Motion 1
To consider a notice of motion proposed by Councillor Jason Zadrozny and seconded by Councillor Christian Chapman, as follows:-
“Ashfield District Council notes that:
This Council therefore declares a ‘Cost of Living Emergency’ and asks the District’s 2 MPs to urgently lobby the Government to:
Motion 2
To consider a notice of motion proposed by Councillor David Hennigan and seconded by Councillor Jim Blagden, as follows:-
“Ashfield District Council would like to acknowledge the work of the time limited Covid Response and Recovery Panel / COVID-19 Recovery Scrutiny Panel. The time limited panel was set up in response to the challenges faced by the COVID-19 pandemic. The panel has been praised for leading the Council’s response to an unprecedented pandemic.
Highlights of the panel’s achievements include:
· Successfully campaigning for an asymptomatic testing centre in Sutton-in-Ashfield.
· Successfully campaigning for a vaccination centre in Hucknall.
· Ensuring business support during successive lockdowns – helping dozens of businesses with grant applications throughout the Ashfield District.
· Working with partners including the Nottinghamshire and Nottingham Clinical Commissioning Group, The Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Trust, Nottingham University Hospital’s NHS Trust, Nottinghamshire Police and the voluntary sector to deliver a ground-breaking communication’s strategy.
· Led on the formation of the COVID information officer team – working with them to support businesses across Ashfield.
· Installing hand sanitisers in all Council-run car parks.
· Worked with the Council to ensure that we not only maintained all bin collection services but enhanced them – the only Council is the UK to do this.
· Worked with schools to get 4 benches commissioned to commemorate our key workers during the pandemic. These will be located in Hucknall, Kirkby, Selston and Sutton-in-Ashfield.
This Council would like to put on record thanks to all members of Ashfield District Council who played a part in the success of the committee and the staff in Committee Services for facilitating its success and the dozens of people, retailers and health professionals from across the community who gave evidence to assist the panel in its work.
This Council notes that the pandemic is not over and will always remain alert to the challenges faced by public health issues like this. This Council pledges to ensure that public health and fighting health inequalities will continue to be central to everything Ashfield District Council does.”
Minutes:
The Council received a notice of motion moved by Councillor Jason Zadrozny and seconded by Councillor Christian Chapman.
Members were asked to note an amendment to paragraph 5 of the motion, with the number of pupils claiming free school meals being corrected from 17,987 to 5,076.
“Ashfield District Council notes that:
· Prices are continuing to rise at their fastest rate for 40 years with food costs, particularly for bread, cereal and meat, climbing. UK inflation, the rate at which prices rise, edged up to 9.1% in the 12 months to May, from 9% in April according to the Office for National Statistics. (ONS)
· On 1 April 2022, Ofgem increased the energy price cap by 54 per cent. In light of the increased energy price cap, the average standard tariff energy bill will increase by £693 per year. The average pre-pay meter energy bill will increase by £708 per year (Ofgem, 2022)
· On 6 April 2022, the Government increased National Insurance by 1.25 percentage points, which is projected to cost the average Ashfield family an additional £108 per year.
· The Government has suspended the pensions ‘triple lock’ for 2022/3, meaning that Ashfield’s 24,919 pensioners (ONS) will see a rise of 3.1 per cent this year (instead of 8.3 per cent under the triple lock formula). This year, this will cost an Ashfield resident on the full new state pension an average of £487, and for an Ashfield resident on the full basic state pension an average of £373 (TUC, 2022)
· The number of pupils known to be eligible for and claiming free school meals in the Ashfield District is 5,076 – which is 28.2% of all pupils. This is the highest figure since records began. Thousands of Ashfield families face destitution and hunger as their earnings are just over the threshold for free school meals.
· According to the Trussell Trust, food banks in the food charity network provided more than 2.1 million emergency food parcels between 1 April 2021 and 31 March 2022. Of these, 832,000 were for children. This represents an 81% increase compared to the same period five years ago.
This Council therefore declares a ‘Cost of Living Emergency’ and asks the District’s 2 MPs to urgently lobby the Government to:
· Reduce the standard rate of VAT from 20 per cent to 17.5 per cent, saving the average Ashfield household a further £600 this year.
· Re-introduce the pensions triple lock to support Ashfield’s pensioners.
· Re-introduce the £20 Universal Credit uplift immediately.”
Having been fully considered, the motion was put to the vote and it was
RESOLVED
that this Council duly declares a ‘Cost of Living Emergency’ and asks the District’s 2 MPs to urgently lobby the Government to:
· Reduce the standard rate of VAT from 20 per cent to 17.5 per cent, saving the average Ashfield household a further £600 this year;
· Re-introduce the pensions triple lock to support Ashfield’s pensioners;
· Re-introduce the £20 Universal Credit uplift immediately.
(During consideration of this item and in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 30, it was moved by Councillor Jason Zadrozny and seconded by Councillor David Hennigan that Procedure Rules 10 (Duration of Meeting) and 23 (Conclusion of Proceedings) be suspended, for the duration of the meeting, to enable all matters on the agenda to be satisfactorily concluded. Having been put to the vote, the Council agreed with this course of action.)