Issue - meetings

To debate the following motions which have been submitted with advance notice, in accordance with the Constitution (to be debated in the order submitted).

Please note that the deadline to submit motions has passed. The deadline for Members to submit amendments to motions is noon on Thursday 16 July 2020. Any amendments submitted will be published as a supplement to the agenda on the afternoon of Friday 17 July 2020. Amendments for motions will be dealt with in the order submitted. 

Resolved

(1)           That the following motion be adopted:

“Peatlands located within the UK and The Republic Of Ireland, play a vital role in absorbing and storing large amounts of carbon dioxide and thus help to mitigate climate change. This council agrees that any supplier of our bedding plants at this time and in the future will from this juncture use no more than 50% peat compost within the cultivation of our plants and that the suppliers of our bedding plants now and in the future must make the commitment to be peat-free as soon as practicable and most definitely by 2030. In making this commitment we will conserve this diminishing natural resource and help to safeguard our peatlands. 

This Council agrees that officers will investigate sustainable alternatives in relation to the design and planting of our bedding schemes which will include perennial plants that are cost-effective, insect-friendly, and attractive to pollinators.”

(for information: On being put to the vote the proposed amendment to the  motion was lost and subsequently fell)

(2)           That the following motion, as amended, be adopted:

"This council notes with concern that in the last three years this district recorded the biggest increase in child poverty in the whole of Oxfordshire. 

This council agrees that 1 in 8 children living below the poverty line in Cherwell is completely unacceptable. Reducing child poverty is and has been a long term objective for this council. The council notes the great work of ‘Brighter Futures in Banbury’ in addressing child poverty since it was set up in over 10 years ago. The  economic  impact  of  the  COVID-19  pandemic  anticipated  to  be extremely negative, and likely to exacerbate the situation.

This council commits to the following in order to continue to tackle child povertywithin the district:

·       Continuing the  'Brighter  Futures'  programme which has  continued to run throughout the pandemic. 

·       Receive annual reports to this council’s committees from the Chairman of Brighter Futures, beginning  Autumn 2020.

·       Build on the work from the Brighter Futures workstream ‘Addressing Childhood Poverty’.

·       Use the Cherwell Industrial Strategy to attract high skilled, well paid jobs to the district as part of a green revolution.

·       Work with stakeholders to take actions that improve educational attainment, reduce exploitation and provide positive activities for young people

·       Support families to reduce inactivity and health inequalities”

(3)           That the following motion be adopted:

“This Council notes recent national awareness around the Black Lives Matter Movement.

This Council believes that of course all lives matter but knows that the evidence points to BAME communities being particularly vulnerable to deprivation, poorer life chances and racism. This is reflected in, among other indicators, disproportionate deaths from Covid 19.

The Council has a good record with things like help for the Sunshine Centre, the Bretch Hill Centre, the FAST programme and Banbury Brighter Futures, but a good Council always refreshes and updates its work.

To that end the Council resolves to request Officers to consider an engagement exercise with BAME communities and individuals to effectively  ...  view the full decision text for item 20

The Chairman advised that five motions had been submitted and would be debated in the order submitted. Amendments to four of the motions had been received and published as a supplement to the agenda.

a)    Peat Free Compost

The Chairman advised Council that Councillor Banfield had withdrawn the motion she had submitted on peat free compost to the 24 February 2020 Council meeting, which had been adjourned to allow for consideration of the budgetary implications of the motion, and submitted a revised motion.

The Chairman invited Linda Newbery, a local resident, who had registered to speak on the motion, to address Council.

It was proposed by Councillor Banfield and seconded by Councillor Sames that the following motion be adopted:

“Peatlands located within the UK and The Republic Of Ireland, play a vital role in absorbing and storing large amounts of carbon dioxide and thus help to mitigate climate change. This council agrees that any supplier of our bedding plants at this time and in the future will from this juncture use no more than 50% peat compost within the cultivation of our plants and that the suppliers of our bedding plants now and in the future must make the commitment to be peat-free as soon as practicable and most definitely by 2030. In making this commitment we will conserve this diminishing natural resource and help to safeguard our peatlands. 

This Council agrees that officers will investigate sustainable alternatives in relation to the design and planting of our bedding schemes which will include perennial plants that are cost-effective, insect-friendly, and attractive to pollinators.”

Councillor Middleton proposed the following amendments to the motion which were duly seconded by Councillor Cotter:

“Peatlands located within the UK and The Republic Of Ireland, play a vital role in absorbing and storing large amounts of carbon dioxide and thus help to mitigate climate change.

This council agrees that the current any supplier of our bedding plants at this time and in the futurewill from this juncture use no more than 50% peat compost within  the cultivation of our  plants and  that the suppliers of our  bedding  plants now and  in  the future must make the commitment to  be peat-free as soon  as practicable and most definitely by 2030 by the end of their contract in 2022 they should commit to supply us with peat free plants without significant cost increases. If they are unable or unwilling to do so, officers should investigate alternative procurement options to achieve that goal. The use of peat based products will be banned from all future landscaping and supply contracts.

In making this commitment we will conserve this diminishing natural resource and help to safeguard our peatlands.

This Council agrees that officers will investigate and adopt sustainable peat free alternatives in relation to the design and planting of our bedding schemes which will include perennial plants that are drought resistant, cost-effective, insect-friendly, and attractive to pollinators.

Alternative landscaping practices such as rewilding should also be applied where possible  ...  view the full minutes text for item 20