A) Councillor R Williams to move:-
Full Council notes that the LGPS is a sustainable, good quality pension scheme that benefits from being funded and locally managed. It is valuable to employers and employees alike. Successive governments have failed to recognise the distinctiveness of the LGPS in setting policy, most notably in the proposal announced by the Chancellor in the last CSR to impose an extra 3.2% contribution tax on scheme members, increasing scheme average member contributions from 6.6% to 9.8%. This tax does not benefit the scheme or scheme members or employers. This proposal is in addition to pension reductions caused by being indexed against CPI instead of RPI and is in advance of expected benefit reform recommendations from the Hutton Review.
Full Council agrees that an increase in member contributions as proposed will lead to mass opt outs from the LGPS and that would be undesirable and damaging. The views expressed by the LGA in its letter to the Chancellor dated 16 February 2011 on this subject are also the views of this Council.
Full Council therefore resolves that the Council will write to the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Chief Secretary to the Treasury and the Secretary of State for Local Government within the next month stating this Council's support for the LGA letter referred to above and calling for government to rethink its proposed increases to LGPS member contributions. The Council will work with Trade Unions to ensure employees are made aware of the proposals for the LGPS and encouraging them to support the Council's representations to defend their pension scheme.
B) Councillor P Williams to move:-
This Council welcomes the news that Prince William is to marry Kate Middleton on 29th April. The Council notes the following:
· The 9 day celebrations give a real opportunity to promote a sense of community and build a sense of pride.
· Under the previous Government local residents faced a cost of between £75 and £3000 for putting on street events.
· Southampton City Council provides free Public Liability Insurance for residents wanting to hold events; and
· the assistance to residents & traders with the setting up of street parties and events
“As part of its drive to promoting a bigger society the City Council urges all Councillors to act in their roles as community champions to promote and facilitate where possible the celebrations within the City.”
C) Councillor Smith to move:-
That the Council notes that Her Majesty The Queen has agreed that competitions may be held for a grant of Lord Mayoralty to mark Her Diamond Jubilee in 2012. Lord Mayoralty is an exceptional distinction conferred on the Mayoralties of a few, usually long established and important cities. Existing local authority cities are welcome to enter the competition by the closing date of 27 May 2011, and that this Council accordingly resolves to submit a bid of behalf of the City of Southampton.
D) Councillor Dean to move:-
That Council acknowledges that the Highway Partnership with Balfour Beatty Workplace entered on the 4th October last year has already demonstrated tangible benefits across the City.
Council notes :-
· the contractual commitment to deliver over £10m of savings over the lifetime of the contract;
· a substantial reduction in the number of outstanding highway defects; and
· the successful completion of a number of high profile road schemes such as;
o Lodge Road;
o Crest Way; and
o Shirley Road.
Council notes the commitment to:
· reinvest the savings from the Highways Partnership into the network;
· the increasing professionalism of the Council and Balfour Beatty Workplace to developing partnerships with utility companies;
· an improved resilience over the winter period with increased investment in gritting vehicles, new grit bins and additional salt stocks, leading to the Councils signing of the Winter Service Compact;
· improved communication with residents and business representatives across the City pertaining to highways issues; and
· Council notes the additional £1m investment in the City’s pavements which will result in over 40 linear miles of improved footway over and above the existing published Highways Capital programme. This is the largest single investment in pavements since the construction of our council estates in the 1950s.
Council notes that the contract is less than six months old but already provides opportunities for the local authority to invest prudently in schemes that will provide a real tangible benefit for the citizens of Southampton.
E) Councillor Vinson to move:-
This Council urges the Cabinet, in discussion for Southampton’s two universities, to adopt a threshold for the numbers of students living in private accommodation in the community and to link through the planning process future expansion in student numbers to the provision of addition purpose-built accommodation along the lines in force in Oxford.
F) Councillor Turner to move:-
Council is concerned at commercial companies mounting promotions giving out free alcohol samples to young people in the City Centre which is part of the designated alcohol fee zone and asks the Licensing Committee to investigate and if necessary bring forward proposals for regulating such promotions