Yesterday's Brent Cabinet completed all 10 decision items in 40 minutes, underlining the fact that this 'public meeting' merely serves as a rubber stamp with any real discussion and debate taking place elsewhere in private.
A member of the public had applied to speak on one of the items but Cllr Butt ruled that the request had not complied with the required amount of notice.
The extensive Climate Strategy item for was dealt with in just 3 minutes with Environment lead Cllr Krupa Sheth reading aloud a short prepared statement. As well as the main report there were six Appendices. We were left unenlightened about what exactly is involved in the creation of 'Sustainable Neighbourhoods' and why there were no plans for safe and accessible cycling routes in the borough.
Cllr Promise Knight was unwell so was not present for two key items including the conversion of 24 in-fill units at Watling Gardens from London Affordable Rent to Shared Ownership. The CEO had to remind Cllr Butt of an addition to the report stipulating that the change had to be approved by the Planning Committee. This appears to have been the result of Philip Grant's intervention covered on Wembley Matters HERE.
It was also left to the CEO to make a passing mention of the risks involved in the arrangements for Brent Council's purchase of hoiusing units at the Euro House development in Wembley Park.
The meeting only livened up, if you can call a couple of questions livening up, at the end when a restructure of the counci's senior management, deleting one post, was discussed.
The items and decisions can be viewed HERE
3 comments:
It was interesting to hear, on the Euro House item, Cllr Tatler waxing lyrical about all the wonderful homes Brent Council was providing here, as if she was already delivering them.
Then the reality - Carolyn Downs reminding councillors that they were merely giving authority to negotiate a possible deal along the lines suggested in the report (which also said that the earliest the homes would be available, if the Council is successful in obtaining an undertake from an "Asset Special Purpose Vehicle", is likely to be late 2025).
Meanwhile in the real world of customers without service and taxpayers without representation....
Works for flood damage completed on this house June 2022, next-door basement flat still in temporary accommodation and countless other Malvern Road Brent homes flood damaged in July 2021.
From an FOI response to FLASK on 13th June 2022, Brent states-
"No contact or request to participate in the independent London Flood
Review has been received by Brent Council."
In my comment above it should read "underlease", not "undertake". Isn't intelligent technology wonderful (sometimes)!
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