Agenda item

To receive a report from the Leader of the Council in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 2.4.

During his report the Leader covered the following areas:

• Ramsgate had been selected for High Street Heritage Action Zone funding from Historic England.
• Ramsgate had reached the second round in its application for Future High Street Funding.
• Margate had been selected as one of 100 towns in England eligible for the New Town Deal, potentially there was £25million available.
• The annual residents survey would soon be sent to 6000 randomly selected residents across the District.
• The Thanet RISE team, who worked with the homeless, had been shortlisted for the Team of the Year award at the Kent Housing Group Excellence Awards.
• The Council had been working to put contingency plans in place to mitigate the disruption of services as a result of Brexit.
• Recent repair work had been carried out on the Newgate Gap Shelter in the interest of public safety. The shelter was on the asset transfer list and expressions of interest had been received.
• East Kent Housing’s health and safety management failings were totally unacceptable, the Council was working with the regulator for social housing and specialist advisors to recover the situation as quickly as possible.  Cabinet would meet on 17 October to consider a report recommending that a resident consultation was begun immediately to bring the management of the  Council’s housing stock back in-house.
• Thanks were offered to everyone who had helped to make the Margate look its best for the Turner Prize.

Councillor Everitt as Leader of the Labour Party responded with the following points:

• Westwood Cross shopping centre had been a success however local high streets had suffered, so it was good to hear of funding for Ramsgate and Margate. The work of the Ramsgate Town Team and the Town Promoter should be recognised.
• Officers had done a lot of work to prepare for Brexit.
• The annual residents survey was likely to identify the cleanliness of the streets, reliability of refuse collection and cutting of grass as top priorities.
• The Council’s communication around the issues at Ramsgate Port should be improved as there was a lot of misinformation around.  Councillor Everiit had viewed the legal advice in relation to the purchase of the pontoons at Ramsgate Port and believed it to be sound.

The Leader replied to Councillor Everitt’s comments with the following points:

• The Council repeatedly highlighted the potential impacts of Brexit on the District to ministers.
• Cleaning services had been stretched over the summer, there had been a focus on the prominent parts of the District, such as sea fronts, in response to the large number of visitors to the area.
• It was agreed that communications surrounding Ramsgate Port should be looked at.

Councillor Reverend Piper as leader of the Thanet Independents Party made the following points:

• It was good to hear of the funding for Ramsgate and Margate.  In addition to the Ramsgate Town Team and Promoter, acknowledgment should also be given to former Councillor Lin Fairbrass for her efforts in promoting the area.
• The work of the Thanet RISE team deserved recognition.
• The East Kent Housing situation was very serious and required very serious action to bring about a swift resolution.
• It was good that those outside of the District had honoured the District by choosing to hold the Turner Prize here. 

The Leader replied to Councillor Reverend Piper’s comments with the following points:

• If the bid for funding for Margate was successful, the community and stakeholders would be engaged to ensure that the money was used properly.

Councillor Roper as Leader the Green Party made the following points:

• He wished every success for the Ramsgate High Street Action Zone, and it was encouraging to hear of funding for Margate.  However there were other parts of the District that also needed funding.
• It was marvellous that such a prestigious event as the Turner Prize was held in Thanet.
• It was hoped that the Council’s housing stock would be bought back in-house.
• There should be more open debate, more scrutiny and a more open communication system with Members and members of the public.  All Councillors should work together to improve the services within Thanet.

The Leader replied to Councillor Roper’s comments noting that he felt that he had been open and had attended every scrutiny meeting since Annual Council in May.

Councillor Parsons left the meeting during this item.