Agenda and minutes

Four valid questions have been received from members of the public for this meeting.

1.               Question to the Elected Mayor from Mrs S Armstrong of Shiremoor

Please can you tell me what NTC are doing to combat litter and rubbish which is becoming a huge issue in my area. I walk my dog every day at the Cobalt Nature Reserve, which your offices directly overlook, and l am horrified at the amount of litter in this beautiful place.

The Algernon industrial estate, also less than a mile away from your offices, is an utter disgrace with rubbish and litter everywhere. I'm sure this is not a unique problem and this must be issue across the whole borough. 

Could the council consider litter wardens who issue on the spot fines for people dropping litter?

This used to happen in the 80's and we didn't have the litter issue that we have now.

Councillor S Graham responded on behalf of the Elected Mayor as follows:

Thank you for this question which covers an important issue for the council and our residents.

The council has a team of officers (the Community Protection Team) who carry out patrols across the borough and issue fixed penalty notices for environmental issues such as littering, dog fouling and fly tipping, where appropriate.

Fines range from £80 to £400, depending upon the offence and over the past few years, we have issued over 300 fixed penalty notices for litter, dog fouling and fly tipping offences.

Also, as part of the council’s commitment to tackling environmental issues such as littering and dog fouling, an additional two environmental enforcement CCTV vehicles were introduced last year.  The council now has a total of three prominent CCTV vehicles which help to increase the coverage of patrols across the borough, providing greater visibility and confidence to residents.

In response to your feedback, we have been out to take a look at the areas you have mentioned, and I’m pleased to let you know that clean ups are taking place across the park. The Community Protection Team have also arranged to carry out patrols in the area and will take action, where appropriate.

We are also working with the businesses on the industrial estate and will complement additional work where necessary to keep the area clean and tidy.

Lastly, I think it’s important to mention that whilst the council will continue to take action against those individuals who do not dispose of their litter and waste in the correct way, litter is everyone’s responsibility, and we can all do our bit to contribute to keeping North Tyneside tidy and litter free.

I would like to make a special mention and thank you to all the clean-up and community groups who go out sometimes on a daily basis to help clean up our borough working with us all on a purely voluntary basis and they are a great help.

Thank you again for raising this important issue.

2.       Question to the Elected Mayor from Ms Prospert of Whitley Bay

"The Council appear committed to the provision of a  ...  view the full minutes text for item C59/21

You are invited to declare any registerable and/or non-registerable interests in matters appearing on the agenda, and the nature of that interest.

Please complete the Declarations of Interests card available at the meeting and return it to the Democratic Services Officer before leaving the meeting.

You are also invited to disclose any dispensation from the requirement to declare any registerable and/or non-registerable interests that have been granted to you in respect of any matters appearing on the agenda.

Declarations of interest were reported as follows:

Councillor H Johnson – Item 5 – Motion 1 – non- registerable personal interest as she is a Member of the Jewish Labour Movement.

Councillor M Thirlaway – Item 5 – Motion 1 – non- registerable personal interest as he is a Member of the Jewish Labour Movement and Local Government Friends of Isreal.

Resolved that the minutes of the Council meeting held on 25 November 2021 be taken as read, confirmed and signed by the Chair.

Four valid Motions on Notice, signed by at least three Members of the Council, have been received for consideration at this meeting.

It was moved by Councillor G Westwater and seconded by Councillor L Bones that: 

On the 27th September 2017 Council agreed to sign up to the non-legally binding International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of Antisemitism, and the supporting guidelines. This was subsequently adopted within the Council's Equality and Diversity Policy. With Holocaust Memorial Day just a few days away and with many new faces in the Chamber we are asking for Councillors elected after September 2017 and those that were not able to be present to be given the opportunity to show our support for this definition and for the remaining Councillors to reaffirm their support.

We request Council votes to endorse and reaffirm our commitment to the IHRA’s definition of Antisemitism.

This will send a clear message that Antisemitism will not be tolerated within North Tyneside Council. 

The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance Definition of Antisemitism and supporting guidelines state:

 “Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities. Manifestations might include the targeting of the state of Israel, conceived as a Jewish collectivity. However, criticism of Israel similar to that levelled against any other country cannot be regarded as anti-Semitic. Antisemitism frequently charges Jews with conspiring to harm humanity, and it is often used to blame Jews for “why things go wrong.” It is expressed in speech, writing, visual forms and action, and employs sinister stereotypes and negative character traits.

Contemporary examples of antisemitism in public life, the media, schools, the workplace, and in the religious sphere could, taking into account the overall context, include, but are not limited to: 

·       Calling for, aiding, or justifying the killing or harming of Jews in the name of a radical ideology or an extremist view of religion. 

·       Making mendacious, dehumanizing, demonizing, or stereotypical allegations about Jews as such or the power of Jews as collective — such as, especially but not exclusively, the myth about a world Jewish conspiracy or of Jews controlling the media, economy, government or other societal institutions. 

·       Accusing Jews as a people of being responsible for real or imagined wrongdoing committed by a single Jewish person or group, or even for acts committed by non-Jews. 

·       Denying the fact, scope, mechanisms (e.g. gas chambers) or intentionality of the genocide of the Jewish people at the hands of National Socialist Germany and its supporters and accomplices during World War II (the Holocaust). 

·       Accusing the Jews as a people, or Israel as a state, of inventing or exaggerating the Holocaust. 

·       Accusing Jewish citizens of being more loyal to Israel, or to the alleged priorities of Jews worldwide, than to the interests of their own nations. 

·       Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, e.g., by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavour. 

·       Applying double standards by requiring of it a behaviour not expected or demanded  ...  view the full minutes text for item C62/21

It was moved by Councillor L Bones and seconded by Councillor P McIntyre that: 

Council notes the difficulties some residents have faced with the change in Tyne Tunnel payment to a cashless service. At present residents have to pay the toll online or at a Paypoint by midnight the day after their journey. Some residents have been shocked by the lack of publicity around the changes in advance of their introduction, and some residents have reported fines being issues despite tolls having been paid.

Council also notes that a petition has been running online (https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/tyne-tunnel-fines) and has, at time of writing, received over 10,000 signatures.  That petition asks that TT2:

“1. Cancel all unpaid toll charges issued in the last 6 months prior to 1st January 2022.

2. Increase the time period for which to 'pay later' from 48 hours to 5 working days.

3. Engage in a concerted advertising campaign to ensure people are fully aware of how the Tyne Tunnel now works and encourage frequent travellers to sign up for a pre-paid account.

4. Scrap the current penalty charge system and replace with the following more ethical structure: For those who miss their deadline to pay should receive an initial fine of no more than £20, which should be reduced to £5.00 if paid within 14 days of the date the fine was generated. These amounts are more ethical and affordable to the average user of the Tyne Tunnel - many of whom come from working class backgrounds or may be suffering from hardship due to the current economic climate. If paying a penalty charge then the original 'toll fare' should be taken out of the fine paid so that people are not being charged extra. If a person fails to pay the initial £20 fine within 28 days, it should rise to no more than £40 and only after a period of 42 days should this be passed to a debt collection agency where "additional administrative charges" of no more than a further £25 should be added.

5. Review the appeals process and produce clear guidance that is publicly available on what the policies of TT2 Limited are in relation to travel through the tunnel, what the toll prices are, and the penalty charge procedures. Ensuring that each individual case is considered carefully and with sensitivity.”

(Petition © Gary Spedding)

Council therefore asks the Mayor to write to TT2 asking them to take the action requested in the petition.

A recorded vote on the Motion, was requested by two Members present.

Votes for the Motion,

Councillors L Arkley, K Barrie, L Bartoli, L Bones, S Brockbank, C Johnston, P McIntyre, J Wallace and G Westwater.

Votes against the Motion

N Redfearn, Elected Mayor and Councillors B Burdis, C Burdis, K Clark, D Cox, S Cox, N Craven, S Day, D Drummond, S Graham, Janet Hunter, C Johnson, H Johnson, F Lott, A McMullen, J Montague, A Newman, J O’Shea, N Percy, S Phillips, B Pickard,  ...  view the full minutes text for item C63/21

It was moved by Councillor W Samuel and seconded by Councillor S Day that: 

Council notes with alarm the pressures on the cost of living for residents in North Tyneside.

Already facing the Government imposed cuts in Universal Credit and the National Insurance tax hike in April combined with rising inflation families in the borough will struggle to make ends meet.

To add insult to injury, it looks possible that the standard variable tariff for energy is likely to be increased by around 50% pushing many residents into fuel poverty.

Council asks the Elected Mayor to write to the Government asking that all possible measures, such as a reduction in VAT are looked into with a view to mitigating the impact of these increases on our people.

The Motion, on being put to the meeting, was approved unanimously.

It was moved by Councillor C Johnson and seconded by Councillor S Graham that: 

North Tyneside council notes:

§  Storm Arwen caused devastating damage right across North Tyneside,

many homes, businesses, and public places were severely damaged with many forced to move out of their homes in the run up to Christmas.

§  North Tyneside council’s staff did some incredible work to assist residents in the greatest need on immediately following the storm and continue to do so in the aftermath and clean-up.

North Tyneside Council believes:

·       The Conservative government’s response was totally inadequate.

North Tyneside Council calls on the Mayor to:

·       Write to the Prime Minister to raise our concerns with the way the situation

was handled and to commit to providing funding to aid the recovery.

An amendment was moved by Councillor L Bones and seconded by Councillor S Brockbank as follows:

Under “North Tyneside council notes:” add an addition bullet point statement as follows:

·       There is still a significant amount of work to be done by the Council with many fallen trees still blocking public access.  There is also now a huge backlog of existing work which has now been pushed even further back.

Delete

North Tyneside Council believes:

·       The Conservative government’s response was totally inadequate.

Under “North Tyneside Council calls on the Mayor to:” add an addition bullet point statement as follows:

·       Launch a cross party inquiry into the handling of Storm Arwen by North Tyneside Council, including what work is outstanding and what lessons can be learned, and report back to full Council before the end of the municipal year.

A recorded vote on the Motion, was requested by two Members present.

Votes for the Motion,

Councillors L Arkley, K Barrie, L Bartoli, L Bones, S Brockbank, C Johnston, P McIntyre, J Wallace and G Westwater.

Votes against the Motion

N Redfearn, Elected Mayor and Councillors B Burdis, C Burdis, K Clark,

D Cox, S Cox, N Craven, S Day, D Drummond, S Graham, Janet Hunter,

C Johnson, H Johnson, F Lott, A McMullen, J Montague, A Newman,

J O’Shea, N Percy, S Phillips, B Pickard, M Rankin, W Samuel, J Shaw,

J Stirling, M Thirlaway, J Walker and M Wilson.

The amended Motion, on being put to the meeting, was defeated 28 votes to 9 votes.

A further amendment was moved by Councillor C Johnson and seconded by Councillor M Rankin as follows, that: 

Under “North Tyneside council notes:” add an addition bullet point statement as follows:

·       There is still a significant amount of work to be done by the Council with many fallen trees still blocking public access.  There is also now a huge backlog of existing work which has now been pushed even further back.

Under “North Tyneside Council calls on the Mayor to:” add an addition bullet point statement as follows:

·       Launch a cross party inquiry into the handling of Storm Arwen by North Tyneside Council, including what work is outstanding and what lessons can be learned, and report back  ...  view the full minutes text for item C65/21

It was moved by Councillor C Johnson and seconded by Councillor M Rankin that: 

Reasons for urgent motion request: Since the deadline for questions and motions the Prime Minister acknowledged he had attended a party in Downing Street and therefore this motion was not possible before; it is clearly a matter of the utmost public interest, debate, and outrage.

North Tyneside council Notes:

·       While the rest of the country was under the tightest restrictions, and while we could not be with our loved ones when they passed away, nor mourn their deaths with our family or friends, the Conservative Prime Minister oversaw a culture of boozing and partying in Downing Street.

·       That our residents who elected us to serve them have rightly expressed their absolute outrage at the behaviour of the Prime Minister and Conservative advisors, and Downing Street staff.

North Tyneside council believes:

·       Boris Johnson and the Conservative leadership are laughing in the face of ordinary people, setting rules, and urging people to follow rules, they had no intention of following themselves.

·       Boris Johnson should immediately resign from his position as Prime Minister.

North Tyneside Council calls upon the Mayor:

·       To write to the Prime Minister condemning his actions over the culture of partying and boozing and asking him to resign immediately.

·       To suggest that the North Tyneside Conservative Group, whose members have

so publicly supported him, not just ask the Prime Minister to consider his position

as they have done, but to go further and ask the Prime Minister to resign

immediately.

A recorded vote on the Motion, was requested by two Members present.

Votes for the Motion

N Redfearn, Elected Mayor and Councillors B Burdis, C Burdis, K Clark, D Cox, S Cox, N Craven, S Day, D Drummond, S Graham, Janet Hunter, C Johnson, H Johnson, F Lott, A McMullen, J Montague, A Newman, J O’Shea, N Percy, S Phillips, B Pickard, M Rankin, W Samuel, J Shaw, J Stirling, M Thirlaway, J Walker and M Wilson.

Votes against the Motion

None

Absentions

Councillors L Arkley, K Barrie, L Bartoli, L Bones, S Brockbank, C Johnston,

P McIntyre, J Wallace and G Westwater.

The Motion, on being put to the meeting, was approved by 28 votes to 0 votes with 9 Abstentions.

To consider a draft programme of Council and committee meetings for the 2022/23 municipal year.

Council received a report seeking approval to a programme of Council and committee meetings for the 2022/23 municipal year and to determine which Council meetings would be designated for public questions.

It was moved by Elected Mayor Norma Redfearn and seconded by Councillor C Johnson that:

Council:

(1)  agree the programme of meetings for 2022/23 as set out in Appendix A to the report; and

(2)  agree that the meetings of full Council proposed for 21 July 2022, 24 November 2022 and 19 January 2023 be those at which questions will be taken from members of the public.

The motion, on being put to the meeting, was unanimously approved.

To receive any announcements by the Chair of Council.

The Chair thanked staff, stall holders everyone that was involved in the North Shields Christmas Victorian Market, which had been a very well attended event.

The Chair also remined the Chamber of the upcoming Holocaust Memorial week which would be commemorated online this year.

To receive any announcements by the Elected Mayor.

The Elected Mayor expressed her gratitude for the effort of all Council employees in ensuring services and support continued over the last couple very difficult years.

No questions have been received for a response at this meeting.

There were no valid questions received from Members for this meeting.