The Chairman opened the meeting by welcoming all Members of the Committee back to the Chamber for the first time since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020. The safety measures that were in place were highlighted. In the absence of a public gallery, due to capacity within the Chamber, the Chairman advised the Committee meeting would be live webcast and extended her welcome to those watching at home.

Apologising for having not done so earlier, a warm welcome was also extended to newly appointed Member, Councillor Peter Morris, attending his first meeting, having been elected to the Council in May 2021, and appointed to this Committee in June.

Up to 15 minutes are allowed for public participation.  Participants are restricted to 3 minutes each.

There was no public participation.

Members may make declarations of Interest at this point or may make them at any point in the meeting

There were no declarations of interest at this point in the meeting.

To confirm and sign as a correct record the Minutes of the Meeting of the Regulatory Committee held on Thursday 10 June 2021.

Regulatory Committee – 10 June 2021  

RESOLVED that the Minutes of the Meeting of the Regulatory Committee held on Thursday, 10 June 2021 be confirmed and signed as an accurate record.

Setting out current position of previously agreed actions as at 8 September 2021.

In the absence of any questions, the report was taken “as read” and with no requirement for a vote, the Matters Arising were DULY NOTED.

On the 21 July 2020 an Urgent Delegated Decision was made to delegate the District Council’s function in relation to “Pavement Licences” under the Business and Planning Act 2020 to Lincolnshire County Council up until the 30 September 2021.

It had now been confirmed that the provisions within the Act would be extended until the 30 September 2022.  The Committee therefore gave consideration to a report in which it was proposed that the existing Sub-Delegation of Pavement Licences to Lincolnshire County Council be extended until 30 September 2022

The report set out the rationale for proposing to continue with the delegated arrangement noting, prior to the Business and Planning Act 2020, such matters had been a function of the County Council and as such the District Council had no processes in place to administer the function.

Section 3 of the report set out the extent of the current Sub-Delegation, the services the County Council provided as a result, free of charge and the number of applications made since the introduction of the legislation, which amounted to six in the District.  There were alternative options to the Council and these were outlined in Section 4.

Debate ensued and given some Members’ experiences, some were of the view that in the longer term in may be better that the District Council undertake the function within the auspices of the planning remit, as it was considered there were a number of conditions and circumstances which appertained to planning.  Recent experiences were shared including difficulties in seeking enforcement from Lincolnshire County Council, with a suggestion this would be much easier if the function remained in-house due to it being more localised, and Officers having more local knowledge of specific circumstances.  Some Members felt there needed to be a greater input at a local level.

Members were reminded that street licensing was historically a County Council function, and as such the District Council had limited systems and resources in place to manage the emergency legislation.  Returning the function in-house was an option that could be considered should the legislation continue to be extended and should uptake increase, particularly with the planned regeneration in Gainsborough.

Officers also highlighted, whilst the legislation was not intended to ride roughshod over the issues highlighted by Members, it was fully focussed on enabling and allowing businesses to extend their operations due to the restrictions.  Therefore from a planning perspective, unless there was a significant impact, it would be difficult to not allow a business to have a cafe/pavement licence.  Accepting Members concerns however, Officers did have the ability to and would feedback the issues which had been raised.

In response to questions, it was confirmed that both the Licensing and Planning Departments of West Lindsey were consulted when applications for such licences were received, but again were reminded the emphasis of the legislation was to enable businesses.

Following discussion and having been moved and seconded it was: -

RESOLVED that

(a)         the District Council’s function in relation to “Pavement Licences”  ...  view the full minutes text for item 14.

Consideration was given to a report which provided an update on the Schedule 4 scheme to-date.  The Council had agreed to implement the scheme using its powers under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and it had come into effect in August 2018 for the Gainsborough area.

The Scheme had been introduced to combat the persistent issue of abandoned shopping trolleys, which at the time were being collected at a rate of 30 per week.

Section 2 of the report set out the scope of the Scheme and its intentions, whilst Section 3 detailed the Scheme’s impact to-date including the number of shopping trolleys collected and subsequent income generated, as a result of re-charging the supermarkets.

Whilst the issue of abandoned shopping trolleys was still present in Gainsborough, the figure had reduced by 62% since the implementation of the scheme. Noting a slight increase in the recent year, there was still a significant reduction on the volumes that were being collected prior to the Scheme and as such, it was recommended that consultation in relation to its continuation be carried out in 2023.

Debate ensued and in response to Members’ questions the performance was clarified, noting that whilst 20/21 had seen an increase in trolleys collected compared to the previous year, when comparing that to collection levels pre-Scheme introduction, the number collected per week had reduced.

Members were reminded the Scheme did not, nor was it intended to provide a solution that resolved the issue of abandoned shopping trolleys, it provided a mechanism to recover the cost of clearing them, which in turn, encouraged supermarkets to take more steps to reduce the issue occurring.  The Council were collecting the trolleys and either storing or returning them at its own cost prior to the Scheme.

In response to further questions, Officers confirmed the Scheme currently applied to Gainsborough only, its extension could be investigated as part of the future consultation, but there would have to be an evidenced need.

Thanks were expressed to the Operatives, working behind the scenes to deliver these successes.

RESOLVED that:

(a)         the progress of the Scheme and its success to-date be noted; and

(b)         that consultation on the continuation of the Scheme and any subsequent decision on it, in line with the legislation, be carried out in 2023 when the Scheme has been in place for around 5 years.