Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Doug Barrow, Sir Mark Boleat, the Rt. Hon. The Lord Mayor Alderman Charles Bowman, Deputy Jamie Ingham Clark, Deputy Joyce Nash, and Deputy John Tomlinson.

Deputy Catherine McGuinness declared a potential pecuniary interest in respect of Item 8 by virtue of her ownership of a property at Bryer Court, Barbican. She advised that she did not consider this relevant for the purposes of the item under discussion but would withdraw from the Chair and that the Deputy Chairman would take the Chair for consideration of this item.

John Scott and Deputy Dr Giles Shilson declared non-pecuniary interests in respect of Item 25 as members of Gresham College Council.

To consider minutes as follows:-

The public minutes of the meeting of the Policy and Resources Committee held on 5 July 2018 were approved, subject to Andrew McMurtrie’s apologies being recorded.

Matters Arising

London Living Wage: It was advised that the scheduled report from the Chamberlain concerning the London Living Wage would now be presented in October.

Fireworks: It was advised that the Assistant Town Clerk & Culture Mile Director would be taking this issue forward.

The draft public minutes of the Resource Allocation Sub-Committee meeting held on 5 July 2018 were noted.

The draft public minutes of the Projects Sub-Committee meeting held on 18 July 2018 were noted.

The draft public minutes of the Public Relations and Economic Development Sub-Committee meeting held on 25 July 2018 were noted.

To receive a resolution from the Establishment Committee concerning the creation of sub-committees.

The Committee received a resolution from the Establishment Committee in relation to the creation of sub-committees and working parties and the associated impact on staff resource costs. It was noted that the Finance Committee had echoed these comments at its July meeting.

Following discussion, the Chairman advised that she would discuss the numbers of Sub-Committees and Working Parties of this Committee with the Town Clerk and the three Deputy Chairmen in the first instance and also encourage other Grand Committee Chairmen to consider arrangements in relation to their respective areas. The suggestion of utilising task and finish groups more often in future, rather than establishing new Working Parties and Sub-Committees, was also made.

Report of the Town Clerk.

This item was withdrawn.

Report of the Assistant Town Clerk and Culture Mile Director.

The Committee considered a report of the Assistant Town Clerk &  Culture Mile Director proposing sponsorship of The Tower Remembers, a large-scale visual commemoration at the Tower of London intended to mark the centenary of the end of the First World War.

RESOLVED: That approval be given to the sponsorship of Historic Royal Palaces’ The Tower Remembers 2018 event, at a cost of £25,000 to be paid for from the 2018/19 Committee Contingency Fund and charged to City’s Cash.

Report of the Director of the Built Environment.

The Committee considered a report of the Director of the Built Environment in relation to the future of the Bank on Safety experimental scheme.

The Chairman of the Planning & Transportation Committee spoke to introduce the report reminding Members that, due to the nature of experimental traffic orders and the rules surrounding them, any decision would need to be either to keep them as they currently were, or reject them. He advised that Counsel’s opinion had been clear that it would not be permissible to amend the experimental order at this stage.

During discussion, Members debated the possibility of making any decision to confirm the experimental traffic order conditional upon a further experimental traffic order being implemented immediately, which would be designed to assess the feasibility and impact of adding north-south and east-west routes through the junction for taxis. A number of Members spoke to oppose this suggestion, noting that the forthcoming “All Change at Bank” project would be looking amongst the future of the junction more widely, including the potential for future taxi access, and urged that this project not be constrained at this early stage. A wide range of views were expressed and, ultimately, it was agreed that the decision in relation to the experimental order should not be made conditional upon any further experiment.

The timing of the experimental traffic order was queried, with it commented that the fact that the hours did not correspond with those in which the Congestion Charge applied had led to some confusion. The Chairman of Planning & Transportation undertook to look into this matter with officers.

Members also discussed the issue of delays associated with delivery vans and vehicles loading and unloading over extended periods, which blocked traffic lanes and contributed to traffic congestion. The Chairman of Planning & Transportation assured Members that this

Report of the Director of the Built Environment.

The Deputy Chairman took the Chair for consideration of this item as Deputy Catherine McGuinness had declared an interest at Item 2.

The Committee considered a report of the Director of the Built Environment concerning transportation and public realm improvements in the Beech Street area.

RESOLVED: That:-

1.      An increase in the estimated project budget of £1,526,435, to £1,745,362 to fund the project to Gateway 4 be approved, subject to the procurement of the relevant consultancy appointments;

2.      The allocation of Public Realm and Local Transport Improvement CIL funds to fund the development of the project to Gateway 4 be approved;

3.      Authority be delegated to the Director of the Built Environment in conjunction with the Chamberlain’s Head of Finance for any adjustments between elements of the budget provided the total approved budget of £1,745,362 (subject to procurement) is not exceeded and the scope remains unchanged;

4.      The vision for Beech Street, which includes the reduction of traffic, improvements to the public realm, widening of footways and improvements in air quality, be noted;

5.      The separation of the podium water-proofing, property redevelopment and transportation & public realm projects, to follow individual Gateway paths and reporting times be noted;

6.      The results of the traffic and public realm work completed to date be noted; and

7.      The key project risks, next steps and programme be noted.

Report of the Director of the Built Environment.

The Committee received a report of the Director of the Built Environment reviewing the uses of the City’s permanent Anti-Terrorism Traffic Regulation Order during 2017.

RESOLVED: That the report be received and its content noted.

Report of the Town Clerk.

The Committee considered a report of the Town Clerk proposing the adoption of a Corporate Volunteering Strategy for 2018-23.

The Chairman observed that reference should be made within the strategy to partner organisations with whom the City Corporation managed volunteers, such as Heath Hands and the Epping Forest Heritage Trust. It would be important to acknowledge their significant contributions and make clear that the City Corporation did not act in isolation in these areas.

RESOLVED: That the proposed final version of the Corporate Volunteering Strategy be approved, subject to the items raised at the meeting being incorporated, and the next steps for its delivery be noted.

Report of the Chief Grants Officer and Director of the City Bridge Trust.

The Committee considered a report of the Chief Grants Officer & Director of The City Bridge Trust proposing the adoption of a social mobility strategy for 2018-28. A resolution of the Public Relations & Economic Development (PRED) Sub-Committee, which had considered the strategy at its 3 September 2018 meeting, was also circulated.

Members suggested that the strategy should also refer to work with and for the benefit of Londoners generally and not be limited solely to those in the City.

One suggestion that had been raised at the PRED Sub-Committee meeting was the potential to improve social mobility through tackling the “summer holiday learning loss”, whereby children from disadvantaged backgrounds regressed in respect of learning during the long summer break, or suffered in other ways, particularly in respect of nutrition. Members discussed this proposal, with it suggested that a more holistic and ambitious approach including activities and classes might also be considered. It was noted that this might represent a significant financial commitment and might best be administered through a third party with relevant specialism, rather than by the City Corporation directly. The Committee expressed its support for this proposal being explored further.

RESOLVED: That the proposed final version of the Social Mobility Strategy be approved, subject to the items raised at the meeting being incorporated, and the next steps for its delivery be noted.

Joint report of the Director of Community & Children’s Services and the Director of Economic Development.

The Committee considered a joint report of the Director of Community & Children’s Services and the Director of Economic Development proposing the adoption of a Digital Skills Strategy for 2018-23.

RESOLVED: That the proposed final version of the Digital Skills Strategy be approved and the next steps for its delivery be noted.

Report of the Director of the Museum of London.

The Committee considered a report of the Director of the Museum of London which outlined the activity that the current funding for the Culture Mile Learning (CML) partnership had supported to date, together with a budget request for the next funding period and a summary of the activity to be undertaken using these monies.

RESOLVED: That Members:-

1.     Approve the continued development of Culture Mile Learning.

2.     Approve the release funding of £150,000 for 2018/19 available from the provision in the Medium Term Financial Plan.

3.     Note that the release of the funds required for the 2019/20 financial year will be subject to further approvals in due course.

Joint report of the Remembrancer and the Director of Economic Development.

The Committee considered a joint report of the Remembrancer and the Director of Economic Development proposing membership of the Indo-British All-Party Parliamentary Group.

RESOLVED: That approval be given to the City of London Corporation becoming a member of the Indo-British APPG at a cost of £3,000, as well as the allocation of an additional £3,000 to support a financial services parliamentary breakfast seminar with senior City Corporation representation, both to be funded from the 2018/19 Policy Initiatives Fund, categorised under “Promoting the City” and charged to City’s Cash.

Report of the Director of Economic Development.

The Committee considered a report of the Director of Economic Development proposing a dinner be hosted for the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development.

RESOLVED: That approval be given to a budget of £12,000 to host a dinner for the Board of the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development, to be funded from the 2018/19 Policy Initiatives Fund categorised under ‘Events’ and charged to City’s Cash.

Report of the Director of Communications.

The Committee considered a report of the Director of Communications proposing sponsorship of a Fabian Society publication and the Centre for London’s 2018 London Conference.

RESOLVED: That approval be given to sponsorship of The Centre for London’s 2018 London Conference at a cost of £25,000 and he Fabian Society’s ‘London: Policy and Challenges into the 2020s’ publication at a cost of £18,500, to be funded from the 2018/19 Policy Initiatives Fund categorised as ‘Events’ and charged to City’s Cash.

Joint report of the Town Clerk, Chamberlain and Remembrancer.

The Committee received a joint report of the Town Clerk, Chamberlain and Remembrancer presenting the revenue outturn for the services overseen by the Committee in 2017/18 with the final budget for the year.

A revised version of Appendix 2 was tabled.

RESOLVED: That the report be received and its content noted.

Report of the Chamberlain.

The Committee received a report of the Chamberlain which set out the use of the Policy Initiatives Fund and Committee’s Contingency for 2018/19.

It was asked that the Town Clerk and Chamberlain review the arrangements associated with requests for monies from the Policy Initiatives Fund which straddled multiple years.

RESOLVED: That the report be received and its content noted.

Report of the Town Clerk.

The Committee received a report of the Town Clerk advising of several decisions taken under urgency procedures or delegated authority arrangements since the last meeting.

RESOLVED: That the report be received and the actions taken under urgency procedures and delegated authority be noted.

Report of the Director of Economic Development (TO FOLLOW).

The Committee received a report of the Director of Economic Development outlining a planned campaign in 2018/19 to encourage financial and professional services businesses in the Square Mile to pay the London Living Wage.

In response to queries, the Chamberlain confirmed that a report would be presented in October concerning accreditation arrangements in respect of the City Corporation’s suppliers and the timing of future Living Wage payments. It was noted that a formal request for funding to commence the planned campaign outlined in the report currently being considered would be presented alongside this.

RESOLVED: That the report be received and its content noted.

There were four questions:

Length of Reports

A Member requested that thought be given as to how the length of reports and overall size of agenda packs might be reduced, with more succinct and focused papers to aid decision making.

Members’ Email Policy

It was asked whether further thought could be given in relation to whether calendar invitations could be sent to the personal accounts of Members, following concerns expressed by some in relation to the practicalities of diary management. Following advice from the Comptroller & City Solicitor, it was subsequently agreed that calendar invitations could be sent to personal accounts, providing they did not contain any personal data. The email policy would therefore be amended to reflect this.

RESOLVED: That the Members’ email policy be amended to allow for calendar invitations to be sent to private email addresses, provided no sensitive or personal data was included within the invite.

Access to Meetings

It was asked that a report be provided to the next meeting of the Committee in relation to the possibility of dialling-in to certain meetings or joining them remotely. 

Project Management

In response to a question concerning resourcing requirements associated with project management, particularly given the major new projects to be delivered in the coming period, the Town Clerk was asked to look at the issue and how this area was resourced moving forwards.

The Committee considered a report of the Director of Economic Development proposing that a new recruitment round be commenced as soon as possible to identify a Managing Director for the City of London Corporation office in Brussels.

RESOLVED: That the commencement of the new recruitment process and the composition of the interview panel be agreed as detailed in the report.

MOTION - That under Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part I of the Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act.

RESOLVED – That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act.

To consider non-public minutes of meetings as follows:-

The non-public minutes of the Policy and Resources Committee meeting held on 5 July 2018 were approved.

The draft non-public minutes of the Resource Allocation Sub-Committee meeting held on 5 July 2018 were noted.

The draft minutes of the informal away day of the Resource Allocation Sub-Committee held on 6 and 7 July 2018 were noted.

The draft non-public minutes of the Projects Sub-Committee meeting held on 18 July 2018.

The draft non-public minutes of the Public Relations and Economic Development Sub-Committee meeting held on 25 July 2018 were noted.

Report of the Town Clerk.

The Committee considered and approved a report of the Town Clerk concerning the funding arrangements for Gresham College.

Report of the Director of Economic Development.

The Committee considered and approved a report of the Director of Economic Development concerning the Green Finance Institute.

Joint report of the City Surveyor and the Director of Markets and Consumer Protection.

The Committee considered and approved a joint report of the City Surveyor and the Director of Markets & Consumer Protection concerning the strategic review of markets.

Report of the City Surveyor.

To be considered in conjunction with a resolution of The City Bridge Trust Committee and various appendices circulated as part of a separate appendices pack.

The Committee considered and approved a report of the City Surveyor concerning the future use of 20/21 Aldermanbury. A resolution of The City Bridge Trust Committee relating to the report was also received.

Report of the City Surveyor.

The Committee considered a report of the City Surveyor concerning the purchase of event chairs for Guildhall.

There was one question, concerning the Managing Director (Brussels) post.

There were no urgent items.