Agenda and minutes

Venue: Guildhall, Windsor - Guildhall

Contact: Karen Shepherd  01628 796529

Items
No. Item

1.

Apologies for Absence

To receive any apologies for absence

Minutes:

None received.

2.

Declarations of Interest pdf icon PDF 219 KB

To receive any declarations of interest

Minutes:

None received.

3.

Election of Mayor for 2019/20 pdf icon PDF 68 KB

For details of the Order of Proceedings please see page 7

Minutes:

The Mayor, Paul Lion, welcomed everyone to the Annual Meeting and gave a brief résumé of his year in office. He thanked Reverend John Quick and Reverend Will Stileman for their spiritual guidance. His aim was now to keep an eye on Councillor Bhangra, to look after his old ward. The Prime Minister had said to him that politics was brutal; the country stood at a crossroads of national politics. Members were local politicians and should look after the local crossroads first. It had been a privilege to serve the borough and its communities. It had opened his eyes to the huge number of volunteers who gave their time selflessly to help others. The news was full of doom and gloom but if you listened to the local communities this was far from the truth. He had visited many local schools during the year and had great fun talking to the future generations. The variety of events he had attended were too many to mention but the chance to raise funds for his two charities, the Royal British Legion and Royal National Lifeboat Institute, had been a fantastic experience.  He thanked everyone who had supported him throughout the year, including the Mayor’s Secretary and the Mayoral Team, his loving wife and family, old friends and new, the presidents of the Rotary and Lions Clubs, Colin Rayner, who had been a fantastic Deputy Mayor, the Leader Councillor Simon Dudley and fellow Councillors.

 

THE MAYOR INVITED NOMINATIONS FOR THE ELECTION OF THE MAYOR OF THE ROYAL BOROUGH FOR 2019/2020.

 

In proposing Councillor Sayonara Luxton for the role of Mayor, Councillor Story stated that it gave him great pleasure to propose Sayonara Luxton as Mayor of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead for the next 12 months. Sayonara was from Goa and was part of a big family, and had quite a big family herself. She had four brothers, two sisters and four daughters. Sayonara may have been of little height but what she lacked in height she made up for in experience and determination, and certainly made up for in making her presence known.

 

Sayonara had been a councillor in Sunningdale for 12 years. Four years ago she had been Deputy Mayor; three years ago she had been Mayor. As Mayor she had proudly represented the Royal Borough at the many events. As Deputy Mayor, along with the Mayor Dee Quick, she had celebrated the Queen's 90th birthday and presented Her Majesty with a very special birthday present from the Royal Borough, coats for each of the corgis complete with the Royal Borough crest.

 

During her year as Mayor Sayonara raised a great deal of money for charities, including the famous War Horse memorial which was in a very prominent position outside the entrance to Ascot Racecourse. Councillor Story was sure she would raise a lot of money for charities in the coming year as well.

 

Sayonara was a great fighter for the residents of the Royal Borough  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.

4.

Election of Deputy Mayor for 2019/20

For details of the Order of Proceedings please see page 7

 

Minutes:

In nominating Councillor Muir for the office of Deputy Mayor, Councillor Shelim stated that Gary was originally from Blackpool but had been educated at Henley College, before becoming the youngest ever Area Manager for the Association of Retailers of America. After that he spent a decade working in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia where he met his long-time friend Jesse Grey. He moved back from the Middle East in 1989 to raise his two wonderful sons, Christopher and Jonathan, in Datchet. He was elected to the Royal Borough in a by-election in 2007. Councillor Muir discharged his public duty without a desire for fanfare or fame, media attention or public recognition.  He had raised thousands of pounds for numerous charities and had been instrumental in ensuring the traveller community in Datchet was valued, respected and an integral part of the village.  Gary Muir’s love for community, family and patriotism made him the perfect choice for Deputy Mayor.

 

In seconding the motion, Councillor Cannon stated that he had known Councillor Muir over 10 years in his capacity as Borough Councillor, Parish Councillor and together with Caron, as personal friends. Caron North would be a great support to Gary during the year ahead. Caron was born and raised in Sheffield. It was apparent from a very early age that her passion was animals. After College she moved to Old Windsor in 1985 where she studied Equestrian Science and Husbandry. These qualifications led into several jobs where she worked, trained and cared for horses. 34 years ago, while driving the horse drawn carriages in Windsor she met one of her closest friends, Bob Reagan. Little did she know that that meeting would be the beginning of a new chapter. Caron had always dreamt big ideas (no matter how crazy they seemed) and one of her biggest was to learn to drive HGV lorries, to join Bob on his farm business.

 

In 2002 Caron’s life changed when Blue Acre Horse Rescue was formed. Bob finally gave up fighting the growing numbers of horses turning up on the farm with Caron, with countless stories of terror told to him about their backgrounds.

A selfless and generous woman, Caron planned to change the world for as many animals as she could. The charity became Caron’s life 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. She created a sanctuary full of love and safety for not just horses but any animals in need. Today she cared for 43 horses, countless ducks and chickens, 6 dogs and 2 goats on a daily basis. She also worked part time at the Old Windsor Club. Caron lead the team on rescue missions, receiving calls in the middle of the night, attending immediately, completely disregarding herself, thinking only of the animals.

 

Blue Acre not only helped animals; it was very important to Caron that everyone had a safe place where they could be themselves and feel comfortable. She worked closely with the Ways Into Work Scheme through Blue Acre to help disadvantaged young  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

5.

Election of Leader

To elect a Leader of the Council on the nomination of the Group forming the Administration of the Council.

Minutes:

Members considered the election of the Leader of the Council.

 

Councillor Coppinger proposed Councillor Simon Dudley as Leader of the Council. Councillor Coppinger explained that he had first become a Member 8 years previously; the borough had been a very different place then. It was a borough that did not support affordable housing, only supported sustainability if the pay back was good and where children and grandchildren had to move away to afford a house. The Waterway was only a dream; Maidenhead had literally been dying. Now it was a borough with high levels of investment, a new leisure centre in Maidenhead and a new one to be built in the south of the borough; where those unfortunate enough to be homeless were offered accommodation and not just when it was freezing. Where 30% affordable housing was guaranteed on joint development sites. York House had been rebuilt, the new Waterways were coming and millions had been invested in schools. The borough had fought to stop the expansion of Heathrow and improve the lives of residents, and had worked closely with the government on a flood relief scheme. A Cabinet Member had been appointed to drive the green agenda including a new kerbside recycling scheme. The common factor had been Councillor Dudley, a leader with foresight, financial acumen and the ability to see opportunities and make decisions.

 

In seconding the motion, Councillor Rayner commented that Councillor Dudley was one of the most experienced and long-serving councillors. He had held a number of Lead Member positions in which he had gained valuable insights and then had been Leader for the last three years. In that time the council had made huge and brilliant steps to make the lives of residents better. Change was not easy and bravery was needed. Councillor Dudley was passionate about delivering and driving change. There was a need for stability in the council to give confidence to businesses and residents and to encourage more investment in the borough. Councillor Dudley brought to the council a long and successful career in banking, dealing in complex and high finance. These skills were essential as the borough tackled the most challenging and demanding issues of the day including increasing social care for adults and children and the huge infrastructure and development needed. This required a Leader who could steer with confidence and the skills to deliver what was so needed.

 

It was proposed by Councillor Coppinger, seconded by Councillor Rayner, and:

 

RESOLVED: That Councillor Dudley be elected as Leader of the Council.

 

A named vote was taken as at least five councillors made such a request, as per Part 2 C17.3.3 of the constitution: 23 councillors voted for the motion: Councillors Bateson, Bhangra, Bowden, Cannon, Carroll, Clark, Coppinger, Dudley, Haseler, Hilton, Hunt, Johnson, Luxton, McWilliams, Muir, Rayner, Singh, Sharpe, Shelim, Story, Stimson, Targowski, Walters. 17 councillors voted against the motion: Councillors Baldwin, Baskerville, Bond, Brar, C Da Costa, W Da Costa, Davey, Davies, Del Campo, Hill, Jones, Knowles, Price, Reynolds,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

Recorded Vote
TitleTypeRecorded Vote textResult
Election of Leader Motion Carried
  • View Recorded Vote for this item
  • 6.

    Political Balance and Appointment of Panels, Chairmen/Vice Chairman 2019-20 pdf icon PDF 335 KB

    To consider the political balance of the council, and the structure and appointment of Committees and Panels etc as the Council considers appropriate to deal with matters which are neither reserved to the Council nor part executive functions. Council is required also to appoint the Chairmen and Vice-Chairmen to each body appointed under this item with the exception of the Appeals Panel, which shall select a Chairman from the Panel membership at the start of each Panel meeting for the duration of that meeting, and the Overview and Scrutiny Panels which shall elect Chairmen from their membership.

    Minutes:

    Members considered the political balance in accordance with the duty in the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 to review and determine the representation of the different political groups on bodies appointed by the council.

     

    RESOLVED: That Full Councilnotes the report and:

     

    i)          Notes the political balance of the council as a result of the local elections held on 2 May 2019 as detailed in paragraph 2.1.

    ii)        Approves the membership of the committees, panels and forums for the ensuing Municipal Year as detailed in Appendix A.

    iii)       Appoints the Chairman and Vice-Chairman for the ensuing Municipal Year as detailed in Appendix A.

    iv)       Delegates authority to the Service Lead – Governance to amend/make further appointments on the nomination of the relevant Group Leader.

    v)        Delegates authority to the Monitoring Officer to amend the constitution as appropriate in light of any amendments to the structure of Panels, Committees and Forums as detailed in Appendix A, including:

    ·         The number of panel members on the Licensing Panel be amended to 11 (see paragraph 2.7 for details)

    ·         The inclusion of Old Windsor ward in the terms of reference for the Windsor Town Forum  (see paragraph 2.8 for details)

     

    In closing the meeting, the Mayor invited Lily and Mia, representing Thames Hospice, to present bouquets to the Mayor, Deputy Mayoress, immediate past Mayoress and immediate Past Deputy Mayoress.