH meters consumed 60% of the total requirement. The Council was complying with recent Government Legislation to increase the number of half hourly meters over the next year. The Council s consumption of gas and electricity was comparatively small, therefore by using ESPO s dedicated staff who could access the market and purchase supplies when the market was favourable, the Council could avoid the risks of buying an annual supply as a small consumer. Purchasing in bulk through ESPO did not restrict the Council to only using larger suppliers. Bidders for electricity and gas were evaluated in terms of quality and price; therefore it was not necessarily the cheapest supplier who was chosen. There were no restrictions within the contract for the Council s usage of gas and electricity. Accounts could be added or removed as required within the terms of the contract. The prices for gas and electricity were fixed at the beginning of each contract year. ESPO purchased the gas and electricity during the year preceding the start of the contract year and fixed prices according. 98% of the electricity purchased was from sustainable energy sources - Greenest resources - which included nuclear energy. 4

5 C HUMAN RESOURCES SERVICE That the Cabinet be informed that the Group supports the recommendations set out in the report of the Head of Strategic Support. Having considered the report and asked questions of the Head of Strategic Support and the Improvement and Organisational Development Manager on the matter, the Group concluded that Option B plus the additional recommendations for further enhancements as set out in Part B of the report, enabled the Council to maintain and improve its HR service and ensured the Council would receive the best service possible. The comments received in respect of the process of recruitment were mainly concerned with the electronic share-point functionality and standardising the process for interviewing for posts above a certain grade. The short listing, interviewing and recruiting processes were completed by managers; the electronic process supporting this was executed by the HR administration assistants. It was anticipated that the contract terms would allow for price increases to reflect pay awards for HR staff working with Charnwood Borough Council (although employed by Leicestershire County Council). The increase in hours of the HR Administration Assistant posts reflected the sharp increase in recruitment activities over the last 12 months. (v) Although revised HR policies were formatted similarly to Leicestershire County Council policies, the contents were aligned to Charnwood Borough Council requirements and reviewed by the Senior Management team, negotiated with Trade Union representatives and approved by the Personnel Committee. Leicestershire County Council HR advisors were specialists in advising on a range of employment issues and the Council would continue to have access to this advice under this contract. 5