Agenda and minutes

            In accordance with Standing Order 9, the Lord Mayor read a passage from the Scriptures.

            The Chief Executive submitted the summons convening the meeting.

            Apologies for inability to attend were reported from Councillors W. Browne, Cobain, McMillen, Mac Giolla Mhín, Mhic Giolla Mhín and Rodway.

Moved by the Right Honourable the Lord Mayor (Councillor Long),

Seconded by the Deputy Lord Mayor (Councillor Lavery) and

      Resolved – That the minutes of the proceedings of the Monthly Meeting of the Council of 1st March be taken as read and signed as correct.

            In accordance with Notice on the Summons Paper, the Council considered the question of the filling of the casual vacancy in the Oldpark District Electoral Area consequent upon the resignation of Councillor McClenaghan.

            The Chief Executive informed the Council that Section 11 (4) (a) of the Electoral Law Act (Northern Ireland) 1962 enabled the Council to fill the vacancy by co-option, provided that such a person was qualified to be a Member of the Council and was not objected to by any Member of the Council present at the meeting.  In the event of the vacancy not being filled by co-option, a By-Election would be required to fill the vacancy.

            Councillor M. Browne proposed the co-option of Mr. Gerald McCabe to fill the casual vacancy in the Oldpark District Electoral Area.

            The proposal was seconded by Councillor Cunningham.

            As no objection was made to the proposal, the Lord Mayor (Councillor Long) declared Mr. McCabe co-opted as Councillor for the Oldpark District Electoral Area.

            Councillor McCabe, having subscribed to the declaration of Acceptance of Office and the Declaration Against Terrorism, was admitted to the meeting and welcomed by the Lord Mayor.

            Members of each of the party Groupings on the Council paid tribute to the work and service which had been provided by Margaret McClenaghan to the Council and her constituents during her period of service as a Member of Belfast City Council.

            The Council was advised that notification had been received from the Sinn Féin Party Grouping indicating that it wished Councillor McCabe to fill the vacancies on the Parks and Leisure and Town Planning Committees, consequent upon the resignation of Councillor McClenaghan.

            The Council approved the aforementioned changes.

            The Council was advised that notification had been received from the Democratic Unionist Party Grouping indicating that it wished to replace Councillor W. Browne with Councillor Robinson on the District Policing Partnership East Belfast Sub-Group.

            The Council approved the aforementioned change.

            The Lord Mayor advised the Council that, as part of the voluntary redundancy exercise, four officers from the Chief Executive’s Department had left the Council the previous day and she paid tribute to the service which had been provided by those officers to the Council and the citizens of Belfast during their long service.

            Members of each of the Party Groupings on the Council paid tribute to all the members of staff who would be leaving the Council under the voluntary redundancy scheme and thanked them for the role which they had played in the advancement of the City.

Minutes of meetings of 5^th, 16^th and 19^th March, 2010

Moved by Councillor Hartley,

Seconded by Councillor D. Browne,

      That the minutes of the proceedings of the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee of 5th, 16th and 19th March be approved and adopted.

Amendment

Budget Monitoring Report

Moved by Councillor McCarthy,

Seconded by Councillor Stalford,

      That the decision of 19th March under the heading “Finance – Budget Monitoring Report” noting the latest financial position of the Council, be amended to provide that monthly budget reports on the Council’s expenditure be submitted to all the Committees of the Council.

            A division on the amendment was demanded.  A poll having been taking on the amendment, there voted for it eleven Members, viz., The High Sheriff (Councillor Stalford); and Councillors Attwood, Campbell, Convery, Humphrey, B. Kelly, N. Kelly, Mallon, McCarthy, Mullaghan and O’Reilly; and against it thirty-one Members, viz., the Right Honourable the Lord Mayor (Councillor Long); the Deputy Lord Mayor (Councillor Lavery); and Councillors Adamson, Austin, D. Browne, M. Browne, Brownlee, Crozier, Cunningham, Cush, N. Dodds, Ekin, Empey, Hartley, Hendron, Jones, Kirkpatrick, Kyle, A. Maskey, C. Maskey, McCabe, McCann, McCausland, McKenzie, Newton, O’Neill, Patterson, Robinson, Rodgers, Smyth and Stoker.

            The amendment was accordingly declared lost.

Further Amendment

Moved by Councillor Rodgers,

Seconded by Councillor D. Browne and

      Resolved – That the matter be referred back to the Committee for consideration to be given to a report on the appropriate level of financial reporting which should be made to Committees on a regular basis.

Requests for Matters to be

Taken Back for Further Consideration

            Publication of Information on

            Payments made to Council Officers

            The Chairman (Councillor Hartley), at the request of Councillor D. Browne and with the consent of the Council, agreed that the minute of the meeting of 19th March under the heading “Publication of Information on Payments made to Council Officers” be taken back to the Committee for further consideration.

Members’ Declarations of Interest

            At the request of Councillor McCausland, the Chairman (Councillor Hartley), with the consent of the Council, agreed that the minute of the meeting of 19th March under the heading “Members’ Declarations of Interest” be taken back to the Committee for further consideration.

Amendment

Request to Address the Council –

UNISON Northern Ireland

Moved by Councillor McCann,

Seconded by Councillor C. Maskey and

      Resolved – That the decision of 19th March under the heading “Request to Address the Council – UNISON Northern Ireland”, agreeing to receive at a future meeting of the Committee a presentation from representatives of the Union, be amended to include representatives from other Trades Unions representing the Council workforce being invited to the Committee meeting.

Adoption of Minutes

            The minutes of the proceedings of the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee of 5th, 16th and 19th March were thereupon approved and adopted, subject to:

(i)       the omission of the minute of the meeting of 19th March under the heading “Finance – Budget Monitoring Report” which, at the request of Councillor Rodgers, is referred back to the Committee for further  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.

Minutes of meeting of 11^th March, 2010

Moved by Councillor Stoker,

Seconded by the High Sheriff (Councillor Stalford),

      That the minutes of the proceedings of the Parks and Leisure Committee of 11th March be approved and adopted.

Amendment

Cliftonville Playing Fields

Moved by Councillor Ekin,

Seconded by Councillor C. Maskey,

      That the decision under the heading “Cliftonville Playing Fields” be amended to provide that, recognising that studies for the development of a rational approach to the provision of sport and leisure facilities indicate clearly that, amongst other imbalances, a shortage exists of playing fields in North and West Belfast, the Council agrees to approve the provision of temporary changing accommodation at Cliftonville Road and that this decision be prioritised due to the child protection issues arising from the current management arrangements, on the condition that the Council is not responsible for the costs of supervising or managing the facility or for the removal of the same, should that be required.  Further, the Director of Parks and Leisure be instructed to pursue the urgent completion of a comprehensive strategy to help rationalise the provision of sport and leisure facilities in Belfast by the Council and others.

            A division on the amendment was demanded.  A poll having been taken on the amendment, there voted for it twenty-four Members, viz., the Right Honourable the Lord Mayor (Councillor Long); the Deputy Lord Mayor (Councillor Lavery); and Councillors Attwood, Austin, M. Browne, Brownlee, Convery, Cunningham, Cush, Ekin, Hartley, Hendron, Jones, B. Kelly, N. Kelly, Mallon, A. Maskey, C. Maskey, McCabe, McCann, McCarthy, Mullaghan, O’Neill and O’Reilly; and against it seventeen Members, viz., the High Sheriff (Councillor Stalford); and Councillors Adamson, D. Browne, Campbell, Crozier, Humphrey, Kirkpatrick, Kyle, McCausland, McCoubrey, McKenzie, Newton, Patterson, Robinson, Rodgers, Smyth and Stoker.

            The amendment was accordingly declared carried.

Further Amendment

Moved by Councillor Stoker,

Seconded by Councillor D. Browne and

      Resolved – That a detailed financial report on all aspects of the Cliftonville Playing Fields Project, and in particular outlining where the finance for the provision of the temporary changing accommodation will be found and the implications of this for other Parks and Leisure projects, be submitted to the Committee at its meeting in April.

Amendment

Elite Facilities Programme

Moved by Councillor Rodgers,

Seconded by Councillor Smyth and

      Resolved – That the decision under the heading “Elite Facilities Programme”, noting the information provided in respect of the late submission by consultants acting on the Council’s behalf of an application in connection with the Mary Peters Track and a Velodrome Facility, be amended to provide that steps be taken by the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee to ensure that processes and procedures are introduced which will prevent any possible recurrence of this situation.

Adoption of Minutes

            Subject to the foregoing amendments in relation to the Cliftonville Playing Fields and the Elite Facilities Programme, the minutes of the proceedings of the Parks and Leisure Committee of 11th March were approved and adopted.

Minutes of meeting of 9^th March, 2010

Moved by Councillor Humphrey,

Seconded by Councillor Rodgers,

      That the minutes of the proceedings of the Development Committee of 9th March be approved and adopted.

Request for Matter to be

Taken Back for Further Consideration

            Belfast Welcome Centre

            At the request of Councillor N. Kelly, the Chairman (Councillor Humphrey), with the consent of the Council, agreed that the minute under the heading “Belfast Welcome Centre” be taken back to the Committee for further consideration.

Adoption of Minutes

            Subject to the foregoing omission in relation to the Belfast Welcome Centre, the minutes of the proceedings of the Development Committee of 9th March were approved and adopted.

Minutes of meeting of 3^rd March, 2010

Moved by Councillor McCarthy,

Seconded by Councillor Hendron and

      Resolved – That the minutes of the proceedings of the Health and Environmental Services Committee of 3rd March be approved and adopted.

Minutes of meetings of 8^th, 16^th and22nd March, 2010

Moved by Councillor O’Neill,

Seconded by Councillor C. Maskey and

      Resolved – That the minutes of the proceedings of the Licensing Committee of 8th, 16th and 22nd March, omitting matters in respect of which the Council has delegated its powers to the Committee, be approved and adopted.

Minutes of meetings of 4^th and 18^th March, 2010

Moved by Councillor Campbell,

Seconded by Councillor Smyth and

      Resolved – That the minutes of the proceedings of the Town Planning Committee of 4th and 18th March, omitting matters in respect of which the Council has delegated its powers to the Committee, be approved and adopted.

            In accordance with Notice on the Agenda, Councillor B. Kelly proposed:

      “This Council recognises that Human Trafficking is a problem which is taking place in Belfast as it is within many other parts of Europe.

      The Council expresses support for the Blue Blindfold campaign which is aimed at achieving co-ordination among the law enforcement and other professional front-line agencies who must deal with this problem and pledges the support of the Council, where appropriate, in promoting effective partnerships to help eradicate this difficulty.”

            The proposal was seconded by Councillor McCarthy.

            After discussion, the Notice of Motion was put to the meeting and passed unanimously.

            In accordance with Notice on the Agenda, Councillor Brownlee proposed:

      “The Council commends the achievement of St. Gall’s Gaelic Athletic Club, in this its Centenary year, in becoming the first team from Belfast to win an All-Ireland Senior Gaelic Football Club Championship and requests that the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee give consideration to the appropriate way in which this achievement might best be recognised.”

            The proposal was seconded by Councillor M. Browne.

            Prior to the Notice of Motion being considered, the Right Honourable the Lord Mayor (Councillor Long) reminded the Council that Standing Order 11 (e) specified that, if the subject matter of any Motion of which Notice had been given comes within the province of any Committee, upon being moved and seconded, it shall stand referred without discussion to that Committee or such other Committee as the Council may determine for consideration and report.

            Accordingly, the Right Honourable the Lord Mayor indicated that the matter would be referred to the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee without debate.

            The Members were informed that this would be the last meeting of the Council which would be attended by Mr. William Francey in his capacity as Director of Health and Environmental Services before retiring from the Council at the end of the month after 39 years service.

            Representative of each of the Party Groupings on the Council paid tribute to Mr. Francey for the exemplary manner in which he had fulfilled his duties during his many years of service.