Issue - meetings

Councillor W Stamp asked the Leader of the Council for an update on any meeting he had attended with Essex County Council (ECC) regarding levelling up along with any other outside body meeting that was relevant to / that all Members should be aware of.  She requested that a regular item be added to the Council agenda to keep Members up to date with any meetings he was attending.  In response the Leader advised that although the Government and Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) had said the Council was a level one authority, ECC had not included the Council as a level one authority under Everyone’s Essex.  The Leader and Officers had met with ECC who advised that the Government had only included Maldon District Council (MDC) as a level one due to its lack of infrastructure and rural nature.  He provided further information and confirmed he would continue lobbying for the Council to be included and sought Members’ support of this.  The Leader advised he would write to the local Members of Parliament and highlighted the importance for MDC to be a level one Council if devolution went ahead.  In respect of other meetings, the Leader advised he had attended the Greater Essex Leaders’ meetings and an initial meeting with Officers from North Essex Parking Partnership.  He would be lobbying the Parking Partnership to ensure that in terms of its action plan it took into account the rural district and rural economic development needs.

Councillor A S Fluker asked the Leader of the Council if he would agree with him and pay tribute to Mr Ghela and Mr Swords, two Council Officers, who went the extra mile on Friday 8 December 2023 to assist a vulnerable constituent with a safeguarding issue.  He asked the Director of Service Delivery to pass on his thanks to those Officers.

Councillor Fluker then referred to policies brought forward by the Leader of the Council and how he felt the emerging savings policies were Officer led initiatives and how excluding investment income the Council’s annual deficits would soon be in excess of £2.5 million.  He asked the Leader if he could tell residents, in his capacity of Leader of the Maldon District Independent Group, what his policy was on making savings and whether he had any.  In response the Leader advised how he had recently had a meeting with other Group Leaders, including the District Support Group, where they went through the Corporate Plan and identified what their priorities were.  He had since discussed this with the Corporate Leadership Team to focus on what had to be done in 2024 / 25 in terms of priorities, focus, cost effectiveness and balancing the budgets.  He disputed the annual deficit amount Councillor Fluker referred to.  The Leader advised how within the next six months, based on the resident survey an update to the Corporate Plan would be undertaken.  He reiterated the importance for Members to have the opportunity to influence the Corporate Plan,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 406