Agenda item

To receive reports from Cabinet Members on their portfolios.

Cllr T Adams – Strategy, Countrywide Working and External Partnerships, Performance, Communications, HR & Legal Services.

Cllr H Blathwayt – Coast

Cllr A Brown – Planning & Enforcement

Cllr W Fredericks – Housing and People Services

Cllr C Ringer – IT, Environmental & Waste Services

Cllr L Shires – Finance, Estates & Assets

Cllr J Toye – Sustainable Growth

Cllr A Varley – Climate Change & Net Zero

Cllr L Withington – Community, Leisure & Outreach (Including Health & Wellbeing)

Members are reminded that they may ask questions of the Cabinet Member on their reports and portfolio areas but should note that it is not a debate.

No member may ask more than one question plus a supplementary question, unless the time taken by members’ questions does not exceed 30 minutes in total, in which case, second questions will be taken in the order that they are received (Constitution, Chapter 2, part 2, section 12.2)

The Chair invited members to ask questions. He reminded them that it was not a debate and the session was limited to 30 minutes.

Cllr G Mancini-Boyle asked Cllr A Varley, Portfolio Holder for Climate Change & Net Zero, if he was willing to admit that the Council would not be able to achieve Net Zero by 2030 – as originally pledged. Cllr Varley replied that the current administration had done a huge amount to achieve Net Zero. He referred to the Conservative-led County Council which had never declared a climate emergency and said that he would urge opposition colleagues to encourage their county council counterparts to do so. He strongly rebutted the assertion that the Administration was ‘virtue signalling’ and gave the examples of millions of pounds of warm homes funding distributed to residents, the installation of solar panels on NNDC buildings, including leisure centres and the provision of astute eco advice to businesses to assist them in reducing their carbon footprint. Cllr Mancini-Boyle replied that he would like a response as to whether Cllr Varley believed that Net Zero would be achieved by 2030. He went onto say that the Council’s waste collection service produced carbon emissions and would continue to do so until they were able to operate with Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (HVO). He believed that the Council was not investing in the right projects to show demonstrate that it was seriously committed to achieving Net Zero. Cllr Varley said that he had already provided an answer.

Cllr R Macdonald asked Cllr C Ringer, Portfolio Holder for IT, Waste and Environmental Services, about the reference to environmental crime in his portfolio report (page 53) and asked for more information on these figures as they indicated that levels had doubled in the last six months. Cllr Ringer replied that an increase in figures was not always a bad thing. In this case it showed that efforts to ensure compliance was working. He added that the recently introduced booking system at recycling centres may have exacerbated fly-tipping.

Cllr V Holliday asked Cllr L Shires, Portfolio Holder for Finance, Estates & Assets, about recent findings from Box Power, a not for profit energy consultancy, NNDC overpaid for electricity by 9 pence per kilowatt hour (KH)compared to the best performing councils. NNDC was paying 31.5p per KH compared to 22.2 pence at the best performing council. She asked how much could have been saved annually, had NNDC obtained a better deal and how soon contracts could be renegotiated. Cllr Shires thanked her for her question and bringing the matter to her attention. She said that she would look into it and provide an answer, adding that she would be like to meet with Cllr Holliday to discuss it further, rather than simply providing a written response.

Cllr M Gray asked Cllr C Ringer if he would join him in thanking the Council’s Civil Contingency Team in keeping the public safe at this time of year, especially with extreme weather events and the ongoing challenge of rising sea levels. Cllr Ringer agreed and added that he also wished to thank other agencies too such as the volunteer flood wardens. They constantly had to adapt to new challenges as well as ongoing issues.

Cllr L Paterson asked Cllr A Varley about the Net Zero target date of 2030. He was supporting of reducing emissions but was concerned about the cost and asked about the return on investment to achieve Net Zero. He added that technologies were getting cheaper over time and wondered if it was always the best approach to move quickly. Cllr Varley replied that regarding the financial aspect, projects and initiatives were always factored into budgets. He went onto say that the use of HVO would decrease emissions by more than half but the financial implications of making such a switch needed to be considered. He concluded by saying that the Council was sticking to its 2030 target and acknowledged that it would become increasingly challenging as the journey progressed. He said that if any members had ideas for any initiatives to share them.

Cllr T FitzPatrick asked Cllr Varley about the 110k tree planting project. He said that this was the first and easiest step on the Net Zero journey. He said that young tree survival was crucial to the long-term success of the project and he asked how many of the trees that had been planted had survived and whether ongoing survival was tracked. Cllr Varley said that the tree planting project had been hugely successful thanks to his predecessor, Cllr N Lloyd. He went onto say that following the planting, it was down to private landowners and community groups to ensure that the trees thrived, with knowledge imparted by NNDC. Cllr FitzPatrick pushed for a figure on how many had survived and Cllr Varley replied that it was not possible to ascertain this information as most of the planting was on private land.

Cllr S Butikofer asked Cllr J Toye, Portfolio Holder for Sustainable Growth, about the reference in his portfolio report on business activity in the district’s towns and asked what more could be done to support businesses in rural areas. Cllr Toye replied that 80& of North Norfolk businesses had 10 or fewer employees and the Council worked hard to signpost them to the website for support and information as well as signing up to the newsletter so that they can be contacted and engaged with.

Cllr A Fitch-Tillett asked Cllr L Shires about the decision to remove the provision of parking permits on the promenade for the Cromer Lifeboat crew and the impact of this, as they would now have to park a considerable distance away. Cllr Shires replied that this was a not a true account of the situation and said that she would be happy to meet with the person who had informed Cllr Fitch-Tillett of this and discuss the matter further.

Cllr A Fletcher asked Cllr W Fredericks about the ‘Better off’ calculator, referred to on page 35 of her portfolio report. Cllr Fredericks replied that it was now live on the Council’s website and it was better than most other online calculators. She asked members to spread the word.

Cllr C Cushing asked Cllr Fredericks about the process for re-registration of people on the Housing Register, as referred to in her portfolio report, was up to date and asked whether there was an update to the figure in the report and also, what precautions were being taken to ensure that no one was inadvertently left off the list. Cllr Fredericks replied that there was no update as yet as the process was ongoing. She said that when the Council had not heard from someone, they took a proactive approach and tried to contact them to check that they were actively looking for a home. They would also enquire about their circumstances and if necessary, refer them to the Council’s Financial Inclusion team for additional support. She added that Cllr Boyle would provide an update in December.

Cllr K Toye asked Cllr Fredericks if the Severe Weather Emergency Protocol (SWEP) had been activated due to the recent cold weather. Cllr Fredericks replied that Council staff actively sought out any rough sleepers if the temperature dropped below zero and offered them blankets and hot food.

Cllr L Vickers asked Cllr Ringer about the reference in his portfolio holder report to the introduction of a food waste collection service in the latter half of 2025 and asked whether this was achievable given the very short deadline. Cllr Ringer said that was a typing error and it was the end of 2026 not 2025. He said that Council officers were working very hard to achieve this date. Food waste caddies had been ordered and should be received in mid-2026.  Cllr Vickers asked that her thanks were passed onto the Environmental Services Team, which had been very helpful in addressing residents’ concerns in Fakenham recently.

Cllr P Neatherway said that he wanted to thank the Council’s waste collection service for resolving several recent issues in Knapton and the surrounding area. He asked Cllr Ringer if there was an update on the situation, as he understood the problems were caused by a waste vehicle. Cllr Ringer said that normal service had already resumed. There had been a couple of breakdowns recently but the crew always worked hard to catch up when issues arose.