Agenda and minutes
Venue: Council Chamber, Millmead House, Millmead, Guildford, Surrey GU2 4BB. View directions
Contact: Andrea Carr, Committee Officer Tel no: 01483 444058 Email: andrea.carr@guildford.gov.uk
Media
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Apologies for Absence and Notification of Substitute Members Additional documents: Minutes: Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Steven Lee. There were no substitutes. |
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Local Code of Conduct and Declaration of Disclosable Pecuniary Interests In accordance with the local Code of Conduct, a councillor is required to disclose at the meeting any Disclosable Pecuniary Interest (DPI) that they may have in respect of any matter for consideration on this agenda. Any councillor with a DPI must not participate in any discussion or vote regarding that matter and they must withdraw from the meeting immediately before consideration of the matter.
If that DPI has not been registered, the councillor must notify the Monitoring Officer of the details of the DPI within 28 days of the date of the meeting.
Councillors are further invited to disclose any non-pecuniary interest which may be relevant to any matter on this agenda, in the interests of transparency, and to confirm that it will not affect their objectivity in relation to that matter. Additional documents: Minutes: There were no declarations of pecuniary or non-pecuniary interests. |
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To confirm the minutes of the Executive Advisory Board meeting held on 5 September 2019. Additional documents: Minutes: The minutes of the meeting of the Executive Advisory Board held on 5 September 2019 were confirmed as a correct record, and signed by the Chairman. |
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Additional documents:
Minutes: The Board was invited to note the Procurement Service Strategy 2019 – 2021 and covering update report regarding procurement at the Council, its importance and the planned approach going forward. The report highlighted the need for an effective commissioning, procurement and contract management function.
A supporting presentation was given by the Procurement Manager which explained that commissioning was a process of identifying the needs of a business area and assessing how those needs could be met and services provided, procurement was a system of buying goods, services or works and contract management was an ongoing oversight of a contract to ensure that it was delivered and that risks and opportunities were identified and managed. The presentation outlined the procurement cycle; addressed procurement history to date at the Council; identified key drivers for savings, efficiencies, alternative models for delivery and legal compliance; and covered social value and small to medium enterprises (SMEs).
The procurement cycle consisted of defining requirements, specifications, make or buy options, source identification and selection, contracting, receipt and payment, contract management, and de-commissioning and disposal.
In terms of history, the Council’s approximate annual spend was £50 million. Procurement had progressed since the appointment of the first Procurement Officer in 2015 and was transforming from an autonomous devolved model into a centralised commercial team with a work programme with 50 plus live projects. In addition to a Procurement Service Strategy, the service benefited from a Corporate Procurement Board which fulfilled the governance of the service. The dedicated Procurement Manager was assisted by an experienced Procurement Team (currently resourced by interim staff) who were working towards the delivery of a centralised category management model identifying savings under the Future Guildford programme.
The key drivers were effective procurement to deliver substantial savings and efficiencies and maximise commercial opportunities for the Council. Commissioning examined how services could be provided in different ways such as working collaboratively with neighbouring authorities (or other bodies) and alternative / innovative delivery models for goods and services. Compliance with legislation, mainly the Public Contract Regulations 2015 and the Local Government Transparency Code 2015, was a further key driver. Effective procurement would mitigate the likelihood of legal challenges due to lack of procurement compliance and procurement challenge was avoided through the systematic, equal opportunities treatment of suppliers at every stage of procurement. There were many forms of challenge, namely, legal challenge, the Cabinet Office Mystery Shopping Scheme, the Council’s Corporate Complaints process and the Ombudsman. Receipt of a formal challenge could lead to severe consequences for reputation and meeting timelines.
Procurement could ensure that there was a commercial focus on Social Value and SMEs, assisting local suppliers to be more competitive. The Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012 required social value to be considered when procuring goods and services for the Council. Focus in local government was on building skills and employment opportunities in the local area such as the number of apprenticeships per £ million contract value. A strong procurement function within the Council could help to ... view the full minutes text for item C20 |
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Review of Refuse and Recycling Service - Presentation Additional documents: Minutes: The Waste Policy and Development Manager and Waste, Parking and Fleet Services Manager gave a presentation in respect of the above. The presentation covered the background to the service, consistency of collections, Deposit Return Scheme (DRS), Packaging Producer Responsibility Scheme (an extended producer responsibility (EPR) scheme), packaging tax, disposal, collection changes and the resulting impact on the Borough, future possible service models, progress update and summary.
In terms of background, the Government had published a Resources and Waste Strategy in December 2018. Between February and May 2019 four consultations were issued by the Government in respect of collection consistency, DRS, EPR and packaging tax and on 15 October 2019 the Government published the draft Environment Bill. The responses to the consultations and indicated direction of travel would also be published.
With regard to consistency of collections, core materials had been agreed in the form of glass; paper and card; plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays; and steel and aluminium tins and cans. The inclusion of cartons and plastic film was under review. Free collection of garden waste, standardisation of bin colours, minimum refuse and recycling collection frequencies, and new Key Performance Indicators, likely to be carbon based, were being considered. Food waste would be mandated and there would be a requirement for the separation of waste. A minimum commercial standard would be set and businesses would be required to recycle waste.
Although DRS was expected to be introduced in 2023 following further consultation in 2020 regarding the related detail, the exact approach remained to be confirmed. The Government had commissioned a social research project that would consider the impacts on residents of recycling at home which would result in less material for the Council to collect.
The EPR scheme was also expected to be introduced in 2023 following further consultation in 2020. The scheme would require packaging producers to pay to place material on the market and to contribute to the costs of collecting and recycling it. Money could be claimed back by producers when they used recycled plastic driving the recycling market. The resulting impact on the Borough would be changes in the materials collected and contributions to collection costs.
The packaging tax was a tax on all plastic packaging with less than a set recyclable content. The 2019 budget would include further detail and HM Treasury would publish a technical consultation in respect of the tax design. Related draft legislation would be published in 2020 for implementation in 2022. This scheme would change the composition of the material collected by the Council resulting in collecting less packaging in volume and tonnage.
In terms of waste disposal, controls remained in place in China and its 2020 ban on imported waste was likely to occur. Indonesia would be introducing new restrictions which would prevent export to the second biggest market, whilst the Netherlands had implemented a flat rate tax on every tonne of Refuse Derived Fuel waste, increasing the cost of disposing of rejected recycling and refuse. Brexit ... view the full minutes text for item C21 |
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Executive Forward Plan PDF 596 KB Additional documents: Minutes: The Executive Forward Plan dated October 2019 was noted by the Executive Advisory Board. |
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To consider and approve the EAB’s draft work programme. Additional documents: Minutes: The Executive Advisory Board agreed its work programme. |