Agenda and minutes

To appoint a relief Chairman.

1.1     Motion, moved by the Lord Mayor and seconded by Councillor Tim Mitchell, that Councillor Judith Warner be elected as Relief Chairman.

1.2     Motion put, and on a show of hands, declared CARRIED.

To sign the Minutes of the Annual Meeting of the Council meeting held on 16 May 2018.

2.1     The minutes of the proceedings at the Council meeting held on Wednesday 16^th May 2018 were, with the assent of the Members present, signed by the Lord Mayor as a true record of the proceedings.

3.1     The Lord Mayor advised that these were as set out on the agenda.

To receive any Declarations of Interests from Members and Officers of the Council.

4.1     There were none.

Adjournment of Meeting

At this point the Lord Mayor adjourned the meeting to enable the Extraordinary Council Meeting to be held.

5.1     There were no petitions submitted.

Standing Order 9 limits the questions to matters relevant to the general work or procedure of the Council.

Note by the Head of Committee and Governance Services:

The Chief Whip of the Majority Party, Councillor Tim Mitchell, has indicated that he wishes to continue with the trial operated at the Council meetings in the last municipal year whereby the Lord Mayor will call Members who indicate that they wish to ask a question after the Leader of the Opposition has asked his questions.  Councillor mitchell has indicated that he will table a procedural motion to effect this.

6.1     Procedural Motion

          Moved by Councillor Tim Mitchell and seconded by Councillor Guthrie McKie       and

          Resolved:

          That Standing Order 9 be suspended to the extent only to allow that rather than Members, entitled to do so, being selected by draw to ask Questions the Lord Mayor call Members entitled to ask a question who indicate when asked by the Lord Mayor by show of hands at the meeting a wish to do so.  The Lord Mayor, when calling Members, may have regard to the proportionality of the political groups on the Council.  The Leader of the Opposition shall still be entitled to ask up to 3 questions during question time which shall be for a maximum of 45 minutes.

6.2     The questions, supplementary questions and replies are included on the Council’s website.

Note by the Head of Committee and Governance Services

With the consent of the Chief Whip of both the Majority Party and the Chief Whip of the Minority Party this item will be deferred.

7.1     With the consent of the Chief Whips of both parties this item was deferred.

With the approval of the Chairman of the meeting, the Leader of the Council may make a statement on an urgent matter and the Leader of the Opposition will have an equivalent right of reply.

8.1     There was no statement on urgent matters.

To consider items chosen for debate from the attached Future Policy Plan.

9.1     The meeting debated the first item chosen for debate from the Future        Policy Plan by the Majority Party.

          The Council’s Strategic Direction

          The Majority Party had selected item number 118 on the Future Policy Plan, the Council’s Strategic Direction. 

(a)      Adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of Anti-Semitism and action on Hate Crime

Moved by Councillor Nickie Aiken and seconded by Councillor Adam Hug

This Council expresses alarm at the rise in antisemitism in recent years across the UK and welcomes the Government’s decision to formally adopt the internationally recognised International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) guidelines on antisemitism, which defines antisemitism as:

“a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities”.

The guidelines highlight manifestations of antisemitism as including:

the targeting of the state of Israel, conceived as a Jewish collectivity. However, criticism of Israel similar to that levelled against any other country cannot be regarded as antisemitic. Antisemitism frequently charges Jews with conspiring to harm humanity, and it is often used to blame Jews for “why things go wrong.” It is expressed in speech, writing, visual forms and action, and employs sinister stereotypes and negative character traits.

Contemporary examples of antisemitism in public life, the media, schools, the workplace, and in the religious sphere could, taking into account the overall context, include, but are not limited to:

·       Calling for, aiding, or justifying the killing or harming of Jews in the name of a radical ideology or an extremist view of religion.

·       Making mendacious, dehumanizing, demonizing, or stereotypical allegations about Jews as such or the power of Jews as collective — such as, especially but not exclusively, the myth about a world Jewish conspiracy or of Jews controlling the media, economy, government or other societal institutions.

·       Accusing Jews as a people of being responsible for real or imagined wrongdoing committed by a single Jewish person or group, or even for acts committed by non-Jews.

·       Denying the fact, scope, mechanisms (e.g. gas chambers) or intentionality of the genocide of the Jewish people at the hands of National Socialist Germany and its supporters and accomplices during World War II (the Holocaust).

·       Accusing the Jews as a people, or Israel as a state, of inventing or exaggerating the Holocaust.

·       Accusing Jewish citizens of being more loyal to Israel, or to the alleged priorities of Jews worldwide, than to the interests of their own nations.

·       Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, e.g., by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavour.

·       Applying double standards by requiring of it behaviour not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation.

·       Using the symbols and images associated with classic antisemitism (e.g., claims of Jews killing Jesus or blood libel) to characterize Israel or Israelis.

·       Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis.

·       Holding Jews collectively responsible for actions of the state of Israel.

          Antisemitic acts are criminal when they are so defined by law (for example, denial of the Holocaust or distribution of antisemitic materials in some countries).

Criminal acts are antisemitic when the targets of  ...  view the full agenda text for item 11.

11.1    The Majority Party had selected for its second debate the first Notice of Motion (Adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance Definition of Anti-semitism and Action on Hate Crime) as set out on the agenda.  The Notice of Motion was moved by Councillor Nickie Aiken and seconded by Councillor Adam Hug.

11.2    Following debate, to which Councillor Ian Adams replied, the Lord Mayor put the Notice of Motion moved by Councillor Aiken and seconded by Councillor Adam Hug to the vote and on a show of hands declared the Notice of Motion CARRIED.

          RESOLVED:

          That Council expresses alarm at the rise in antisemitism in recent years across the UK and welcomes the Government’s decision to formally adopt the internationally recognised International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) guidelines on antisemitism, which defines antisemitism as:

“a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities”.

The guidelines highlight manifestations of antisemitism as including:

The targeting of the state of Israel, conceived as a Jewish collectivity. However, criticism of Israel similar to that levelled against any other country cannot be regarded as anti-semitic. Anti-semitism frequently charges Jews with conspiring to harm humanity, and it is often used to blame Jews for “why things go wrong.” It is expressed in speech, writing, visual forms and action, and employs sinister stereotypes and negative character traits.

Contemporary examples of antisemitism in public life, the media, schools, the workplace, and in the religious sphere could, taking into account the overall context, include, but are not limited to:

·       Calling for, aiding, or justifying the killing or harming of Jews in the name of a radical ideology or an extremist view of religion.

·       Making mendacious, dehumanizing, demonizing, or stereotypical allegations about Jews as such or the power of Jews as collective — such as, especially but not exclusively, the myth about a world Jewish conspiracy or of Jews controlling the media, economy, government or other societal institutions.

·       Accusing Jews as a people of being responsible for real or imagined wrongdoing committed by a single Jewish person or group, or even for acts committed by non-Jews.

·       Denying the fact, scope, mechanisms (e.g. gas chambers) or intentionality of the genocide of the Jewish people at the hands of National Socialist Germany and its supporters and accomplices during World War II (the Holocaust).

·       Accusing the Jews as a people, or Israel as a state, of inventing or exaggerating the Holocaust.

·       Accusing Jewish citizens of being more loyal to Israel, or to the alleged priorities of Jews worldwide, than to the interests of their own nations.

·       Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, e.g., by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavour.

·       Applying double standards by requiring of it behaviour not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation.

·       Using the symbols and images associated with classic  ...  view the full minutes text for item 11.

To receive, consider and debate, if chosen, the following reports which contain a recommendation to the Council for decision:

Cabinet Member/Committee                                              Date of Meeting

                                                                                          or Decision

General Purposes (Members Allowances amendment)      4 July 2018

(To Follow)

Cabinet (Annual Accounts) (To Follow)                              9 July 2018

11.1    The Lord Mayor then put the recommendation of the General Purposes Committee to the vote and on a show of hands declared the recommendation ADOPTED.

11.2    RESOLVED:  That the Members Allowances Scheme (amendment) be adopted as set out in the report attached as Appendix A to the General Purposes Committee report.

11.3    The Council noted the Annual Accounts as set out in the report attached as Appendix B to the Cabinet report.