There were no declarations.

Minutes of the ordinary meeting of Council held on 28 November 2022.

Council is asked to approve the minutes as a correct record.

Council agreed to approve the minutes of the ordinary meeting held on 28 November 2022 as a true and correct record.

Any proposed changes will be circulated with the briefing note or notified at the meeting.

Council agreed to appoint with immediate effect:

·         Audit and Governance Committee - Councillor Railton to stand down and Councillor Thomas to replace her.

Announcements by:

1.     The Lord Mayor

2.     The Sheriff

3.     The Leader of the Council (who may with the permission of the Lord Mayor invite other councillors to make announcements)

4.     The Chief Executive, Chief Finance Officer, Monitoring Officer

The Lord Mayor gave thanks to the Town Hall staff, the Civic Office and those who attended the Holocaust Memorial Service and commented that the service was wonderfully appropriate and moving. He gave a further thank you to Sharon Woodward, Filmmaker (Communications Team) for editing and producing a short video of a child of a survivor and urged the Council to watch the short film. He also expressed his pleasures in being invited to Chinese New Year celebrations and events in the city.

The City Rector addressed the Council on sombre anniversaries namely Mahatma Ghandi's assassination on this day in 1948 and the execution of King Charles I on this day in 1649. He reflected on the worldwide and historic search for fair governance and legitimate authority, and commented on the poignancy of the Holocaust Memorial Service.

The Leader of the Council thanked former Cllr Nadine Bely-Summers' on behalf of the Council and the people of Holywell and Littlemore wards for her service, particularly her work on chairing the Housing Panel, following her recent resignation from her councillor role. Cllr Brown also announced that Cllr Imogen Thomas was to stand down as Cabinet Member for Zero Carbon Oxford and Climate Justice. She thanked Cllr Thomas for her good service and announced that Cllr Anna Railton was to take on the role.

The Lord Mayor invited Cllr Malik to address the Council and provide an update on the Pakistan Flood Relief fundraising. Cllr Malik advised that, through the generosity of the people of Oxford, £20,000 was raised and used to fund 1200+ medical kitted camps that treated 1,200 patients; build houses for 22 families; and provide food rations to 150 families. Cllr Malik thanked everyone who contributed.

Public addresses and questions to the Leader or other Cabinet member received in accordance with Council Procedure Rules in the Constitution relating to matters for decision in Part 1 of this agenda.

Up to five minutes is available for each public address and up to three minutes for each question. Questions must be less than 200 words.

The request to speak accompanied by the full text of the address or question must be received by the Head of Law and Governance by 5.00 pm on Tuesday 24 January 2023.

The briefing note will contain the text of addresses and questions submitted by the deadline, and written responses where available.

A total of 45 minutes is available for both public speaking items. Responses are included in this time.

There were no addresses or questions.

The Executive Director (Communities and People) submitted a report to Cabinet on 14 December 2022 recommending that it is adopted as part of the Council’s policy framework. 

The Cabinet minutes dated 14 December 2022 are available at item 11a.

Councillors Chewe Munkonge, Cabinet Member for Leisure & Parks, Shaista Aziz, Cabinet Member for Inclusive Communities and Culture and Louise Upton, Cabinet Member for Health & Transport, will present the report and present Cabinet’s recommendation.

Recommendation:  Cabinet recommends that Council resolves to:

1.    Adopt Oxford’s Thriving Communities Strategy 2023-27 as part of the Council’s policy framework, including the following recommendations:

(i)            Agree and adopt the Thriving Communities Principles across the Council’s work and encourage our partners to do the same;

(ii)          Explore opportunities to improve the inclusivity and sustainability of Oxford’s community facilities, and review opportunities as they arise through business cases;

(iii)         Continue to integrate Council services and seek out opportunities to better align our work with partners agencies, including co-location.

Council considered the report from the Executive Director (Communities and People) recommending that it is adopted as part of the Council's policy framework.

Cllr Lygo left the meeting.

Cllr Aziz, Cabinet Member for Inclusive Communities and Culture introduced the report, proposed the recommendation and answered questions.

The recommendation was agreed on being seconded by Cllr Upton, Cabinet Member for Health and Transport and put to the vote.

Cllr Lygo re-joined the meeting.

Council resolved to:

1.     Adopt Oxford’s Thriving Communities Strategy 2023-27 as part of the Council’s policy framework, including the following recommendations:

(i)              Agree and adopt the Thriving Communities Principles across the Council’s work and encourage our partners to do the same;

(ii)             Explore opportunities to improve the inclusivity and sustainability of Oxford’s community facilities, and review opportunities as they arise through business cases;

(iii)            Continue to integrate Council services and seek out opportunities to better align our work with partners agencies, including co-location.

The Head of Business Improvement has submitted a report requesting Council approve the Hybrid Working Policy.

Cllr Nigel Chapman, Cabinet Member for Citizen Focused Services will propose the recommendation.

Recommendation: That Council resolves to:

1.    To Approve the Hybrid Working Policy.

Council considered the report from the Head of Business Improvement requesting Council approve the Hybrid Working Policy.

Cllr Chapman, Cabinet Member for Citizen Focused Services introduced the report and proposed the recommendation.

The recommendation was agreed on being seconded by Cllr Brown, Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Inclusive Economy and Partnerships and put to the vote.

Council resolved to:

1.     Approve the Hybrid Working Policy.

The Head of Business Improvement has submitted a report asking Council to approve the Disciplinary Procedure.

Cllr Nigel Chapman, Cabinet Member for Citizen Focused Services will propose the recommendation.

Recommendation: That Council resolves to:

1.    Agree the Disciplinary Procedure and Guidance with immediate effect;

2.    Authorise the Head of Business Improvement or their designated deputy to make revisions to the Disciplinary Procedure as required to correct any clerical errors or comply with changes to law;

3.    Authorise the Head of Business Improvement or their designated deputy to make minor revisions to the Disciplinary Guidance to ensure that it continues to be fit for purpose.

Council considered the report submitted by the Head of Business Improvement asking Council to approve the Disciplinary Procedure.

Cllr Chapman, Cabinet Member for Citizen Focused Services introduced the report and proposed the recommendation.

The recommendation was agreed on being seconded by Cllr Brown, Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Inclusive Economy and Partnerships and put to the vote.

Council resolved to:

1.     Agree the Disciplinary Procedure and Guidance with immediate effect;

2.     Authorise the Head of Business Improvement or their designated deputy to make revisions to the Disciplinary Procedure as required to correct any clerical errors or comply with changes to law;

3.     Authorise the Head of Business Improvement or their designated deputy to make minor revisions to the Disciplinary Guidance to ensure that it continues to be fit for purpose.

The Head of Law and Governance has submitted a report setting out a programme of Council, Committee and other meetings for the whole of 2023/24 and 2024/25 council years.

The Leader of the Council, Cllr Brown will propose the recommendations.

Recommendation: that Council resolves to:

1.    Approve the programme of Council, committee and other meetings from 01 May 2023 to 31 May 2025 attached at Appendix A;

2.    Delegate authority to the Head of Law and Governance, in consultation with Group Leaders, to make changes to this programme in the event that there is any decision by Council to change the committee structure or committee remits which impacts on the programme of meetings; and

3.    Delegate authority to the Head of Law and Governance to set dates for additional training and briefing sessions for Members.

Council considered the report submitted by the Head of Law and Governance setting out a programme of Council, Committee and other meetings for the whole of 2023/24 and 2024/25 council years.

Cllr Brown, Leader of the Council introduced the report and proposed an amendment to the recommendations, to include the delegation of authority to the Head of Law and Governance to reschedule the February 2024 Council meeting date.

The amended recommendations were agreed on being seconded by Cllr Smowton, Liberal Democrat Group Leader and put to the vote.

Council resolved to:

1.     Approve the programme of Council, committee and other meetings from 01 May 2023 to 31 May 2025 attached at Appendix A;

2.     Delegate authority to the Head of Law and Governance, in consultation with Group Leaders, to make changes to this programme in the event that there is any decision by Council to change the committee structure or committee remits which impacts on the programme of meetings; and

3.     Delegate authority to the Head of Law and Governance to set dates for additional training and briefing sessions for Members.

4.     Delegate authority to the Head of Law and Governance, in consultation with Group Leaders, to reschedule the February 2024 Council meeting date.

This item has a time limit of 15 minutes.

Councillors may ask the Cabinet Members questions about matters in these minutes:

Minute 99 - Cowley Branch Line local Funding for Full Business Case

In response to a question from Cllr Smowton, Cllr Upton, Cabinet Member for Health and Transport expressed disappointment that the Council did not secure Levelling Up Fund money, but gave assurance that the Council had already put a package in place covering the whole costs required to proceed with the full business case. She confirmed that this funding would include connectivity studies particularly in providing proper access to stations for residents in Littlemore and Blackbird Leys, alongside the employment areas. It was clarified that the package in place was subject to contract.

Minute 104 - Integrated Performance Report Q2 2022/23

In response to a question from Cllr Smowton, Cllr Chapman, Cabinet Member for Citizen Focused Services advised that the Council was in the final stages of negotiation on the lease of St Aldate’s Chambers and assured Council that it was not being penalised for the delay as there was a rent-free period that the Council had to grant the tenant, so there was no penalty to the Council for the delay.

In response to a question from Cllr Smowton, Cllr Chapman, Cabinet Member for Citizen Focused Services advised that the figures provided were provisional and that there was an expectation for the deficit to be less by year-end. He explained that the extra spend was due to the scope and scale of work undertaken by ODS particularly due to COVID-19 backlog and the replacement of fencing due to a number of storms in recent times, as well as general inflation of building material costs which had driven the cost uplift. Cllr Chapman gave assurance that a more realistic budget would be presented in the following year with consideration for the scale of work and undertakings required.

Questions on notice from councillors received in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 11.11(b).

Questions on notice may be asked of the Lord Mayor, a Member of the Cabinet or a Chair of a Committee. One supplementary question may be asked at the meeting.

The full text of questions must have been received by the Head of Law and Governance by no later than 1.00pm on Wednesday 18 January 2023.

These, and written responses where available, will be published in the briefing note.

40 written questions were asked of the Cabinet Members and the Leader, and these and written responses were published before the meeting.

These along with summaries of the 15 supplementary questions and responses asked and given at the meeting are set out in the minutes pack.

Cllr Gant joined the meeting.

Council agreed to consider items 14 and 16 next on the agenda before the 30 minute break and then return to the agenda as listed.

The Chair of the Scrutiny Committee has submitted a report which updates Council on the activities of scrutiny and the implementation of recommendations since the last meeting of Council.

Council is invited to comment on and note the report.

Council had before it the report of the Scrutiny Committee Chair.

Cllr Smowton, Chair of the Scrutiny Committee, introduced the report and thanked the Cabinet members and officers who had been generous with their time and continued to attend meetings regularly. Underlining a recommendation relating to the precision and accountability of specific actions, he requested clarity within all documents relating to partnership or collaborative working on whether the Council was in the driving seat or facilitating work that was fundamentally out of the Council’s control, including where a lack of funding impacted what the Council was intending to do. In relation to the Scrutiny Committee meeting scheduled for 01 February 2023, Cllr Smowton commented on the exclusion of supporting materials to the Oxford Local Plan 2040 Focused Consultation on Housing Need report and requested that these be made available to the Committee as soon as practicable.

Cllr Hollingsworth, Cabinet Member for Planning and Housing Delivery confirmed that, background papers and supporting evidence to the Oxford Local Plan 2040, including all strategic plan consultation processes, were published and accessible on the Council website. He advised that officers would circulate reference links to the Scrutiny Committee.

Council noted the report.

Appendices 1 and 4 to this item include exempt information pursuant to Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972. If Council wishes to discuss matters relating to the information set out in Appendices 1 and 4 to the report, it will be necessary for the Council to pass a resolution to exclude the press and public from the meeting (as set out at agenda item 16).

The Executive Director (Development) submitted a report to Cabinet on 14 December 2022 seeking approval for the funding package and to enter into all necessary contracts to undertake the Approval in Principle design and Full Business Case and local connectivity studies for the reopening of the Cowley Branch Line to passengers.  This includes the parameters for a financial contribution from Oxford City Council, including the ring-fencing of future Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) contributions.

Councillor Louise Upton, Cabinet Member for Health and Transport, will present the report and present the Cabinet’s recommendation.

Recommendation:  Cabinet recommends that Council resolves to:

1.    Approve a capital budget of £4.56m to deliver the next phase of the project made up of:

·       Up to £289,000 up front contribution from Oxford City Council from already-secured Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funds;

·       Up to £3.5m of the costs to be funded by local landowners and then be reimbursed from CIL paid for any future developments by those landowners that gains planning consent after the date that contracts are entered into;

·       At least £771,000 from local landowners and Oxfordshire County Council as a non-repayable grant contribution;

·       In the event that the submitted Levelling Up Fund 2 application seeking £4.0m is found to be successful in total or in part, the local funding arrangement described above would be reduced commensurately from one or more of the funding pots outlined above.

Council considered a report from the Executive Director (Development) seeking approval for the funding package and to enter into all necessary contracts to undertake the Approval in Principle design and Full Business Case and local connectivity studies for the reopening of the Cowley Branch Line to passengers. This included the parameters for a financial contribution from Oxford City Council, including the ring-fencing of future Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) contributions.

Cllr Upton, Cabinet Member for Health and Transport presented the report and proposed the recommendation.

The recommendation was agreed on being seconded by Cllr Hollingsworth, and put to the vote.

Council resolved to:

1.     Approve a capital budget of £4.56m to deliver the next phase of the project made up of:

·       Up to £289,000 up front contribution from Oxford City Council from already-secured Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funds;

·       Up to £3.5m of the costs to be funded by local landowners and then be reimbursed from CIL paid for any future developments by those landowners that gains planning consent after the date that contracts are entered into;

·       At least £771,000 from local landowners and Oxfordshire County Council as a non-repayable grant contribution;

·       In the event that the submitted Levelling Up Fund 2 application seeking £4.0m is found to be successful in total or in part, the local funding arrangement described above would be reduced commensurately from one or more of the funding pots outlined above.

The meeting broke for 40 min at the conclusion of this item.

Cllr Malik left the meeting and did not return.

This item will be taken at or shortly after 7.00pm

Public addresses and questions to the Leader or other Cabinet member received in accordance with Council Procedure Rules in the Constitution and not relating to matters for decision in Part 1 of this agenda.

Up to five minutes is available for each public address and up to three minutes for each question. Questions must be less than 200 words.

The request to speak accompanied by the full text of the address or question must be received by the Head of Law and Governance by 5.00 pm on Wednesday 24 January 2023.

The briefing note will contain the text of addresses and questions submitted by the deadline, and written responses where available.

A total of 45 minutes is available for both public speaking items. Responses are included in this limit.

Council heard one address and one question to which Cllr Turner, Deputy Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Finance and Asset Management provided a verbal response.

The address, question and responses are set out in full in the minutes pack.

1.       Address from Mr Ihor Terekhov, Mayor of Kharkiv – Oxford-Kharkhiv relations

2.       Question from Jennifer Stanton – Council banking

The Lord Mayor thanked the speakers for their contributions.

This item has a time limit of 60 minutes.

Motions received by the Head of Law and Governance in accordance with the rules in Section 11 of the Constitution by the deadline of 1.00pm on Wednesday 18 January 2023are listed below.

Cross party motions are taken first. Motions will then be taken in turn from the Liberal Democrat Group, Green Group, Labour Group in that order.

Substantive amendments to these motions must be sent by councillors to the Head of Law and Governance by no later than 10.00am on Friday 27 January 2023 so that they may be circulated with the briefing note.

Minor technical or limited wording amendments may be submitted during the meeting but must be written down and circulated.

Council is asked to consider the following motions:

a)    Opposing Voter ID (proposed by Cllr Landell Mills, seconded by Cllr Smowton)

b)    Fixing Oxford’s Water (proposed by Cllr Jarvis, seconded by Cllr Muddiman)

c)    End Tory Cost of Living Crisis (proposed by Cllr Aziz, seconded by Cllr Upton)

d)    Use Park and Ride Parking Sites for Solar Farms (proposed by Cllr Fouweather, seconded by Cllr Miles)

e)    Plant-based Food and Sustainable Farming (proposed by Cllr Dunne, seconded by Cllr Hollingsworth)

Council had before it five motions on notice submitted in accordance with Council procedure rules and reached decisions as set out below.

Motions agreed as set out below:

a)    Opposing Voter ID (proposed by Cllr Gant, seconded by Cllr Smowton)

b)    Fixing Oxford’s Water (proposed by Cllr Jarvis, seconded by Cllr Muddiman)

c)    End Tory Cost of Living Crisis (proposed by Cllr Aziz, seconded by Cllr Upton)

Motions not taken as the time allocated for debate had finished:

d)    Use Park and Ride Parking Sites for Solar Farms (proposed by Cllr Fouweather, seconded by Cllr Miles, amendment proposer Cllr Railton, seconder Cllr Hollingsworth)

e)    Plant-based Food and Sustainable Farming (proposed by Cllr Dunne, seconded by Cllr Hollingsworth)

Liberal Democrat member motion

Voting at elections is the cornerstone of democracy at both local and national level.

Participation in elections should be encouraged in all those who are qualified regardless of age, ethnicity or income.

Unnecessary barriers to voting are likely to reduce voter participation in elections, proper representation of all parts of the community and so legitimacy of those elected to office.

Voter ID is a solution without a problem and as such insinuates barriers to voting which should be of great concern to anyone who supports an open and effective democratic system of government.

The specific details released at the end of 2022, showing that considerably more forms of ID will be accepted for older voters than for younger voters, is particularly concerning in that it risks disproportionately disenfranchising voters who tend not to support the current Government.

This Council therefore requests that the Leader should write to Minister for the Cabinet Office to convey:

• This council’s opposition to mandatory voter ID.
• That the list of acceptable documentation should be reviewed at the earliest opportunity and its equalities impacts measured.
• That adequate funding for local advertising must be provided to minimise the risk of voter disenfranchisement due to unawareness of the new requirements.

Cllr Gant, seconded by Cllr Smowton, proposed the submitted motion as set out in the agenda and briefing note.

After debate and on being put to the vote the motion was agreed.

Council resolved to adopt the following motion:

Voting at elections is the cornerstone of democracy at both local and national level.

Participation in elections should be encouraged in all those who are qualified regardless of age, ethnicity or income.

Unnecessary barriers to voting are likely to reduce voter participation in elections, proper representation of all parts of the community and so legitimacy of those elected to office.

Voter ID is a solution without a problem and as such insinuates barriers to voting which should be of great concern to anyone who supports an open and effective democratic system of government.

The specific details released at the end of 2022, showing that considerably more forms of ID will be accepted for older voters than for younger voters, is particularly concerning in that it risks disproportionately disenfranchising voters who tend not to support the current Government.

This Council therefore requests that the Leader should write to Minister for the Cabinet Office to convey:

• This council’s opposition to mandatory voter ID.
• That the list of acceptable documentation should be reviewed at the earliest opportunity and its equalities impacts measured.
• That adequate funding for local advertising must be provided to minimise the risk of voter disenfranchisement due to unawareness of the new requirements.

Green member motion

Council notes

1. On August 24, Thames Water introduced a hosepipe ban following the driest July on record.
2. Across England and Wales, 3 billion litres of water are lost to leaks in the water system every single day 
3. According to analysis by the GMB union, Thames Water’s infrastructure allows 635 million litres of water to leak out of the system every single day - equivalent to leaving a hosepipe on for 73 years.[1]
4. Failure to fix leaks has had a major impact on public infrastructure in Oxford - including the flooding of the Littlemore underpass for several weeks.
5. There has been a long delay in replacing the water pipe occupying the east bound cycle lane on Osney Bridge, which has endangered cyclists using Botley Road.
6. Between 2017 and 2021, Thames Water has accrued £32.4 million of fines over 11 separate incidents of water pollution - including a £4 million fine for sewage pumped into Oxford’s waterways. [2]
7. Since privatisation in 1989, shareholders of water companies have pocketed over £72bn in dividends.[3] Thames Water paid out £392 million in profit to shareholders between 2013 and 2017. [4]

Council believes

1. Thames Water is currently failing to deliver an adequate public service, is failing to invest in infrastructure, and has caused extensive environmental damage - all while putting the burden of water saving onto residents. 
2. Serious questions have been raised as to Thames Water’s performance - questions to which the public need answers. More accountability for the company is therefore necessary.
3. Going forward, the country’s illogical privatisation of water must be reversed. Water is a basic need, a natural monopoly and a vital public service. Privatisation provides all the wrong incentives for running a water supply, and it should be returned to public hands, with democratic oversight.  

Council resolves

1. To request that the Cabinet Member for Leisure and Parks requests that Thames Water’s CEO Sarah Bentley attend a meeting open to all Councillors to ask questions on the company’s performance. 
2. To request that the Cabinet Member for Leisure and Parks writes to the water regulator - Ofwat - expressing the concerns laid out in this motion and requesting action be taken to redress it. 
3. To request that the Cabinet Member for Leisure and Parks writes to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Thérèse Coffey, and the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Grant Shapps informing them of the Council’s view that the country’s water system should be taken into public ownership. 
4. To lobby government ministers on an ongoing basis to tackle the issues raised in this motion, and for a publicly owned water system. 

Cllr Jarvis, seconded by Cllr Muddiman, proposed the submitted motion as set out in the agenda and briefing note and immediately changed his motion without notice to reflect the amendment submitted as set out in the briefing note. The change was seconded by Cllr Muddiman and agreed by Council, in accordance with Oxford City Council’s Constitution Part 11.20(h).

After debate and on being put to the vote the motion was agreed.

Council resolved to adopt the following motion:

Council notes

1. On August 24, Thames Water introduced a hosepipe ban following the driest July on record.
2. Across England and Wales, 3 billion litres of water are lost to leaks in the water system every single day 
3. According to analysis by the GMB union, Thames Water’s infrastructure allows 635 million litres of water to leak out of the system every single day - equivalent to leaving a hosepipe on for 73 years.[1]
4. Failure to fix leaks has had a major impact on public infrastructure in Oxford - including the flooding of the Littlemore underpass for several weeks and the ring road for several days in October.
5. There has been a long delay in replacing the water pipe occupying the east bound cycle lane on Osney Bridge, which has endangered cyclists using Botley Road.
6. Between 2017 and 2021, Thames Water has accrued £32.4 million of fines over 11 separate incidents of water pollution - including a £4 million fine for sewage pumped into Oxford’s waterways. [2]
7. Since privatisation in 1989, shareholders of water companies have pocketed over £72bn in dividends.[3] Thames Water paid out £392 million in profit to shareholders between 2013 and 2017. [4]    

Council believes

1. Thames Water is currently failing to deliver an adequate public service, is failing to invest in infrastructure, and has caused extensive environmental damage - all while putting the burden of water saving onto residents. 
2. Serious questions have been raised as to Thames Water’s performance - questions to which the public need answers. More accountability for the company is therefore necessary.
3. Going forward, the country’s illogical privatisation of water must be reversed. Water is a basic need, a natural monopoly and a vital public service. Privatisation provides all the wrong incentives for running a water supply, and it should be returned to public hands, with democratic oversight. Only by bringing back water into public ownership can we guarantee the health and safety of Oxford’s residents, of Oxford’s cherished waterways, wildlife and the future of our water supplies.

Council resolves

1. To request that the Cabinet Member for Leisure and Parks requests that Thames Water’s CEO Sarah Bentley attend a meeting open to all Councillors to ask questions on the company’s performance. 
2. To request that the Cabinet Member for Leisure and Parks writes to the water regulator - Ofwat - expressing the concerns laid out in this motion and requesting action be taken to redress it. 
3. To request that the Cabinet Member for Leisure and Parks writes to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural  ...  view the full minutes text for item 86b

Labour member motion

The cost-of-living crisis is deepening poverty, inequalities and insecurity, amongst thousands of people, families, and communities across our city.

Twelve years of Tory austerity and brutal central government funding cuts to councils such as ours continues to have a catastrophic impact on services and community support for working people.

The Covid pandemic has also pushed many people into further hardship along with independent and small businesses finding it impossible to survive.

Under a Tory government of millionaires, food bank use across the country and in our own city has rocketed, with more and more people in full time employment also dependent on food banks and food projects across Oxford. And now this government is wielding more cuts to services.

The Tories have shown over the past twelve years they have no desire to improve the lives of working people across our city and country. They need to go, now.

As winter continues, many are left to wonder how they will feed their families, heat their homes, pay spiralling energy bills and pay their rent and mortgages. People are terrified of becoming destitute and homeless.

Oxford City Council is working with people and communities, organisations and partners across the city including advice centres, food banks and food networks, the NHS, and others to provide information and support across Oxford’s diverse communities.

We are proud of the many ways community groups are working together to support people and thank everyone for their tireless work.

This council condemns this out of touch government for the harm and devastation it is causing people and communities daily.

We condemn the increases in inequalities and specifically racialised inequalities that the cost of living crisis is exacerbating, as outlined in the recent Runneymede Trust report.

We reject this government’s failed economic and social policies that have seen an increase in child poverty in our city that is creating a deepening mental health crisis, as the recent Marmot report highlights.

We demand an end to further cuts to local government budgets and services across our city and reject the Tories desire to wield austerity 2.0 against our city.

We call on the government to ensure benefit payments rise in line with record breaking inflation, so that people have a chance to survive the economic chaos created by a government of multi-millionaires and can make it through the winter.

We call on Universal Credit payments and Disability Cost of Living Payments to rise for everyone and for these payments not to be one off.

We call on the government to respect public sector workers’ human rights to strike action and call on all workers to be paid wages enabling them to live lives of dignity and hope.

We call on the government to implement urgently the energy windfall tax and tax energy companies making huge profits while thousands of people across our city struggle to pay for gas and electricity.

Cllr Aziz, seconded by Cllr Upton, proposed the submitted motion as set out in the agenda and briefing note and immediately changed the motion without notice to reflect the amendment submitted as set out in the briefing note. The change was seconded by Cllr Upton and agreed by Council, in accordance with Oxford City Council’s Constitution Part 11.20(h).

After debate and on being put to the vote, the motion was agreed.

Council resolved to adopt the following motion:

The cost-of-living crisis is deepening poverty, inequalities and insecurity, amongst thousands of people, families, and communities across our city.

Twelve years of Tory austerity and brutal central government funding cuts to councils such as ours continues to have a catastrophic impact on services and community support for working people.

The Covid pandemic has also pushed many people into further hardship along with independent and small businesses finding it impossible to survive.

Under a Tory government of millionaires, food bank use across the country and in our own city has rocketed, with more and more people in full time employment also dependent on food banks and food projects across Oxford. And now this government is wielding more cuts to services.

The Tories have shown over the past twelve years they have no desire to improve the lives of working people across our city and country. They need to go, now.

As winter continues, many are left to wonder how they will feed their families, heat their homes, pay spiralling energy bills and pay their rent and mortgages. People are terrified of becoming destitute and homeless.

Oxford City Council is working with people and communities, organisations and partners across the city including advice centres, food banks and food networks, the NHS, and others to provide information and support across Oxford’s diverse communities.

We are proud of the many ways community groups are working together to support people and thank everyone for their tireless work.

This council condemns this out of touch government for the harm and devastation it is causing people and communities daily.

We condemn the increases in inequalities and specifically racialised inequalities that the cost of living crisis is exacerbating, as outlined in the recent Runneymede Trust report.

We reject this government’s failed economic and social policies that have seen an increase in child poverty in our city that is creating a deepening mental health crisis, as the recent Marmot report highlights.

We demand an end to further cuts to local government budgets and services across our city and reject the Tories desire to wield austerity 2.0 against our city.

We call on the government to ensure benefit payments rise in line with record breaking inflation, so that people have a chance to survive the economic chaos created by a government of multi-millionaires and can make it through the winter.

We call on Universal Credit payments and Disability Cost of Living Payments to rise for everyone and for these payments not to be one off.

We call on the government to respect  ...  view the full minutes text for item 86c

Liberal Democrat member motion

Oxford City Council declared a ‘Climate Emergency’ in 2019. Various initiatives have been proposed since then and the Council has been making progress in areas such as decarbonisation of Council owned social housing and leisure centres.

This proposal is to ask that the case for installing solar panels on the Park and Ride sites around Oxford is examined and a report prepared for Cabinet to consider at a future meeting.

A solar farm in this case would consist of solar panels mounted on a sufficiently high framework so that the majority of cars would be able to park underneath. An additional benefit would be that cars would be protected from both bad weather and overheating due to sunshine.

The French government has recently announced a plan to mandate that all car parks in France must have solar farms installed. The Bentley Car Company recently announced that they were installing a car park solar farm at their plant in Crewe which will cover 1378 spaces and generate 2.7 MW of power.

The benefit of this proposal is that it makes much more efficient use of available land – rather than using farmland in the Green Belt and demonstrates that the City Council is fully behind the push for Green Energy and Net Zero.

Taking the three City owned P+R sites (Peartree, Redbridge and Seacourt) together there are 3836 car spaces. This could generate at least 6MW of power – enough for 800–1000 average sized houses. If the other P+R sites (Thornhill and Water Eaton/Parkway) are included then this rises to over 9MW. 

Therefore this Council requests that the Head of Corporate Strategy submits a report to Cabinet which:

1.    Examines this proposal to assess its feasibility.

2.    Explores alternative possibilities for funding the installation costs.

3.    Considers the desirability or otherwise of the Council being the operator of the solar farm(s) and thus selling the electricity generated to energy companies.

4.    Assesses the potential income stream to the Council from the solar farms once installed.

5.    Reports on discussions with the relevant County Council officers about the possibility of the other P+R sites at Thornhill and Water Eaton being included in this scheme.

This motion was not taken as the time allocated for debate had finished.

Labour member motion

Council notes that:

·       The global scientific consensus is that humans have heated the climate at a rate that is unprecedented, and we are heading towards mass extinction not just for ourselves but of entire eco systems if we do not change our actions today.[1]

·       Oxford City Council is committed to reducing its impact on the environment and to becoming carbon neutral by 2030.[2]

·       We have a duty as leaders in the city to empower the local community to make changes that can mitigate climate catastrophe and help preserve the vitality of our planet for future generations.

·       The UK's agriculture produces 10% of the country's greenhouse gas emissions and makes up 70% of land use. Modern agricultural practices are a central driver for habitat and biodiversity loss and the UK is one of the world’s most nature-depleted countries.[3]

·       In the UK we eat twice as much meat and dairy as the global average which is not sustainable as there is not enough land in the world to meet this demand without destroying our natural world.[4]

·       Plant-based sources of protein have much smaller carbon footprints than animal-based ones, even when comparing locally raised meat to imported plant foods.

·       Farm animals across Europe are producing more emissions than cars and vans combined.[5]

·       Our relationship to food is still an overlooked factor to the climate crisis yet it is the quickest and cheapest step to help tackle the climate crisis if we reduce our meat intake.

·       The necessary change to confront the climate crisis needs to tackle existing inequalities in society while acting urgently.

·       To protect and enrich jobs in Oxford, we should work closely with local farmers and plant-based food organisations to move to more sustainable farming methods and local produce that promotes plant-based food.

Council agrees to:

·       Request that the Cabinet Member for Health and Transport:

o   Works with local farmers to support, promote, and encourage their move to create more sustainable plant-based produce.

o   Recognises the benefit of sourcing food locally from producers who follow sustainable principles.

·       Request that the Executive Director (Communities and People) submits a report to Cabinet with options to form a plant-based localised free food service by funding community groups who are already doing this work to transform Oxford into a more environmentally sustainable economy which will also tackle food poverty.

·       Follow Oxfordshire County Council’s lead by ensuring that food provided for internal councillor events are entirely plant-based and food provided at all council catered events and meetings include plant-based options, preferably using ingredients sourced from local food surplus organisations.[6]

·       Call on Cabinet to request that the Council’s Climate Action Plan be updated to state that all catering provided at Council events and functions from March 2023 will have plant-based options.

·       Call on the Shareholder group to work with all Council run companies to encourage moving to having plant-based catering options by March 2023.

This motion was not taken as the time allocated for debate had finished.