Issue - meetings

Report of the Director of Placemaking and Housing.  To be introduced by the Leader of the Council.

The Leader of the Council introduced the report which set out an Independent External Property review, and sought approval for the External Property Review Action Plan which set out how the twelve recommendations from the Independent Property Review would be addressed.

The Cabinet welcomed the report, and noted the importance of including all aspects of the report in the public domain.

In response to questions from Councillor Barnes, the following was noted:

-       It was impossible to change decisions that had been made in the past, however there were now processes and procedures in place to ensure that any future decisions would be robust and not a repeat of past incidents.

-       Scrutiny was an important function of the Council and the Cabinet took the function very seriously.

RESOLVED

1.            To accept and agree with all recommendations from the Independent External Property review contained in Appendix A

2.            To approve the External Property Review Action Plan, in appendix B, to address the twelve recommendations arising from the Independent External Property Review.

Reasons for decision

The Independent External Property review (“The Review”) was commissioned so that lessons could be learnt from previous property transactions.  The Review was commissioned by the Leader and the Chief Executive.  The Terms of reference were agreed with the Leader of the Opposition who also had the opportunity meet with the Independent reviewer when the report was completed.  

A full review of the current governance, policy and processes had taken place prior to this review, as reflected in the body of The Review.  The council are carrying out further improvements within all areas of property and Asset Management, which will brought to the next cabinet meeting in April 2023, as part of our Strategic Asset Management and Property strategy update. 

The recommendations will be completed within the next 12 months, as per the action plan in appendix B.  The combined implementation of the 12 recommendations and the ongoing wider council work around our strategic management of property; ensures that the council are continuing to move in the right direction and have robust processes in place, with regards to its management of property.

Alternative options considered

Rejecting or accepting in part the recommendations of this Independent External Property review.  - This alternative option was rejected, as it would not be in keeping with the original intent of this Independent External Property review, would not instil confidence going forward in relation to property transactions, by learning lessons from the past and would not reflect the direction and cultural change the council is embarking upon.