Agenda and minutes

There were no apologies for absence given at this meeting.

To confirm as a correct record the minutes of the meeting of the Health and Public Protection Scrutiny Panel held on 27 October 2020.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the Health and Public Protection Scrutiny Panel meeting held on 27 October 2020 be confirmed and signed as a correct record.

There were no chairman’s announcements.

To receive any declarations of interest from members in accordance with Standing Orders and the Council’s Code of Conduct and disclosures of advice or directions received from Group Leaders or Political Groups, in accordance with the Council’s Constitution.

Councillor J G Kelly declared a non-pecuniary interest in respect of item 7(3) on the agenda as he sits on the Board of Trustees for St Mary’s Parish Hall which is located near to one of the coastal car parks.

Councillor Mrs P M Bryant also declared a non-pecuniary interest in respect of 7(3) of the agenda as she is a member of Fareham Rotary Club which owns the Wheelhouse.

To receive any deputations of which notice has been lodged.

There were no deputations made at this meeting.

To receive a presentation by the Head of Building Control which provides Members with the opportunity to scrutinise the Impact of the Grenfell Enquiry on the Council’s Building Control Service.

The Panel received a presentation by the Head of Building Control which provided members with information in respect of the impact of the Grenfell Enquiry on the Council’s Building Control Service.  A copy of the presentation is attached to these minutes as Appendix A.

Members extended thanks to the Head of Building Control for providing a very detailed and informative presentation.

RESOLVED that the Panel considered the information provided in the presentation and made comments and asked questions for clarification.

To consider any items of business dealt with by the Executive since the last meeting of the Panel, that falls under the remit of the Health and Public Protection Portfolio.  This will include any decisions taken by individual Members during the same time period.

At the invitation of the Chairman, Councillor Mrs K K Trott addressed the Panel on this item.

At the request of members, it was clarified that use of the re-deployable CCTV cameras can be requested through the Health and Public Protection Portfolio Holder.

RESOLVED that Members considered this item of Business discharged by the Executive.

It was noted that the decision sheet in respect of this item contains a typing error and that the second bullet point on the Purpose section of the sheet should read:

“a charge of £1 per hour up to a maximum of £6 per day be introduced in all coastal car parks within the Borough during the hours of 10am and 6pm”. 

RESOLVED that Members considered this item of Business discharged by the Executive.

Councillor J G Kelly declared a non-pecuniary interest in respect of item 7(3) on the agenda as he sits on the Board of Trustees for St Mary’s Parish Hall which is located near to one of the coastal car parks.

Councillor Mrs P M Bryant also declared a non-pecuniary interest in respect of 7(3) of the agenda as she is a member of Fareham Rotary Club which owns the Wheelhouse.

There were no comments or points for clarification raised by the Panel.

RESOLVED that Members considered this item of Business discharged by the Executive.

To receive a verbal update from the Executive Member on matters relating to the Health and Public Protection portfolio, e.g the Police and Crime Panel and Local Strategic Health issues.

The Panel received a verbal update from Councillor T M Cartwright, MBE, the Executive Member for Health and Public Protection, on Police and Public Protection matters and Local Strategic Health issues.

Police and Public Protection Matters

Joint Gypsy and Traveller Panel

Councillor Cartwright reported that he attended a recent meeting of the, newly re-formed, Joint Gypsy and Traveller Panel. Several district councils were represented, and the Panel’s Terms of Reference have been agreed. Much needed areas of expertise in dealing with unauthorised encampments will be made available through the multi-agency collaboration that this new Panel will bring.

Councillor Cartwright advised that when commenting on the Central Government plans to criminalise unauthorised encampments, Chief Inspector Rob Mitchell advised the Joint Panel that he felt that the current, available police sanctions are more than adequate to deal with encampments and that concentrating on delivering comprehensive training to newly appointed Police Inspectors on the existing sanctions will enable them to interpret their powers more effectively. 

The next meeting of the Panel will take place on 02 February 2021.

Police and Crime Panel

Councillor Cartwright advised that the next meeting of the Police and Crime Panel will take place on 29 January 2021. Councillor Cartwright also advised that he would be meeting with the Local Chief Inspector next week to discuss Fareham policing matters over the Christmas period. 

At the meeting of the Police and Crime Panel on the 29^th January 2021, the main topic for discussion will be the annual precept. It is likely that the Commissioner will be requesting the full increase of £15 and in support of this request, the Commissioner has undertaken public consultation, outlining how the increase in funding will be utilised. Councillor Cartwright advised that whilst it is likely that the increase will be agreed, the Panel will ensure that it is carefully scrutinised.  

Updates and Information

Councillor Cartwright reported that he has received an update recently from Assistant Chief Constable Maggie Blythe on matters relating to Covid-19 restrictions.  He has also received an update from the Police and Crime Commissioner, Michal Lane, on key issues such as recruitment, budget planning, the Safer Awards, funding for domestic abuse services and the Youth Commission/Hampshire Cultural Trust knife crime initiative.

The 101 service is improving but is still significantly underperforming with service users still experiencing very long call waiting times.

A statement has been received from the Commissioner regarding the 6 Hampshire police officers who faced disciplinary procedures on the grounds of racist behaviour.  5 of the officers were dismissed with immediate effect and 1 will receive a final written warning. The Chief Constable has demonstrated determination in stamping out this type of long-standing behaviour culture.

Local Strategic Health Matters

Portsmouth Health Overview & Scrutiny Panel

There will be a meeting of the Portsmouth Health Overview & Scrutiny Panel on the 21^st January which will provide a comprehensive update on the NHS response to Covid-19. This will cover a number of issues, including the impact on finances, the level of in-patients diagnosed with Covid-19, staff sickness and the delivery of the Covid-19 vaccination programme.  There will also be an update from NHS England on dental practices.

Fareham, Gosport & S E Hants CCG

There will be a meeting of the Fareham, Gosport & South East Hampshire Clinical Commissioning Group Community Engagement Committee on the 26^th January. However, there is no agenda available for this meeting. 

Fareham Locality Patient Group

A meeting of the Fareham Locality Patient Group took place last Tuesday. This was a very helpful and informative meeting in terms of identifying what the real issues are and what is happening in surgeries across the Borough. Covid-19 matters were high on the agenda and feedback was provided on the number of vaccinations given and the groups receiving them. 

Clinical Director Ros Sexton is leading the coastal partnerships for the Western Wards and Stubbington on the vaccination programme. This is working well, however the biggest issue at the moment is a lack of supplies. Over the first couple of weeks over 1500 vaccinations a day were being carried out but this week it was only 300. Difficulties are also being encountered with finding volunteers to manage the movement of people in and out of the hospital and through the vaccination process.

A leaflet has been produced to provide practical guidance for residents on how they can help the NHS to help them through the winter months.  Residents are also being encouraged to ensure that their contact details are up to date so that surgeries can easily get in touch with patients when they need to.

To provide an opportunity for Members to consider the scrutiny priorities for the Health and Public Protection Panel.

Members considered and reviewed the scrutiny priorities for the Panel and identified the need to scrutinise the effectiveness of the Council’s safeguarding procedures. 

It was agreed that a scoping report would be prepared for Members to consider and approve at the next meeting and that the Community Safety Manager would be invited to use the scoping report to prepare and present a presentation to Members at the meeting of the Panel scheduled to take place in June.

RESOLVED that the Health and Public Protection Panel agrees that:

(a)  a draft scoping report outlining the areas for scrutiny in respect of Safeguarding be brought to the next meeting of the Panel for approval; and

(b)  the Community Safety Manager be invited to attend the June meeting of the Panel to present on the issues identified in the Scoping Report.