Issue - meetings

The Democratic Services and Scrutiny Manager to report that the Overview and Scrutiny Committee of the 17 July 2017 on consideration of the call  in of the Cabinet’s decision of the 3^rd of July 2017 , minute number 35,resolved that the decision relating to the agreement of the Haringey Development Vehicle – Financial Close and Establishment be referred back to Cabinet to reconsider the decision before taking a final decision within 5 working days in light of the views expressed by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

Part Four Section H(Call in Procedure Rules) paragraph 10(b) of the Constitution requires that when the Overview and Scrutiny Committee decides to refer a decision back to a decision maker  then the decision taker has 5 working days to reconsider the decision before taking a final decision.

The following documents are attached:

a)    Report of the Chair of Overview and Scrutiny setting out the recommendations of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee to Cabinet following consideration of the Call In form, verbal representations considered at the Overview &Scrutiny meeting, the Cabinet reports, minutes and exempt information, relating to the Cabinet decision Haringey Development Vehicle – Financial Close and Establishment.

Additional Information

b)    Copy of the Call In form

c)    Excerpt from the draft minutes of the Cabinet held on 3^rd of July 2017.

d)    The public Cabinet Report  and public appendices on the Haringey Development Vehicle – Financial Close and Establishment.

e)    Report of the Monitoring Officer considered by the Overview and Scrutiny meeting.

f)     Report of the Strategic Director for Planning, Regeneration and Development considered by the Overview and Scrutiny meeting.

The Leader referred to the agenda which set out that this was a special meeting of the Cabinet convened, within the constitutionally required timescale of 5 working days, to re-consider the 3^rd of July Cabinet decision on the Haringey Development Vehicle Financial Close and Establishment. This was following the outcome of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting, held on the 17^th of July to consider the call in of this key decision.

Cabinet agreed that they did not require private discussion of the exempt material and would re-consider the decision in the open part of the meeting.

Councillor Wright, Chair of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, was invited to introduce his report and he spoke in relation to the 7 recommendations, agreed by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee. He acknowledged that Council Members were reaching the final stage of decision making on the HDV and thanked scrutiny Members for the number of hours spent scrutinising this decision and raising important issues.

The call-in meeting had concentrated on the risks concerning the HDV establishment which had been a long running theme in the debate about the HDV. This initiative to increase housing carried risks and Cllr Wright felt that Overview and Scrutiny were right to deliberate this to understand what position to take.

In their deliberations, the Overview and Scrutiny had considered: public policy outcomes, the much-needed increase in housing and in particular social housing. The Council had a public duty to families on waiting lists for housing and this had also been a paramount issue in the Overview and Scrutiny discussions.

The Overview and Scrutiny recommendations were focussed on: need to provide target rents, support people failed by the housing market, ensure that there was a clear prioritisation on the right of return, ensuring that the exclusivity arrangements provided value for money and can be monitored through the HDV process,  providing a public company which secured public interests for housing, ensuring that there were   separate and specific member roles to take forward the interests of residents in respect of  housing and employment without any conflict, full engagement by HDV staff in the scrutiny process, and supporting the social and community use of  the commercial portfolio buildings.

The Cabinet Member for Housing, Regeneration and Planning and thanked the Overview and Scrutiny Committee for their recommendations and responded as follows:

a)    Clarification of what the overall numbers of social homes at target will be for Site 1 allocations immediately, as well as a clear commitment to a net increase in homes available for social housing at target rent.

The Cabinet Member reiterated that there can be no definitive statement at the present time about the overall total number of homes, or the homes of different tenures, on the first phase of development sites.  This would only be clear once the schemes have been fully worked up, in collaboration with local people, and based in part of the detailed needs of existing residents and after the formal planning process had been  ...  view the full minutes text for item 46