Issue - meetings

[To be introduced by the Cabinet Member for Environment. Report of the Assistant Director for Environment and Community Safety] The report sets out the proposed Cabinet response to the recommendations of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee Review of Finsbury Park Events, which was carried out over the summer of 2015.

The Leader introduced the Cabinet Response to the Scrutiny Review and welcomed the wide ranging set of recommendations which indicated a significant amount of work to be completed between now and the summer period, before events began.

In response to Councillor Engert’s question on the number of attendees that triggered an increase in security at events and whether this was appropriate, it was noted that the Parks Service along with partners were taking forward a lessons learned exercise following each large event to ensure that required actions were immediately applied to the next event i.e. the lessons learned from the Wireless event in August was applied to the September event at the Park.

In response to Councillor Engert’s question on the co-ordination between the Council and Islington Council to ensure that they did not have football matches or concerts at the Emirates stadium on the same day as events at Finsbury Park, it was noted that there were not major events in the Park during the summer holidays .There had been events on the same home match days at Arsenal but the start times had been organised to have less impact on the transport links and local area.

In response to Councillor Carter’s question about the sale of tobacco at a pavilion in Finsbury Park and whether this was appropriate given the Councils responsibility for health. It was noted that for future events there would be   smaller stalls. This would be a booth which was unmarked and without colourful advertising.

The Leader responded to Councillor Carter’s wider point on the Council’s responsibility for health with some good news that the Council would be leading and working with Islington Council on a government backed health devolution project which would be considering how local authorities can use existing and new policies to improve public health.

RESOLVED

To agree the responses to the Overview and Scrutiny report recommendations (attached as Appendix 1).