Agenda and minutes

DECISIONS MADE BY MAYOR AND CABINET ON  3 SEPTEMBER 2014

New Homes, Better Places Phase 2 Update

The Programme Manager, Housing Matters introduced the report. Councillor Dacres commented that she was pleased to note that officers had been quite diligent in their communication with local residents. She asked why there was not sufficient information about Blackheath and was told that phase one of the project would only be concentrating on 4 sites, and Blackheath would form part of phase 2 of the project.  

Councillor John Paschoud said officers should ensure that any decision made should be reported to the appropriate Select Committee so that the proper scrutiny process was followed. Councillor Handley stated that he had discussions with the relevant officers and any further issues would be reported to the Housing Select Committee.

RESOLVED     that the decision of the Mayor be noted.

Council Tax Reduction Scheme: review of 2013/14 scheme and proposals for 2015/16

The Head of Public Services introduced the report. Councillor Mallory asked whether the savings made from the hardship allowance, and the additional money collected for Council tax had offset the cost of  bailiffs and collection of council tax debts. It was noted that cost was charged for recovery action. Referring to paragraph 8 of the report Councillor Muldoon asked how long it took to write off debt. The Head of Public Services said that as soon as someone meets the criteria their debt would be written off, but generally debts were not written off. 

Councillor Muldoon asked if officers had considered a no interest loan scheme and was told although this was not currently available, officers worked closely with Lewisham Credit Union, and would investigate the possibility of a no interest loan scheme.

Councillor John Paschoud stated that officers should be commended for the sensitive way they had handled most of the cases, and asked whether the software issues had been resolved, and was told progress was being made. Councillor Milne asked why the take up was so low, and whether it was the same for other London Boroughs. It was noted that the figures were comparable.

Councillor Mallory asked what the criteria for the hardship allowance were. He was told it was for someone who is disabled, or looking after a disabled child below the age of 5. Also over 50 and unemployed could qualify. Panel Members noted that officers relied on front line staff to communicate this information, which is also available on the website.

The Chair said that although the collection rate was higher than anticipated it was still lower than in previous years, and Business Panel would continue to scrutinise the scheme.

RESOLVED     that the decision of the Mayor be noted.

Development Management Local Plan

The meeting closed at 8:35pm.     

Chair