To receive declarations by members and officers of the existence and nature of any personal or prejudicial interests in matters on this agenda.
Minutes:
2.1 Councillor Richard Beddoe explained that a week before the meeting, all four Members of the Committee were provided with a full set of papers including a detailed officer’s report on each application; together with bundles of every single letter or e-mail received in respect of every application, including all letters and e-mails containing objections or giving support. Members of the Committee read through everything in detail prior to the meeting. Accordingly, if an issue or comment made by a correspondent was not specifically mentioned at this meeting in the officers’ presentation or by Members of the Committee, it did not mean that the issue had been ignored. Members will have read about the issue and comments made by correspondents in the papers read prior to the meeting.
2.2 Councillor Beddoe also declared that in his capacity as Chairman of Planning, he gets to know a number of property developers and planning consultants, although he does not consider them his friends. He added that any Members of the Majority Party who had or would make representations in respect of the applications on the agenda were his friends.
2.3 Councillor Mitchell declared that in his capacity as Cabinet Member with responsibility for the Council’s property portfolio that he regularly meets representatives of the property industry. He also declared that any Members of the Majority Party who had or would make representations in respect of the applications on the agenda were his friends.
2.4 Councillor Burbridge declared that any Members of the Majority Party who had or would make representations in respect of the applications on the agenda were her friends. She also declared in respect of item 1 that she had sat on a committee when she had worked in Parliament that had organised the first statue for women in the House of Commons.
2.5 Councillor David Boothroyd read out the following declaration:
“I am Head of Research and Psephology for Thorncliffe, whose clients are companies applying for planning permission from various local authorities. No current schemes are in Westminster; if there were I would be precluded from working on them under the company’s code of conduct.
Some Thorncliffe clients have engaged planning consultants who are also representing applicants tonight: Savills on item 2, Gerald Eve on item 3, DP9 on item 4 and Rolfe Judd Planning on item 6. However I do not deal directly with clients or other members of project teams, and planning consultants are not themselves clients.
On item 1, an email of support for the application came from Lionel Zetter, who I count as a friend as I worked for him for six years up to 2002.
On item 2, I was contacted by Belgrave representing the applicant who felt that some of the issues in the report should be clarified.
On item 3, I was a member of planning committee deciding redevelopment of the adjacent Carrington Street car park site.”
He further declared in respect of item 1 that he considered Councillor Adam Hug, who had submitted a late representation, a friend.