Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor R Pritchard.

The minutes of the meeting held on 21^st August 2014 were approved and signed as a correct record.

(Moved by Councillor S Claymore and seconded by Councillor S Doyle)

To receive any declarations of Members’ interests (pecuniary and non-pecuniary) in any matters which are to be considered at this meeting.

When Members are declaring a pecuniary or non-pecuniary interest in respect of which they have dispensation, they should specify the nature of such interest.  Members should leave the room if they have a pecuniary or non-pecuniary interest in respect of which they do not have a dispensation. 

There were no Declarations of Interest.

To answer questions from members of the public pursuant to Executive Procedure Rule No. 13

QUESTIONS FROM MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC                NO.1

Under Schedule 4, 13, Mr Ravenscroft asked the Portfolio Holder for Economy and Education, Councillor S Claymore, the following question:-

"Why was the lease to run the golf course given to Jack Barker Group some six years ago, given his record (available for everyone to see on the internet, just by simply Googling Jack Barker) of what he had done to other courses in his group ?"

Councillor S Claymore gave the following reply:

Mr Ravenscroft thank you for your question which, as you are now aware, has been answered on many occasions. However I will seek to clarify the situation one final time.

Following a major independent appraisal of all the Councils Leisure, sports and cultural services and assets (Leisure Futures) it was made clear to the Council that for the golf course to continue operating, it would require major annual revenue support and considerable capital investment. This came at a time when the Council had neither. The result being that the Council had difficult decisions to make.

In respect of the golf course, the recommended option from the report was to lease the course. The council undertook a robust procurement process that complied fully with all the legislative requirements placed on the public sector. That procurement process was supported by external specialists including Savills (experts in leasing and land values) and Cobetts who provided legal support and undertook due diligence checks. Having set a robust process the council duly followed that process and after checks were made appointed Jack Barker Golf to operate the course.

Please be aware that under the national tendering legislation which we must follow when allocating public funds or contracts, once the process starts the outcomes are set. Once it is complete the system will highlight a winner. You cannot then just decide one company was better because they took us out to lunch as can happen in the private sector, as stated, under the process the winner is the winner. This was a very robust piece of work, not a deal done over a pint down the local.

Therefore despite theories to the contrary the evidence shows that the decision to lease the course was made in the courses best interests and in good faith. The council took a number of references and visited successful courses operated by Jack Barker and at that time there was no concerns raised about the operator. The information you mention on google only came out after the contract was signed in 2006/07 when the economic downturn started.

The Council has previously accepted that the operator latterly known as Tamworth Golf Centre did not fully deliver on their business case and has outlined the measures taken to manage the lease and operating agreement. It should be noted that while the operator did make errors in judgment there was also a worldwide economic recession which impacted on the operators plans. We should also recognise that the operator  ...  view the full minutes text for item 39.

None

None

The Leader of the Council changed the order of business to deal with agenda item 9 at item 6.

(Report of the Portfolio Holder for Economy and Education)

The Report of the Portfolio Holder for Economy and Education seeking to update Cabinet on the operational and financial performance of Tamworth Golf Course and to endorse the recommendation to close the course on the 1st of October 2014 was considered.

(Report of the Leader of the Council)

The Report of the Leader providing Cabinet with a performance health-check was considered.

(Report of the Portfolio Holder for Operations and Assets)

The Report of the Portfolio Holder for Operations and Assets seeking approval for the Annual Report on the Treasury Management Service and Actual Prudential Indicators 2013/14 was considered.

(Report of the Portfolio Holder for Operations and Assets)

The Report of the Portfolio Holder for Operations and Assets seeking approval from Cabinet for the Corporate Records Management Policy was considered.

(Report of the Portfolio Holder for Economy and Education)

The Report of the Portfolio Holder for Economy and Education seeking Cabinet’s endorsement of the revised Business and Economic Partnership’s (BEP) Strategic Plan 2014 – 2018 was considered.

(Report of the Portfolio Holder for Environment and Waste Management)

The Report of the Portfolio Holder for Environment and Waste Management seeking approval to award the Dry Recycling Disposal Contract for the Joint Waste Collection Service to the contractor who submitted the most economically advantageous tender was considered.