Apologies were received from Councillor Edith Macauley.

There were no declarations of interest.

RESOLVED: That the minutes of the meeting held on 7 September 2020 are agreed as an accurate record.

RESOLVED:
That, having considered the advice given by the Borough Plan Advisory Committee on 7th October 2020, Cabinet:

A. Approved public consultation to take place between 30th October 2020 and 11^thJanuary 2021 on Stage 2a of Merton’s Local Plan.

B. Delegated approval of the public consultation material to the Director of

Environment and Regeneration, Chris Lee in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Housing, Regeneration and Transport, Councillor Martin Whelton.

The Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Housing and Transport presented the report which set out the proposed second round of consultation on the draft new Local Plan for Merton.  The consultation would be digital and the software used would be interactive.  He highlighted the policy changes section of the report and advised that the draft local plan would be closely reviewed in its final stages in light of any changes to legislation.  He clarified that the local plan had not been changed following the publication of the Government’s Planning for the Future white paper as the consultation on this was due to close at the end of October, and the Council would be submitting representations on that consultation.  The local plan would also need to be in line with the London Plan, which was still to be finalised.  The Cabinet Member outlined the timetable for submitting the final plan to the Secretary of State and thanked all the officers involved for their work on the draft plan.

RESOLVED:

That, having considered the advice given by the Borough Plan Advisory Committee on 7th October 2020, Cabinet:

A.   Approve the public consultation to take place between 30th October 2020 and 11^thJanuary 2021 on Stage 2a of Merton’s Local Plan.

B.   Delegate approval of the public consultation material to the Director of

Environment and Regeneration, Chris Lee in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Housing, Regeneration and Transport, Councillor Martin Whelton.

RESOLVED: That, having taken the advice from Borough Plan Advisory Committee, Cabinet:

A. Agreed the Consultation Report (Appendix B), including comments, responses and where applicable, amendments to the SPD.

B. Noted the Council has undertaken a screening exercise with relevant statutory bodies to confirm that a Strategic Environmental Assessment is not required to support the SPD.

C. Noted that whilst the Council’s constitution permits Cabinet to agree the Adoption of SPDs; in recognition of the cross-party political representation in Wimbledon wards, the decision will be presented to Council.

D. That Cabinet recommended to Council;

i. The adoption of the Future Wimbledon Supplementary Planning Document

(Appendix A) in accordance with the Town & Country Panning (Local

Planning) (England) Regulations 2012.

ii. Delegate to the Director of Environment & Regeneration, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Housing & Transport, the making of minor factual, editorial and image changes to the SPD prior to publication.

The Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Housing and Transport presented the report which set out the draft FutureWimbledon Supplementary Planning Document, which would provide guidance on the design of development and public space and a long term vision for the area, balancing the residential centre with the growth of a strong commercial and employment base.  It would also be key in the recovery of the town centre following the covid-19 pandemic.  He advised that the building heights plan would be amended for the report to Council to reflect that the St George’s East block would be part 8, 10 and 12 stories to be consistent with the neighbouring buildings.  He thanked all the officers involved in the formulation of the plan.

In response to Cabinet questions, the Cabinet Member advised that the SPD would allow a degree of flexibility in light of any changes brought about by the covid-19 pandemic. 

The Cabinet welcomed the report and the engagement which had taken place with local residents.

Before moving to the recommendations, the Chair advised that the Cabinet Members had received comments from the Reverend of St Marks Church.

RESOLVED: That, having taken the advice from Borough Plan Advisory Committee, Cabinet:

A.   Agreed the Consultation Report (Appendix B), including comments, responses and where applicable, amendments to the SPD.

B.   Noted the Council has undertaken a screening exercise with relevant statutory bodies to confirm that a Strategic Environmental Assessment is not required to support the SPD.

C.   Noted that whilst the Council’s constitution permits Cabinet to agree the Adoption of SPDs; in recognition of the cross-party political representation in Wimbledon wards, the decision will be presented to Council.

D.   That Cabinet recommended to Council;

i.              The adoption of the Future Wimbledon Supplementary Planning Document (Appendix A) in accordance with the Town & Country Panning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012.

ii.            Delegate to the Director of Environment & Regeneration, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Housing & Transport, the making of minor factual, editorial and image changes to the SPD prior to publication.

That, following recommendation from the Borough Plan Advisory Panel (BPAC) on 7th October 2020, Cabinet:

A. Approved the amended recommendation to approve public consultation on the air quality SPD to align with the Local Plan consultation between 30^th October 2020 and 11th January 2021.

B. Delegated approval of the final consultation draft SPD to the Director of Environment and Regeneration in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Housing and Transport.

The Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Housing and Transport presented the report which set out a supplementary planning document to address air quality issues and ensure a consistent approach to development in the borough and would be key to tackling the climate emergency.  In view of the importance of the document, the recommendation of the Borough Plan Advisory Committee to run the consultation alongside that of the local plan had been accepted.  The Cabinet Member thanked all the officers involved in the development of the document.

RESOLVED

That, following recommendation from the Borough Plan Advisory Panel (BPAC) on 7th October 2020, Cabinet:

A.           Approved the amended recommendation to approve public consultation on the air quality SPD to align with the Local Plan consultation between 30^th October 2020 and 11th January 2021.

B.           Delegated approval of the final consultation draft SPD to the Director of Environment and Regeneration in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Housing and Transport.

RESOLVED:

A. That Cabinet noted and agreed on the Council’s response to Black Lives Matter (BLM).

The Cabinet Member for Women and Equalities presented the report which set out the Council’s response to Black Lives Matter and how inequalities would be addressed, ensuring that the Council is representative of its BAME community and that BAME organisations in the Borough are properly engaged with and supported.

The Director of Children, Schools and Families assured Members that work in this area was progressing at pace and the co-chair and vice-chair of the BAME forum were due to be elected to coincide with Black History Month.

The Chair welcomed the brave efforts of the Black Lives Matter activist, Patrick Hutchinson, who helped one of the protestors at one of the marches. As Patrick worked in Merton and lived in Croydon, he would be working with the London Borough of Croydon to recognise that act of bravery.

RESOLVED:

A. That Cabinet noted and agreed on the Council’s response to Black Lives Matter (BLM).

RESOLVED:

A. That Cabinet noted the financial reporting data for month 5, August 2020, relating to revenue budgetary control, showing a forecast net adverse variance at year-end of £15.954m.

B. That Cabinet noted the outcome of a review of the Capital Programme and the contents of Section 4 and Appendix 5B and approve the amendments to the Programme contained in the Table below:

C. That finance officers will continue to work with budget managers to identify further re-profiling and savings throughout the approved capital programme 2020-24.

D. That Cabinet approved a virement of £1,763k between heads of services within Community & Housing to align salaries budgets.

The Cabinet Member for Finance presented the report which set out the Council’s financial position for month five and thanked all staff involved in managing the budgets.  Actions were being taken to keep costs to the Council down in light of the overspend brought about by the actions the Council had to take to respond to the covid-19 pandemic and support residents.  Although the deficit had reduced, it was still at a high level and unless the Government properly funded the pandemic response undertaken by the Council on its behalf, significant savings would need to be found.

The Director of Corporate Services advised that the funding had been announced although it was not clear whether that was funding for current pandemic commitments or future commitments in the event of a second wave.  Figures would be updated for the next Cabinet meeting.  A process for residents on low income to apply for a subsistence grant in the event that they received a track and trace notification to self-isolate had gone live on the Council’s website.

The Chair advised that he was working with other London Leaders to continue to lobby the Government to properly fund the pandemic response.

RESOLVED:

A.           That Cabinet noted the financial reporting data for month 5, August 2020, relating to revenue budgetary control, showing a forecast net adverse variance at year-end of £15.954m.

B.           That Cabinet noted the outcome of a review of the Capital Programme and the contents of Section 4 and Appendix 5B and approve the amendments to the Programme contained in the Table below:

C.           That finance officers will continue to work with budget managers to identify further re-profiling and savings throughout the approved capital programme 2020-24.

D.           That Cabinet approved a virement of £1,763k between heads of services within Community & Housing to align salaries budgets.