►
From YouTube: Basingstoke Gov - Cabinet - 07/02/2023
Description
If there is buffering on the YouTube stream, the webcast can be viewed through the council's website https://www.basingstoke.gov.uk/webcast
A
Good
evening,
colleagues
and
welcome
to
this
evening's
cabinet
meeting
we'll
first
go
through
the
housekeeping,
which
is
fire
evacuation
procedures.
There
are
no
fire
alarms
scheduled
for
this
evening.
Therefore,
if
the
alarm
sounds,
please
evacuate
the
building
immediately.
The
fire
exit
is
located
at
the
side
of
this
room,
exiting
through
reception
and
meeting
in
the
War
Memorial
Park.
A
This
evening's
meeting
is
webcast,
so
that
means
it
will
be
shown,
live
on
the
internet
and
will
be
available
to
you
to
view
on
YouTube.
After
the
meeting
just
check
that
that's
an
operation
it
is
and
if
I
could
ask
to
ensure
that
everybody
puts
their
phone
on
either
switching
it
off
or
putting
it
onto
silent.
That
would
be
greatly
appreciated
for
this
evening.
A
So,
first
of
all,
we
have
apologies
for
absence
and
I
have
apologies
from
councilor
Carr,
counselor
Ganesh
and
councilor
Vox,
any
other
apologies
I.
Think,
apart
from
that,
we're
all
here
item
two
Declarations
of
interest:
do
you
have
any
declarations
to
receive?
No.
Thank
you
very
much.
There
are
no
urgent
matters
so
that
moves
on
to
the
minutes
of
the
meeting
held
on
the
10th
of
January.
A
A
B
Thank
you
later,
I've
just
got
a
series
of
questions
really
looking
at
the
draft
council
plan.
There's
a
couple
of
bullet
points
on
page
65,
which
piqued
my
interest
redevelop
the
top
of
the
town
and
Festival
place
to
encourage
new
businesses
to
open
and
allow
current
businesses
to
flourish.
So
I
have
a
number
of
questions
on
that.
The
first
one
is:
are
we
really
looking
at
developing
the
entire
top
of
town
Festival
place
in
the
next
four
years?
B
The
second
one
is:
how
well
are
we
going
on
the
issue
of
encouraging
new
businesses
to
open
and
current
businesses
to
thrive
in
the
top
Town
Festival
place,
aligned
with
that?
What's
the
vacancy
rate
in
Festival
place
in
the
top
of
town?
B
What
specific
actions
will
the
council
take
in
the
next
four
years
to
bring
about
a
transformation
type
of
term
Festival
place
to
encourage
new
businesses
to
open?
We
actually
see
them
open
and
allow
new
businesses
to
flush
or
current
businesses
to
flourish
and
actually
see
a
change
in
what
we're
seeing
at
the
moment,
and
how
will
these
objectives
be
measured?
So
that's
the
first
bullet
point.
The
second
bullet
point
is
is
a
line
to
that
which
is
reasonable
rent
for
small
businesses.
B
So
my
question
is
what
is
reasonable
annual
rent
for
a
small
business
in
Festival
place
at
the
top
of
town?
All
for
that
matter
in
our
district
centers
like
Chino
and
Brighton
Hill,
because
rent
is
probably
the
single
highest
cost
that
a
lot
of
our
retail
businesses
are
facing
at
the
moment,
and
you
know
they've
never
had
it
as
bad
as
I
can
remember
going
back
at
least
40
years.
B
So
it
would
be
interesting
to
hear
the
cabinets
view
on
what
constitutes
a
reasonable
rent
for
small
businesses
and
how
they
are
expected
to
absorb
that
cost,
along
with
stock
costs,
energy
costs,
labor
costs
and
all
the
other
things
service
charges
that
come
with
business
rates
that
come
with
running
a
business.
Thank
you.
A
C
I
think
thank
you,
Jack
I'm,
not
sure
if
I
misunderstood,
Andy's
questions,
but
the
points
are
being
referred
to
are
not
in
the
council
plan
their
comments,
individual
comments,
members
of
the
public
made
who
filled
out
the
web
form
that's
included
in
appendix
four.
So
they're,
not
it's
not.
Actually
the
council
plan,
it's
an
individual
member
of
the
public
said
there
should
be
reasonable.
Rent
charges
for
retail
businesses.
So
I
don't
know
if
I
just
misunderstood
the
question,
but
they
that
that
I
just
thought.
That
was
important
to
clarify
that.
B
Yeah
well
in
asking
these
questions.
Okay.
So
if
the
points
of
baseball
members
of
the
public
I
would
I,
don't
expect
detailed
answers
right
now,
because
these
are
table
questions.
But
I
would
at
least
want
to
have
some
kind
of
indication
that
having
had
this
input
from
the
public,
we've
had
an
idea
of
what
a
reasonable
rent
is
and
an
idea
of
what
needs
to
be
done
with
the
top
of
town
and
Festival
place
over
the
next
four
years
to
try
and
arrest
the
current
Decline
and
address
some
of
the
problems.
D
Thank
you
leader.
The
these
old
points
of
detail,
important
ones,
Council
McCormack
I,
accept
that
but
I
I
can
sort
of
respond
immediately
by
saying
that,
where
we're,
where
we
are
directly
in
responsible
for
lettings,
such
as
the
mouths
at
the
moment,
there
is
one
empty
unit.
D
So
there's
the
last
bit
of
information
I
had
from
from
officers
and
we've
had
three
lettings
over
the
course
of
the
last
six
months
to
nine
months,
so
I'm
bringing
in
some
some
interesting
new
retailers
adding
to
the
sort
of
mix
in
the
mouths
now
clearly
with
Festival
place,
we're
not
in
direct
control
there
and
I.
Think
a
lot
of
the
vacancies
relate
to
some
of
the
Upper
Floor
space,
which
is
which
is
more
difficult
to
to
let
in
any
Marketplace.
But
what
what
I
think
is
also
worth
noting.
D
Is
that
both
in
terms
of
our
portfolio,
for
instance,
the
males
and
also
Festival
place,
because
we
we
get
to
hear
about
what?
D
What
that
the
rents
that
are
being
agreed
is
there's
been
a
very
substantial,
deep
decrease
in
in
the
in
the
rents
that
are
being
obtained
because
of
the
difficulties
that
retailers
have
experienced
over
the
last
few
years,
particularly,
was
was
covered,
and
so
the
market
is
responding
to
that
and
and
and
and
and
we
as
a
local
Authority
help,
particularly
during
covid,
sought
to
assist
our
our
tenants
by
giving
them
rent,
holidays
and
I'm
pleased
to
say
that
we're
now
in
a
situation
where
many
of
them
are
able
to
to
to
pay
the
rents
that
they're
on
the
under
their
leases,
so
I'm
not
saying
that
it's
it's
easy
out
there,
but
I
think
that,
particularly
in
the
Basingstoke
case,
there's
a
lot
of
evidence
that
things
that
are
actually
improving
quite
quite
quite
well
and
and
there's
more
work
to
be
done.
D
And
that's
why
the
Town
Center
regeneration
plan.
The
strategy
is
so
important
and
and
that's
going
to
be
a
long-term
plan
involving
us
working
with
the
owners
of
Festival,
Place,
Network,
rail,
Hampshire,
County,
Council
and
so
forth.
To
transform
the
the
the
top
of
the
town
the
festival
place.
The
Town
Center
generally
and
bring
in
more
uses
and
and
potentially
have
less
retailing
over
that
period
of
time.
A
A
And
I
I
think
they're.
The
points
that
you
raise
are
really
important
measures
for
the
success
on
the
other
Town
Center.
But
of
course,
there's
also
something
about
that.
That
town
centers
is
a
very
generic
term
versus
some
of
that's
very
specific
to
a
specific
building,
a
specific
landlord
and
also
potentially
for
this
specific
small
business,
because
actually
you
may
have
some
rent-free
arrangement
whilst
they
build
their
business
and
actually
they
may
get
to
a
point
where
they
pay
exactly
the
same
rent
as
any
other
tenant
in
a
building.
A
So
I'm
not
sure,
there's
an
answer
Andy
to
be
honest,
because
I
think
there
are
too
many
variables,
it's
probably
very
Dynamic,
depending
on
where
you
are
what
the
building
is
and
to
your
point
about
District,
centers
I
certainly
know
within
my
district
Center.
It
depends
who
is
controlling
the
building
and
what
their
plans
are
for
the
place
and
I'm
sure
that's
very
similar
for
genome.
When
you
have
potential
Redevelopment
plans,
and
then
you
have
a
change
of
ownership,
so
they
are,
of
course
important
considerations.
A
But,
of
course,
as
to
your
point,
as
far
as
what
we'll
be
doing
in
the
next
four
years,
will
of
course,
actually
the
the
service
and
the
delivery
in
the
action
plans
are
some
of
the
detail
that
goes
behind
this.
Once
we
adopt
this
as
a
local
Authority
and,
of
course,
the
success
of
that
will
be
some
of
the
things
that
you
raise.
A
So
it's
it's.
A
complex
and
dynamic
picture.
I'm
always
welcome
the
conversations
that
we
have
with
officers
because
they
do
tend
to
have
quite
a
lot
of
that
very
rich
feedback
from
landlords
and
tenants.
As
far
as
what's
going
well
and
to
your
point
of
around
footfall
I
think
we
should
also
understand
how
Dynamic
that
is
within
the
Town
Center,
because
actually
we
can
certainly
increase
footfall
with
quite
a
lot
of
the
activities
that
we
have.
A
It
doesn't
necessarily
mean
that
that
helps
or
saves
a
business,
because
it
doesn't
necessarily
mean
people
are
in
the
town
to
buy
things.
So
absolutely
we
rest
assured.
We
will
be
focusing
really
hard
on
how
we
support
the
Town
Center,
really
support
and
develop
the
footfall.
A
But
of
course
there
are
quite
a
lot
of
other
things
going
on,
as
only
the
press
in
the
last
24
hours
tells
us
as
far
as
some
of
the
retail
chains
and
what's
happening
with
their
branches
in
other
places,
may
have
quite
a
big
impact
on
the
branches
that
are
being
relatively
successful
in
Basingstoke.
A
So
if
I
may
then
go
to
what
I
want
to
say
about
as
far
as
the
draft
council
plan,
because
I
think
there
is
also
something
that
we
should
take
into
account
for
other
Dynamics
within
local
authorities,
because
at
a
time
when
many
councils
are
struggling
to
maintain
core
Services,
our
financial
position
is
stable
and
solid,
and
it
is
due
to
strong
financial
management.
That
means
we
can
have
some
very
ambitious
priorities
and
we
can
plan
to
invest
in
them.
A
If
you
think
about
some
of
the
other
papers
that
we
have
in
front
of
us,
I
think
it
is
astounding,
as
a
local
Authority,
compared
to
some
of
our
colleagues
that
we
have
some
of
our
closest
Partners
describing
us
as
a
council,
as
amongst
the
very
best
local
Authority,
that
they
work
with
so
to
have
the
three
strong
priorities
that
we
have
in
the
draft
council
plan
to
make
sure
that
it's
a
place
where
people
can
be
happy
that
it's
a
Borough
where
the
environment
can
flourish
and
that,
as
a
council,
we
provide
good
quality
services,
are
absolutely
the
right
things
to
do
for
our
area.
A
The
documents
that
we
have
in
front
of
us
today,
I
think
many
councils
would
be
very
envious
of
the
fact
that
we
say
very
clearly
that
we
are
in
a
strong
financial
position
which
allows
us
to
invest
to
invest
in
a
new
aquadrome
Leisure
Center,
to
the
tune
of
you
know,
probably
in
excess
of
40
million
pounds
to
invest
in
a
place
like
the
Leisure
Park
to
you
know
an
amount
which
is
around
20
million
pounds
and
to
have
that
investment
in
free
activities
and
and
places
where
lots
of
people
use
is,
is
a
really
strong
one
and
and
we're
in
a
very
fortunate
position
to
be
able
to
plan
to
do
that.
A
We're
working
hard
and
hard
to
deliver
some
of
the
things
that
we've
got
in
here.
Since
lots
of
that
work
has
already
taken
is
taking
place.
We
we're
working
hard
to
deliver
a
regional
attraction
as
a
new
anchor
at
the
Leisure
Park.
That
will
be
something
that
will
be
significant
and
a
new
University
in
our
town,
which
again
is
a
step
change
for
the
people
and
the
place
in
our
Borough.
A
So
we
have
a
council
plan
that
very
clearly
articulates
what
we
want
to
do
and
how
we
want
to
do
it.
We
have
Financial
papers
in
front
of
us
that
also
set
out
how
we
will
resource
this,
and
not
only
will
we
be
investing
and
delivering,
but
whilst
we're
doing
that,
we'll
also
be
freezing
our
part
of
the
council
tax
freezing
car
parking
charges
and
remaining
unlike
many
councils
debt-free
enabling
us
to
do
it.
A
So
we
do
have
a
recommendation
in
front
of
us
on
page
14
of
our
papers
that
we
agree
that
the
updated
draft
council
plan
for
2023-27
as
appendix
one
is
recommended
to
the
council
for
approval
that
we
approve
the
key
performance
measures
and
targets
documented
in
appendix
2..
We
do
have
an
updated
document
because
that
there
were
some
administrative
issues
with
performance
measures
and
with
that
in
mind,
not
only
in
addition
to
accepting
the
recommendations.
A
Colleagues,
I'd
also
ask
for
your
permission
to
delegate
the
authority
to
myself
and
chief
executor
if
we
do
find
any
errors
that
we
amend
them
so
do
I,
have
your
agreement
with
those
recommendations
and
that
delegation
yeah
brilliant.
Thank
you
very
much,
then.
Moving
on
to
item
six,
which
is
the
medium
term,
Financial
strategy
and
budget
update
report
for
2023
24
to
26,
27,
councilor
Isaac.
D
This
is
the
medium
time
term
Financial
strategy
and
budget
update
report
for
2023
24
to
22,
26th,
2017.,
I'm,
pleased
to
recommend
a
cabinet
and
to
council
these
proposals
updated
from
November
and
following
public
consultation,
if
approved
this
evening,
this
will
go
to
Council
on
the
23rd
of
February.
D
Key
points
of
these
proposals
include
a
balanced
budget
for
two
years
with
budget
gaps
for
the
remaining
two
years,
totaling
4.47
million,
which
will
have
to
be
closed
in
due
course,
but
I'm
entirely.
Confident,
we'll
we'll
be
able
to
do
that
to
deliver
on
our
ambitious
new
council
plan
and,
in
particular
our
challenging
green
objectives.
Additional
investment
in
staff
is
provided
with
a
new
head
of
climate
change,
continued
funding
of
the
climate
change
team,
a
new
Council
Green,
Team
and
expansion
of
the
Ranger
team
to
deliver
new
diversity
zones.
D
Other
new
posts
will
include
a
grants
officer
to
insist
in
the
to
assist
in
the
implementation
of
the
new
community
Grant
schemes
funded
in
this
budget,
something
that
in
the
past,
a
lot
of
our
parishes
and
and
parts
of
the
town
have
benefited
from
and
I
look
forward
to.
Seeing
that
process
of
capital,
investment
in
Residence
and
Community
facilities
being
continued
in
the
years
ahead,
and
we
also
got
a
residence
Services
director
to
lead
on
the
delivery
of
Frontline
services.
D
Our
determination
as
a
conservative
Administration
to
improving
Services
is
reflected
in
new
proposals
since
November
for
a
car
club,
a
bike
repair
Hub,
better
security
at
downgrange
and
Wade
Road,
Depots,
Town,
Center,
litter,
bins,
renewable
energy
studies
for
rooftop,
solar
provision
on
buildings
across
the
borough,
Community
energy
audits,
on
103
community
centers
across
the
borough
and
consultancy
advice
for
the
new
Council
aquadrome,
which,
as
the
leader
has
commented
earlier,
is
another
commitment
from
this
administration
of
a
substantial
one
which
of
up
to
or
40
million
pounds,
something
that
very
few
other
councils
if
any
across
the
land
will
be
able
to
do
at
this
time.
D
D
Despite
reducing
Government
funding
to
us
down,
75.3
percent
over
the
last
three
years
to
the
current
3.6
million,
no
new
homes
bonuses
assumed
after
the
next
financial
year
residents,
I
hope
will
be
reassured
that
this
council's
finances
remain
in
safe
conservative
hands,
enabling
us
to
invest
wisely
in
new
and
improve
Services,
which
have
been
thoroughly
considered
and
match
residents
priorities
for
themselves,
their
families
and
their
communities.
I
hope
that
a
cabinet
will
support
this.
D
A
Thank
you
very
much,
John
any
other
comments
from
colleagues.
No,
so
as
the
portfolio
has
dated,
we've
got
on
pages
68
and
69
the
recommendations,
so
they
are
for
us
to
to
note
items
one
to
six
for
us
to
recommend
to
council
that
Council
notes
items
7
to
12.
The
council
determines
items
13
and
14,
and
the
council
approves
items
15
to
21..
Are
we
in
agreement
great?
Thank
you
very
much.
D
Thank
you
leader,
so
item
seven
is
the
capital
program,
update
and
strategy
report
for
2022
23
to
20
26
27..
D
Our
continuing
capacity
to
plan
for
the
medium
to
long
term
as
a
council
is
demonstrated
well
by
this
report.
How
we
will
finance,
allocate
and
manage
capital
investment
and
maintain
or
improve
the
new
infrastructure
so
important
to
the
services
and
amenities
we
provide
as
a
Borough
to
our
residents
is
a
crucial
task.
D
The
updated
plan
for
the
next
four
years
proposes
a
capital
spend
of
135.128
million,
including
new
additions
for
this
year
of
17.693
million
all
Finance
from
Capital
Council
resources
are
capital,
receipts,
section,
106
developers,
contributions
and
external
Capital
grants
with
as
before,
no
borrowing
the
new
spend
includes
6.12
million
extending
rolling
programs,
11.529
million
pounds
of
new
priorities
and
430
000
pounds
of
new
section
106
funded
schemes,
infrastructure
spends,
which
I
would
wish
to
highlight
tonight,
cover
350
000
pounds
for
downgraded
Playing
Field
improvements,
100
180,
000
pounds
in
2324
on
play
area
improvements
at
Sinclair,
Drive,
a
new
community
infrastructure
fund,
totaling
2.2
million
pounds
over
four
years,
replacing
the
highly
popular
and
successful
local
infrastructure
fund.
D
There
have
been
some
underspends
that
are
accounted
for
in
this
report,
the
most
significant
being
the
delay
in
concluding
the
drawdown
of
the
land
at
many
down.
These
total
18
million
pounds,
reflective
of
the
scale
of
and
complexity
of
the
project.
D
A
B
Oh
thank
you
leader,
so
on
page
182,
player,
refurbishment
and
Sinclair
Drive
was
mentioned
so
how
many
of
our
play
areas
are
scheduled
for
refurbishment
in
the
the
next
four
years
we
have
a
new
player
refurbishment
scheme.
B
A
Thanks
very
much
so
play
areas.
What
a
huge
issue
you
you
raised,
because
we
have
so
many
of
them
that
everybody
gets
to
benefit
from
I'm,
not
sure
that
we
can
give
you
an
answer
to
the
couple
of
your
questions
as
far
as
detail.
A
But
we
can
certainly
look
at
getting
you
an
answer
for
them
as
far
as
what's
behind
the
slippage,
because
in
some
respects
I'm
trying
to
remember
what
the
total
amount
is
that
we've
set
aside
in
the
capital
program
for
play
schemes
in
the
next
four
years,
I
want
to
say
it's
two
points:
something
million,
so
2.3
million
that
we've
set
aside
for
play
areas,
and
some
of
that
is
quite
difficult
to
work
out.
How
that
will
be
allocated
at
this
point
in
time,
because
we
know
how
many
we
have.
A
We
know
how
old
they
are.
But
until
we
do
that
survey
work
and
do
an
assessment
we
won't
understand
and
what
we
might
need
to
replace
or
what
we
might
choose
to
replace
as
far
as
those
repairs
that
need
doing
versus
actually
that
equipment
that
we
might
choose
to
refresh
because
of
whatever
has
happened
in
the
local
areas
for
us
different
age
ranges,
etc,
etc,
Andy
so
I
think
for
me,
there's
probably
something
that
says:
we'll
need
to
watch
the
space
a
bit.
We
know
how
much
we've
allocated
it
will
be.
A
If
you
think
about
four
years,
it's
quite
a
long
time
very
much
about
the
survey
work,
that's
done
at
the
time
and
actually
the
sort
of
work
that
then
is
programmed
in
for
each
of
those
facilities.
I
think
it's
also
fair
to
say.
We
also
know
how
valued
they
are,
but
our
communities
play
parks
are
wonderful
things,
aren't
they
and
I
think
we
all
have
many
memories
of
play
equipment
when
we
were
younger
councilorize
that
you
wanted
to
comment.
D
Yeah
I
was
just
going
to
see
if
I
could
help
answer.
The
second
question,
which
is
on
the
is
it
398,
000
slippage,
yeah
well,
I
think
it.
This
is
something
a
problem
that
we're
that
officers
are
facing
in
a
number
of
areas
in
relation
to
capital
expenditure.
D
Is
that
it's
it's,
that
the
availability
of
of
the
equipment
and
also
the
availability
of
people
to
install
the
the
the
the
improvements
and
the
the
play
area
into
these
play
areas
is
is
has
suffered
because
of
because
of
the
impact
of
of
covid
and
so
I
I
I
suspect
that
that's
actually.
The
report
actually
does
say
that
that
that
that
has
been
the
main
cause
of
the
delay
here.
C
A
Commitment,
and
is
one
of
the
things
that
perhaps
we
need
to
discuss
outside
the
meeting
is
how
we
make
sure,
as
the
rolling
program
is
getting
underway,
that
we
keep
all
councils
up
to
date
about
when
their
local
play
areas
are
being
surveyed,
because
I
think
there
are
two
strands
of
work.
There
is
something
about
play,
equipment
that
needs
replacing,
because
actually
it's
coming
to
the
end
of
its
life
versus.
Actually,
what's
that
mean
for
the
full
Suite
of
play,
equipment
that
we
have
in
those
areas
and
Ward
councils
are
really
well
placed.
B
Appreciate
that
there's
been
considerable
disruption
to
the
economy
as
a
result
of
covid,
but
kovid
was
three
years
ago
and
suspect
that
a
lot
of
the
issues
we're
seeing
now
in
terms
of
availability
of
equipment
and
labor
are
more
systemic
issues
than
that
more
to
do
with
supply
chain
issues
that
many
countries
are
experiencing
around
the
world.
B
Some
of
that
had
its
Genesis
in
covid,
but
I
think
there's
there's
other
factors
behind
labor
shortages
at
the
moment,
because
we've
got
large
numbers
of
people
who
are
retiring
from
work
and
displacement
of
people
as
they
quit
their
jobs
and
go
to
better
paying
jobs
and
how
that
exactly
shakes
out
in
terms
of
availability
for
contract
labor
to
install
play
areas.
Is
you
know
it's
not
for
me
to
say
at
the
moment,
but
I
would
imagine
that
there
were
more
modern
issues
now
than
the
pandemic
itself.
That's
responsible
for
it.
Yeah
I.
A
Think
you're,
probably
right,
but
but
there's
all
that
reality
isn't
that
we
know
it's
affecting
all
sorts
of
areas,
because
if
I
thought
about
my
play,
parks
or
even
some
of
our
metal
railings
to
protect,
verges
they're
all
experiencing
similar
issues,
whatever
those
issues
are
and
they're,
probably
quite
complex
to
try
and
break
down
exactly
what
some
of
the
main
drivers
are,
you're,
absolutely
right.
So
what
we
have
in
front
of
us
colleagues
are
the
recommendations
on
page
178
that
we
recommend
to
cancel
the
items
that
are
one
to
six.
Are
we
agreed
brilliant?
A
Thank
you
very
much.
Then
we
move
on
to
item
eight,
which
is
the
corporate
peer
Challenge,
and
you
want
to
speak
to
that
one
as
well.
So
again,
when
you're
ready,
I'll
start
the
clock.
B
Thank
you
leader.
Well,
it's
really
I've
got
two
questions
really
centered
on
recommendations,
six
and
nine.
So
the
first
one
recommendation
six.
B
You
know
given
the
number
of
people
we
normally
have
at
cabinet
and
the
number
of
callings
in
recent
years.
How
well
do
you
think
the
screws
new
function
is
going?
B
Would
you
agree
that
the
strong
scrutiny
makes
for
better
Council
decisions
and
on
that
basis,
what
does
this
say
about
our
decision
making?
That's
in
regards
to
recommendation
six
recommendation:
nine
is
really
about
the
property
investment
strategy,
and
I
did
note
that
there
was
quite
a
bit
of
money
being
set
aside
for
property
investment
strategy.
I
think
you'll
have
to
come
up
with
a
better
abbreviation
than
property
investment
strategy.
B
I'll
leave
you
to
work
that
out,
you
know,
is
buying
private
properties
a
council
priority,
and
how
can
this
be
Justified
over
spending
money
on
Direct
Services
for
residents.
A
I'll,
let
counselors
think
about
whether
he
wants
to
answer
the
second
Point
and
and
I'll
I'll.
Do
my
sort
of
commentary
really
to
the
peer
Challenge
and
its
recommendations
and
its
findings
as
a
whole,
I
I.
Think
for
me,
there's
something
about
you've
asked
me
a
very
direct
question
about
my
view
about
the
effectiveness
of
scrutiny.
A
I
I
think
there
are
quite
a
lot
of
people
in
this
Authority
and
who
are
outside
this
Authority
who
watch
the
activity
of
this
Authority
who
are
confused
as
to
what
scrutiny
actually
is
and
how
it's
conducted,
and
sometimes
members
believe
saying
more,
is
adding
more
to
the
process
of
decision
making.
So
actually
we
can.
We
can
take
reports
to
committee
meetings
and
they
can
comment
but
I'm,
not
sure.
That's
real
scrutiny,
real
scrutiny.
A
If
I
thought
about
the
security
committee
that
I
run,
which
is
the
police
and
crime
panel,
is
when
we
put
serious
work
into
understanding
a
theme
we
assess
what's
happening,
what
the
people
who
we're
scrutinizing
are
doing
understand.
If
it's
great,
then
actually
we
need
to
acknowledge
that
it's
great
and
it's
done
really
well
and
if
you've
got
some
things
that
we
would
like
to
make
recommendations
for
the
future.
That's
done
enough
in
advance
that
it
makes
a
real
difference
how
it
operates
at
the
moment.
A
My
personal
view
would
be
that
some
engagement,
further
away
from
the
decision
would
be
more
useful.
So
actually,
when
we
do
run
briefings-
and
we
do
give
people
information
that
they
attend
that.
Actually
we
have
something-
that's
not
necessarily
terribly
effective
at
the
moment,
because
actually
a
challenge
is
said
at
the
very
last
minute
and
of
course,
if,
when
I
sat
in
the
hot
seat,
I'm
not
sure
everybody
understands
when
I
say
officers
have
investigated
everything
just
because
it
hasn't
happened
in
the
meeting
three
weeks
before
before
the
decision.
A
It's
happened
a
year
before
that
it
genuinely
has
happened
so
I.
Think
for
me,
there's
something
about
all
of
us
agreeing
as
members
and
understanding
what
good
scrutiny
is,
the
value
that
it
can
add,
and
actually
that
isn't
about
playing
out
politics
in
a
public
meeting
for
whoever
may
be
watching
a
webcast
meeting.
It's
about
truly
adding
value
to
the
decisions.
It's
about
truly
considering
everybody's
point
of
view
and
that
that
isn't
necessarily
what
I
see
in
the
in
the
Committees
in
this
Authority
I
wish.
A
D
Yep,
so
Andy
I
don't
really
see
a
conflict
between
spending
on
services
and
investing
in
property.
In
fact,
I
think
it's
one
of
the
great
strengths
of
this
Borough,
because
what,
by
investing
in
property,
we
generate
Revenue
which
we're
able
to
direct
towards
services
for
residents?
D
That's
why
we've
got
we're
able
to
in
in
this
budget
mtfs
we're
able
to
to
be
spending
more
more
money
on
on
services
and
we're
able
to
do
that,
because
our
property
portfolio
generates
32
million
pounds
of
32
million
pounds
of
Revenue
each
year,
which
is
double
what
we
get
from
council
tax
and
so
I'm
absolutely
clear
that
what
we've
been
doing
over
many
years
in
investing
and
having
and
maintaining
a
a
strong
sizable
property
portfolio
portfolio
is
to
the
benefit
of
our
residents.
And
we
should
continue
to
do
that.
D
What
we
don't
want
to
be
doing,
frankly,
is
being
like
a
number
of
other
councils
where
we
are
dependent
upon
council
tax
government
grants
and
we
end
up
having
to
go
cap
in
hand
to
government
looking
to
be
bailed
out,
because
we
can't
actually
provide
the
services
that
we
we
we
we
want
to
provide
as
a
minimum
and
we're
doing
much
better
than
that
and
long
may
continue.
A
And
if
I
just
may
add,
because
I've
purposefully
took
a
picture
of
the
pie,
chart,
that's
in
the
paper,
so
I
can
completely
understand
it.
Yeah
and
there's
just
a
slight
correction
about
the
figures:
John,
sorry
that
the
commercial
rents
for
our
budget,
it's
budget
between
324
will
bring
in
18.8
million
pounds
worth
of
Revenue,
which
is
32
of
our
budgeted
income,
which
is
absolutely
as
John
described,
double
what
we
get
from
council
tax.
A
Absolutely,
which
is
double
our
council
tax
and
a
nearly
treble
our
fees
and
charges
income
and,
if
I
thought
about
the
conversations
that
we
had
with
the
peer
challenge.
Team
every
single
member
of
that
team,
whether
they
are
officer
or
a
member,
was
completely
envious
of
our
ability
to
be
able
to
spend
that
revenue
on
our
services
that
we
deliver
for
residents.
So
we
can
have
an
ideological
debate
over
Andy
I.
A
A
One
of
the
reasons
why
I
take
a
lot
from
that
feedback
because
ideologically
we
can
have
different
views.
We
did
have
a
peer
challenge
team
that
came
from
a
broad
political
base.
We
had
people
that
came
from
a
very
broad
base
of
different
local
authorities.
I
think
it's
really
important
for
us,
because
we
can.
We
can
get
very
focused
on
what
we
know
about
our
Authority,
either.
A
Working
within
it
or
sitting
on
it
that
we
do
get
some
independent
and
honest
feedback
I
think
it's
really
important
that
they
saw
in
us
what
we
see
in
ourselves,
which
is
a
drive
to
be
effective,
and
this
feedback
will
help
us
do
that
and
be
more
effective
and
deliver
those
good
quality
services
for
our
residents
and
to
make
them
to
be
even
better
quality
services.
A
It's
a
real
opportunity
because,
let's
be
blunt
in
2013,
the
document
that
sits
on
our
website
doesn't
make
for
great
reading.
So
it's
important
that
we
have
something
that
truly
does
reflect
how
this
local
Authority
operates.
Today
we've
had
a
new
Chief
exec,
which
I
think
Professor.
You
joined
us
in
January,
2021
I
wanted.
D
A
Say
is
that
right,
I
was
fortunate
to
go
on
the
lead
of
the
council
last
February,
soon
to
be
having
my
anniversary
and
a
new
council
plan.
So
it's
really
important
that
we
have
a
look
at
how
we
operate
and
take
that
opportunity,
and
it's
really
pleasing
to
have
that
feedback
from
a
diverse
and
hugely
experienced
team
that
we
are
an
ambitious
council
with
a
legacy
of
strong
financial
management.
A
A
It's
heartening
that
the
peer
team
recognizes
that
Basingstoke
and
Dean
has
a
strong
desire
to
achieve
delivery
with
passionate
officers,
members
and
partners,
because
much
of
what's
articulated
in
our
council
plan,
isn't
delivered
by
us.
It's
delivered
with
the
Good
Will
of
our
partners
and
it
is
their
primary
objective
to
deliver
it.
A
It
is
all
of
those
things
that
again
we've
we
try
to
be
bold
and
do
things
and
and
John.
You
were
talking
about
our
commitment
to
the
Green
Team
when
you're
doing
new
things,
it's
really
useful
to
understand.
A
There's
lots
of
people
thought
you
won't
know
how
to
do
it.
You
you've
got
to
bring
people
with
you,
but
we
will
have
done
it
and
we
will
have
achieved
lots
of
our
objectives
and
we
would
have
done
it
collectively
in
this
Borough.
So
I'm
personally
very
pleased
that
the
peer
team
fed
back
what
they
did.
A
It
was
quite
a
tough
experience,
I
think
because,
actually,
when
it
looks
like
it's
a
good
authority,
I
think
it
is
only
right
that
they
upped
their
level
of
challenge
to
see
when
they
push
it
and
test
it
really
hard,
whether
it
can
be
demonstrated-
and
that
is
what
they
found.
So
what
we
have
done,
as
part
of
that
is
created
the
action
plan
and
the
recommendation,
that's
in
front
of
us
colleagues,
is
to
approve
the
action
plan
that
is
at
appendix
2.
A
A
A
And
Andy
I
answered
your
question
and
that
you
don't
have
the
opportunity
for
a
supplementary
question.
So
if
we
can
get
on
with
the
business
that
we
have
in
front
of
us
on
page
234,
it's
a
recommendation.
Recommendation
Academy
to
prove
the
actual
plan
of
appendix
2.
Do
I
have
your
agreement
to
do
that.
Colleagues.
Great.