Agenda item

The Leader, or his nominee, to answer any questions raised by members of the public in accordance with Standing Order 13.

The Mayor reported that, under Standing Order 14, five questions had been received from members of the public.

Question from A McLuskey:

“Given concern over recent flooding in Spelthorne, can the Leader explain what has been done since the 2014 inundations to protect life and prosperity in the area?”

Response from Councillor I Beardsmore, Chair of the Environment and Sustainability Committee:

“Thank you for your question, Mr McLuskey. At the time of the floods in 2014, a considerable amount of assistance was given to those affected by the flooding from the River Thames. Property protection advice and grants were subsequently given to the owners of properties likely to flood in order to help build resilience. However, the key scheme to mitigate any future flooding is the River Thames Scheme, which is now progressing well, having secured the necessary funding to build it. This Council has demonstrated its support for the scheme by committing to provide a £1.3m capital contribution towards the development costs.

As this is a large infrastructure project there are inevitably processes to go through, including the need to obtain a Development Consent Order, all of which take time. At present this scheme is in the pre-application stage and it is anticipated that following the required consultation processes, the Development Consent Order should be submitted to the Planning Inspectorate in winter 2024. If successful in the planning process, construction of this scheme would then start in winter 2026, with completion scheduled for winter 2030.

Surrey County Council is the strategic flood risk authority and also responsible for surface water flooding, but we have worked closely with Surrey’s team to identify causes of surface water flooding in the Borough and put in measures to mitigate that flooding, including in areas such as Guildford Street and Milton Gardens.

We are very aware of the potential significant flooding issues in the Borough, and not only work closely with partners to address the issues, but also have in place comprehensive emergency plans should flooding occur.”

Question from Julie Fegredo:

“Are the Councillors that are reported in the local government report on Spelthorne abusing their powers in asking for preferential services and disregarding the fair allocation of resources for all our borough being investigated and sanctioned – if not, why not?”

Response from the Leader of the Council, Councillor Boughtflower:

“Thank you, Madam Mayor. As this question relates to the Standards Committee, I will ask the Council’s Monitoring Officer to provide a response.”

The Monitoring Officer responded as follows:

“Thank you, Madam Mayor. The Council’s Standards Committee supports the Monitoring Officer to promote and maintain high standards of conduct by councillors. In order to achieve this, the Council has adopted the Local Government Association model Code of Conduct. Any breaches of this code is subject to has a formal complaints system which all councillors are aware of. This sets out the proper process for potential breaches of the Code of Conduct, which deals with councillor behaviours. It can be found on the Council’s website. Any complaints received will be dealt with in accordance with those procedures. It should be noted however that there is no power to disqualify any councillor.”

Question from Julie Fegredo:

“Can the Council Leader state which are the Councillors, wards or parties they represent, that are shockingly abusing their powers in the recent peer review report and should they not be disqualified from public office?”

Response from the Leader of the Council, Councillor Boughtflower:

“Thank you, Madam Mayor. As this question relates to the Standards Committee, I will ask the Council’s Monitoring Officer to provide a response.”

The Monitoring Officer responded as follows:

“Thank you, Madam Mayor. The Council’s Standards Committee supports the Monitoring Officer to promote and maintain high standards of conduct by councillors. In order to achieve this, the Council has adopted the Local Government Association model Code of Conduct. Any breaches of this code is subject to has a formal complaints system which all councillors are aware of. This sets out the proper process for potential breaches of the Code of Conduct, which deals with councillor behaviours. It can be found on the Council’s website. Any complaints received will be dealt with in accordance with those procedures. It should be noted however that there is no power to disqualify any councillor.”

Question from Julie Fegredo:

“What is the Leader doing to robustly address the abuse of Councillor privilege reported in the Spelthorne Peer Review Report when it states that some councillors are seeking preferential treatment for street cleaning, waste collection and leisure services?”

Response from the Leader of the Council, Councillor Boughtflower:

“Thank you, Madam Mayor. As this question relates to the Standards Committee, I will ask the Council’s Monitoring Officer to provide a response.”

The Monitoring Officer responded as follows:

“Thank you, Madam Mayor. The Council’s Standards Committee supports the Monitoring Officer to promote and maintain high standards of conduct by councillors. In order to achieve this, the Council has adopted the Local Government Association model Code of Conduct. Any breaches of this code is subject to has a formal complaints system which all councillors are aware of. This sets out the proper process for potential breaches of the Code of Conduct, which deals with councillor behaviours. It can be found on the Council’s website. Any complaints received will be dealt with in accordance with those procedures. It should be noted however that there is no power to disqualify any councillor.”

Question from Adrian Ulisse:

“Can the Leader of the Council advise how many Councillors are being investigated for conduct breaches of their public office, how many complaints or pending cases there have been over the past year and have these been reported to residents?”

Response from the Leader of the Council, Councillor Boughtflower:

“Thank you, Madam Mayor. As question five relates to the Standards Committee, I will ask the Council’s Monitoring Officer to provide a response.”

The Monitoring Officer responded as follows:

“Thank you, Madam Mayor. Currently there are two investigations against councillors for breaches of the Members’ Code of Conduct. There are two further complaints against councillors which are currently at the initial assessment stage. In the last year the Monitoring Officer has received a total of 14 standards complaints against councillors.”