Agenda, decisions and minutes

(A)       The persons undermentioned were admitted into the presence of the Council and passed as Burgesses of Guild in respect of their respective Acts of Admission in the Guild Burgess Book:-

Philip Astley, City Archivist, Aberdeen

Councillor Andrew William Finlayson, Councillor, Aberdeen

Professor Fredrik Paul Glasser, Retired Professor of Science, Aberdeen

Dr Kenneth Skeldon MBE, Scientist, Aberdeen

Catherine Anne Thornhill, Chartered Town Planner, Aberdeen

(B)       The persons undermentioned were admitted into the presence of the Council and passed as Burgesses of Guild by right of their father’s status as a Free Burgess:-

            Jennifer Marjorie Catto, Staff Nurse, Aberdeen

            Alison Jane Hunter, Human Resources Director, Aberdeen

The Council was requested to determine that the following items of business which contained exempt information as described in Schedule 7(A) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, be taken in private:-

9(a)     Social Work Complaints Review Committee - 23 November 2016

9(b)     Aberdeen Renewable Energy Group (AREG) Agreement

The Council resolved:-

in terms of Section 50(A)(4) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, to exclude the press and public from the meeting during consideration of items 9(a) and 9(b) so as to avoid disclosure of exempt information of the classes described in paragraphs 1, 3, 6 and 9 of Schedule 7(A) of the Act.

The Lord Provost advised that it was his intention that item 8(a), (Motion by Councillor Flynn) be considered immediately after item 7(i) (Adoption of Aberdeen Local Development Plan 2017) on the agenda.

The Council had before it the minute of meeting of Aberdeen City Council of 6 October 2016.

The Council resolved:-

to approve the minute.

The Council had before it the minute of the special meeting of Aberdeen City Council of 24 October 2016.

The Council resolved:-

to approve the minute.

The Council had before it the minute of meeting of the Urgent Business Committee of 1 November 2016.

The Council resolved:-

to approve the minute.

The Council had before it the minute of meeting of the Urgent Business Committee of 14 November 2016.

The Council resolved:-

to approve the minute.

The Council had before it a statement of Council business.

The Council resolved:-

to note the statement.

The Council had before it the minutes of meetings of the Appointment Panel of 4 October and 3 and 8 November 2016.

The Council resolved:-

to approve the minutes.

The Council had before it the minute of meeting of the Guildry and Mortification Funds Sub Committee of 1 September 2016.

The Council resolved:-

to approve the minute.

With reference to Article 24 of the minute of meeting of the Finance, Policy and Resources Committee of 1 December 2016, which had been referred to it for consideration by seven members of the Committee in terms of Standing Order 36(3), the Council had before it (1) a report by the Director of Communities, Housing and Infrastructure which presented the Memorandum of Understanding for the £254million additional investment from the Scottish Government, which was announced in addition to the joint UK Government and Scottish Government funding of the Aberdeen City Region Deal; and (2) the decision of the Committee, which was as follows:-

(i)            to note the content of the report;

(ii)          to note that Keith Brown MSP, Cabinet Secretary for the Economy, Jobs and Fair Work indicated at the announcement of the City Deal in January 2016 that the additional funding was to improve journey times and increase capacity on key rail links between Aberdeen and the Central Belt, upgrading the rail line in the Montrose Basin;

(iii)         to instruct the Chief Executive to write to the First Minister seeking clarification around the proposed £200million rail link fund seeking confirmation if it is still the Scottish Government’s intention to upgrade the rail line in the Montrose Basin and if not ask the First Minister to confirm if any of the £200million will be spent within Aberdeen and/or Aberdeenshire; and

(iv)         to agree that a further report be brought to the next Finance, Policy and Resources Committee along with any amended Memorandum of Understanding following receipt of clarification from the First Minister.

The Council resolved:-

(i)           to approve the amended Memorandum of Understanding as circulated; and

(ii)          to instruct the Chief Executive to write to the First Minister to clarify whether the Scottish Government £160million overspend in relation to the Aberdeen to Inverness rail line improvements, which have seen an increase in cost from £170million to £330million, will have any impact on funding for the committed £200million rail link to improve journey times between Aberdeen and the Central Belt, or any other transport projects which may come forward as part of the Aberdeen City Region Deal.

With reference to Article 7 of the minute of its meeting of 17 August 2016, the Council had before it a report by the Chief Executive which provided an update on a number of actions following the National Cremation Investigation and the Infant Cremation Commission, as well as the actions arising from the recent inspection undertaken by the Inspector of Crematoria Scotland.

The report recommended:-

that the Council -

(a)          note the update of actions contained within the report;

(b)          note that the Chief Executive has formally constituted the Bereavement Services Inter-Agency Working Group with formal terms of reference and assumed the chairmanship of the group;

(c)          note that a number of claims have been made against the Council and that these claims are in the hands of the Council’s insurers;

(d)          note that, in light of the legal framework being due to change considerably following the work of the Infant Cremation Commission, briefing sessions have been delivered to inform elected members of the statutory duties which will be placed on the Council once the Burial and Cremation (Scotland) Act 2016 (and any regulations made thereunder) comes into force; and

(e)          instruct the Chief Executive to continue to monitor the completion of the remaining actions to be undertaken by the Council as detailed within the report and to note that future update reports will be submitted to the Communities, Housing and Infrastructure Committee.

The Council resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

The Council had before it a report by the Interim Director of Corporate Governance which proposed amendments to the Council’s Standing Orders and Scheme of Delegation.

The report recommended:-

that the Council -

(a)          amend Standing Order 44 (Signing of Deeds) by adding to those officers so authorised, the holders of the posts of Team Leader in Legal Services who are solicitors; Head of Commercial and Procurement Services and Team Leader, Legal Team, Commercial and Procurement Services; and

(b)          amend the Scheme of Delegation by authorising the Chief Executive:-

(1)       to take any action on behalf of the Council which s/he considers necessary in the event of an emergency on the basis that any such action shall be reported to the next meeting of the Council or relevant committee or sub-committee for information; and

(2)       to implement the provisions of the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 and the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 (Contingency Planning (Scotland) Regulations 2005).

The Council resolved:-

(i)           to approve recommendation (a); and

(ii)          to amend the Scheme of Delegation by authorising the Chief Executive:-

(1)       to take any action on behalf of the Council which s/he considers necessary in the event of an emergency - with emergency defined in accordance with that detailed in the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 - on the basis that any such action shall be reported to the next meeting of the Council or relevant committee or sub-committee as an item on the agenda; and

(2)       to implement the provisions of the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 and the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 (Contingency Planning (Scotland) Regulations 2005).

The Council had before it a report by the Interim Director of Corporate Governance which sought approval for three external member appointments to the Education and Children’s Services Committee.

The report recommended:-

that the Council approve the following external member appointments to the Education and Children’s Services Committee -

·         Reverend Hutton Steel as the Church of Scotland representative

·         Ms Pamela Scott as the second teacher representative

·         Mrs Louise Bruce as the primary school and ASN provision parent representative

The Council resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

With reference to Article 26 of the minute of its meeting of 17 August 2016, the Council had before it a report by the Interim Director of Corporate Governance which provided an update on the implications of the award of a credit rating by Moody’s Investor Services and the bond issuance by the Council.

The report recommended:-

that the Council -

(a)          note that the Bonds are admitted to trading on the London Stock Exchange;

(b)          note that the Council must act in a manner capable of maintaining its credit rating;

(c)          note that the Council must comply with the Market Abuse Regulations, the Disclosure and Transparency Rules, the Listing Rules and the continuing obligations set out in the London Stock Exchange Admission and Disclosure Standards;

(d)          instruct the Head of Finance to review the Council’s financial management systems, processes and routines taking into account the requirements and expectations of holding and maintaining a suitable credit rating and being an Issuer of Bonds and to report back to the Finance, Policy and Resources Committee and Audit, Risk and Scrutiny Committee as required;

(e)          instruct the Head of Legal and Democratic Services to ensure that any proposals arising from the Governance Review are aligned to the requirements and expectations of holding and maintaining a suitable credit rating and being an Issuer of Bonds;

(f)           instruct the Head of Legal and Democratic Services to develop and maintain the Insider List(s) on behalf of the Council; and

(g)          instruct the Depute Chief Executive (Director of Corporate Governance) to develop proposals for a Fiscal Policy Panel as described in section 5.9.1 of the report and to report back to the appropriate committee.

The Council resolved:-

(i)            to approve recommendations (a) to (e);

(ii)          to instruct the Head of Legal and Democratic Services to develop and maintain the Insider List(s) on behalf of the Council and to concurrently instruct officers to provide training to elected members as to their responsibilities whilst on the Insider List(s); and

(iii)         to instruct the Depute Chief Executive (Director of Corporate Governance) to develop proposals for a Fiscal Policy Panel as described in section 5.9.1 of the report and to report back to the Finance, Policy and Resources Committee or full Council.

With reference to Article 11 of the minute of its meeting of 17 August 2016, the Council had before it a report by the Chief Executive which provided an early assessment of possible local implications of the vote to leave the European Union.

The report recommended:-

that the Council -

(a)          note the detail of the report;

(b)          instruct officers to review the Regional Economic Strategy and consider what adjustment, if any, is required to the Strategy in light of the emerging economic implications highlighted in the report. Any adjustments to focus on mitigation of potential harm and exploitation of potential opportunities;

(c)          note that officers are reviewing the Council’s approach:-

·         to overseas trade development in light of the potential change to our trade relations

·         to external funding in light of changes to EU funding; and

(d)          note the Scottish Government’s projection that the decision to leave the EU could reduce Scottish tax revenues by between £1.7billion and £3.7billion by 2030, resulting in a budget reduction to the Scottish Government of between 6% and 13% and to instruct the Head of Finance to keep Council briefed as the financial picture becomes clearer.

The Council resolved:-

(i)           to approve the recommendations; and

(ii)          to instruct the Chief Executive to write to the Secretary of State for Scotland, the Secretary of State for Exiting the EU, and the relevant Cabinet Secretary for the Scottish Government with a copy of the report, which outlines the negative impact which either a ‘soft’ or ‘hard’ Brexit will have on the economies of Aberdeen, Scotland and the UK.

With reference to Article 11 of the minute of its meeting of 17 August 2016, the Council had before it a report by the Chief Executive which provided details of the arrangements put in place for governance of the IJB.

The report recommended:-

that the Council note the content of the report.

The Council resolved:-

to approve the recommendation.

With reference to Article 12 of the minute of its meeting of 29 June 2016, the Council had before it a report by the Chief Executive which provided an update on progress by Community Planning Aberdeen in addressing the key areas of improvement identified by Audit Scotland as part of the Community Planning Audit in 2013, and in meeting the community planning requirements of the Community Empowerment Act 2015.

The report recommended:-

that the Council note the report.

The Council resolved:-

to approve the recommendation.

With reference to Article 13 of the minute of its meeting of 29 June 2016, the Council had before it a report by the Director of Communities, Housing and Infrastructure which presented the Annual Report for 2015/16 for the Fairer Aberdeen Fund Programme.

The report recommended:-

that the Council -

(a)          consider and advise the Fairer Aberdeen Board of the Council’s comments on the Annual Report for 2015/16 at Appendix 1 to the report; and

(b)          note that the Fairer Aberdeen Board has carried out a Participatory Budgeting exercise in the Froghall, Powis and Sunnybank area during 2016/17.

The Council resolved:-

(i)           to note the Fairer Aberdeen Fund annual report for 2015/16;

(ii)          to approve recommendation (b); and

(iii)         to recognise the work of the community representatives on the Fairer Aberdeen Board and the relevant staff.

The Council had before it a report by the Director of Communities, Housing and Infrastructure which presented the Examination Report on the Aberdeen Local Development Plan, the table of modifications arising from the report and the Plan as modified for adoption, as well as an updated Environmental Report and Habitats Regulation Assessment as required by legislation.

The report recommended:-

that the Council -

(a)          note the Examination Report on the Aberdeen Local Development Plan;

(b)          approve the modifications made to the Plan, as set out in Appendix 1 to the report, and any minor drafting changes;

(c)          notify the Scottish Ministers of the Council’s intention to adopt the Aberdeen Local Development Plan as modified; and

(d)          adopt the Aberdeen Local Development Plan with effect from 17 January 2017 unless directed otherwise by Scottish Ministers, and undertake the statutory procedures set out in Appendix 5 to the report.

The Council resolved:-

(i)           to approve the recommendations;

(ii)          to deeply regret that the Town and Country Planning (Grounds for Declining to Follow Recommendations) (Scotland) Regulations 2009 obliges this Council to accept the Reporter’s recommendations for modifications, regardless of the views of local communities or this Council;

(iii)         in particular, to note with disappointment the Reporter’s recommended modifications to include 60 homes and 1,225m² of employment at Milltimber South and the identification of the former BT yard at Froghall Terrace as an opportunity site for student accommodation; and

(iv)         to instruct the Chief Executive to write to the Scottish Government requesting that when sites are minded to be added to the Local Development Plan by the Scottish Government Reporter neighbour notification is carried out and response considered prior to any modification of future plans.

“Council:-

1)         Instructs officers to remove, with immediate effect, section 3.16 of the Student Accommodation Technical Advice Note (TAN), which states that "Purpose built student accommodation is not required to contribute to affordable housing".

2)         Notes that Aberdeen City Council has the power to request an affordable housing component from student housing, and therefore instructs officers to seek to obtain an affordable housing component in relation to all future student accommodation applications.”

The Council had before it the following notice of motion by Councillor Flynn:-

            “Council:-

(1)      Instructs officers to remove, with immediate effect, section 3.16 of the Student Accommodation Technical Advice Note (TAN), which states that “Purpose built student accommodation is not required to contribute to affordable housing”.

(2)      Notes that Aberdeen City Council has the power to request an affordable housing component from student housing, and therefore instructs officers to seek to obtain an affordable housing component in relation to all future student accommodation applications.”

Councillor Flynn moved, seconded by Councillor Dickson:-

That the Council approve the terms of the motion, and agree that where a development of student accommodation is proposed, a requirement of 25% affordable housing contribution would be applied.

Councillor Milne moved as an amendment, seconded by Councillor Donnelly:-

            That the Council -

(1)      note that SNP Councillors Cormie, Dickson, Jaffrey, Noble and Stuart all voted to approve the Technical Advice Note - Student Accommodation - CHI/15/214 at the Planning Development Management Committee on 16 July 2015;

(2)      note Aberdeen City Council has not historically nor does it currently require affordable housing from student accommodation developments;

(3)      note that it is not the practice of any local authority in Scotland, including Edinburgh or Glasgow to do so, and the Council is not aware of any London boroughs which seek it;

(4)      agree that Aberdeen City Council does not seek affordable housing for several reasons:-

a.    it is recognised across the UK that the provision of student accommodation reduces pressure on the housing market;

b.    due to the nature of student accommodation much higher densities can be achieved on these sites than would be achievable for market housing, approximately 2 to 10 times more bed-spaces;

c.    student accommodation helps to reduce pressure and demand for HMOs and temporary accommodation which are harder to regulate due to their size;

d.    not requiring affordable housing makes these developments more viable encouraging better managed and better quality schemes to come forward, this in turn helps to support our high quality tertiary education sector; and

e.    managed developments give residents and the Council a central contact point to address any issues;

(5)       agree that it is also extremely difficult to calculate the affordable housing contribution from student accommodation and even more so from historic accommodation; a common misunderstanding is that the 25% affordable housing policy can be applied to a student accommodation development and this will calculate what “would have been achievable”, this ignores the fact that affordable housing is based on unit numbers (houses or flats) not bed-spaces. Student accommodation is designed around numbers of bed-spaces either in studio flats or in a cluster format, i.e. a number of bed spaces served by central kitchen and communal facilities; and

(6)       agree that the removal of section 3.16 of the Student Accommodation Technical Advice Note would stifle development and regeneration throughout the city.

DECLARATION OF INTEREST

At this juncture, Councillor Carle declared an interest in the item of business under consideration by  ...  view the full minutes text for item 21.

The documents relating to Appendices 1 and 3 to the report have been made available to members separately - in electronic format via the shared drive, and in hard copy to each of the groups and in the Members’ Library.

The Council had before it a report by the Director of Communities, Housing and Infrastructure which presented Proposed Supplementary Guidance on a selection of planning policy matters and development sites and masterplan zones, as well as proposals regarding non-statutory planning guidance.

The report recommended:-

that the Council -

(a)          note the representations previously received on Proposed Supplementary Guidance documents on planning policy matters and approve officers’ responses to representations where relevant;

(b)          approve the Proposed Supplementary Guidance documents (Appendix 1 - planning policy and site specific) and instruct officers to consult on these documents for six weeks;

(c)          instruct officers to report the results of the public consultation, and any proposed revisions to the Proposed Supplementary Guidance to a subsequent Council meeting;

(d)          adopt the Proposed Supplementary Guidance documents as Interim Planning Advice from the adoption date of the new Aberdeen Local Development Plan (expected to be 17 January 2017) so as to ensure no gap in planning policy provision;

(e)          adopt the following documents as non-statutory planning guidance from the adoption date of the new Aberdeen Local Development Plan (expected to be 17 January 2017):

-       Aberdeen Harbour; Balgownie Centre, Bridge of Don; Broadford Works; Denburn Valley; Fire Station Site, North Anderson Drive; Hillhead Campus; Pinewood/Hazledene; River Don Corridor Framework; Robert Gordon University City Centre; Aberdeen Masterplanning Process and Design Review Panel; and

(f)           instruct officers to make any minor technical drafting updates which may be required to other non-statutory planning guidance in order to ensure all planning policy documents are up-to-date and consistent with the Aberdeen Local Development Plan 2017.

The Council resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

With reference to Article 24 of the minute of its meeting of 17 August 2016, the Council had before it a report by the Director of Communities, Housing and Infrastructure which provided an update on progress with the scheme and confirmed the extent of land to be acquired by Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) to facilitate construction.

The report recommended:-

that the Council -

(a)          note the content of the report;

(b)          approve progression of the scheme on the basis of the plan in Appendix A to the report;

(c)          instruct officers to prepare a CPO and supporting information to acquire the necessary land that cannot be secured by voluntary acquisition through a negotiated process;

(d)          instruct officers to report to a future meeting of Council to seek a resolution to make the CPO once the supporting documents are completed;

(e)          to instruct officers, in tandem with the CPO preparation, to continue to attempt voluntary acquisition using delegated authority as granted by Council on 17 August 2016; and

(f)           to authorise the transfer of the required land from the Common Good account to the General Fund Account at current market value.

The Council resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

DECLARATIONS OF INTERESTS

The Depute Provost and Councillors Flynn and Young declared interests in the following item of business by virtue of their position as Council appointed representatives on the Board of Shaping Aberdeen Housing LLP, and considered that the nature of their interests required them to leave the meeting and took no part in the Council’s deliberations thereon.

With reference to Article 23 of the minute of its meeting of 17 August 2016, the Council had before it a report by the Director of Communities, Housing and Infrastructure which provided an update on progress regarding the production and timescale for the Shaping Aberdeen Housing LLP Business Plan.

The report recommended:-

that the Council -

(a)          note the content of the report and the associated timescale for the production of the Shaping Aberdeen Housing LLP Business Plan; and

(b)          note that the Business Plan will be reported to the Communities, Housing and Infrastructure Committee on 24 January 2017, then to full Council immediately thereafter for ratification.

The Council resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

The Council had before it a report by the Director of Communities, Housing and Infrastructure which sought approval for the planned visit by the Lord Provost to Japan in 2017 to be extended to include a visit to Mokpo, South Korea, to enable the Memorandum of Understanding to be signed.

The report recommended:-

that the Council -

(a)          approve the inclusion of Mokpo, South Korea, to the planned trip by the Lord Provost and one accompanying officer to Japan in February or March 2017; and

(b)          instruct officers from the Economic and Development Service to report back to Council on this trip as part of the Elected Members Overseas Travel Bulletin submitted to Council.

The Council resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

The Council had before it a report by the Director of Education and Children’s Services which presented the Chief Social Work Officer’s Annual Report for 2015/16.

The report recommended:-

that the Council -

(a)          note the content of the Annual Report at Appendix 1 to the report; and

(b)          offer comment and observations on the report.

The Council resolved:-

(i)           to note the content of the Annual Report at Appendix 1 to the report; and

(ii)          to thank the Chief Social Work Officer and her staff for their work during the course of the year.

“That this Council:

1.         Condemns unequivocally racism, xenophobia and hate crimes and believes these have no place in this, or any other, country.

2.         Takes pride that Aberdeen is a vibrant, diverse, tolerant and multicultural city in which everyone can contribute to the local community and economy, irrespective of race, religion or social background.

3.         Believes that the best way to promote peace and harmony in the world is to build cultural, academic and economic bridges.

4.         Rejects any attempts to drive individuals, families and legitimate businesses away from Aberdeen on grounds of race, religion or country of origin and condemns any organisation that pursues such a policy.

5.         Commits itself to:

(i)         continue to work with others to tackle and prevent racism, xenophobia and hate crimes.

(ii)        maintain Aberdeen as a welcoming and friendly international destination.”

The Council had before it the following notice of motion by Councillors Greig and Boulton:-

            “That this Council -

(1)       Condemns unequivocally racism, xenophobia and hate crimes and believes these have no place in this, or any other, country.

(2)       Takes pride that Aberdeen is a vibrant, diverse, tolerant and multicultural city in which everyone can contribute to the local community and economy, irrespective of race, religion or social background.

(3)       Believes that the best way to promote peace and harmony in the world is to build cultural, academic and economic bridges.

(4)       Rejects any attempts to drive individuals, families and legitimate businesses away from Aberdeen on grounds of race, religion or country of origin and condemns any organisation that pursues such a policy.

(5)       Commits itself to:

(i)     continue to work with others to tackle and prevent racism, xenophobia and hate crimes.

(ii)    maintain Aberdeen as a welcoming and friendly international destination.”

Councillor Greig moved, seconded by Councillor Boulton:-

            That the Council approve the terms of the motion.

Councillor Laing moved as an amendment, seconded by Councillor Crockett:-

That the Council approve the following joint amendment in the names of Councillors Laing and Flynn:-

 “That this Council:

(1)       Condemns unequivocally racism, xenophobia and hate crimes and believes that these have no place in this, or any other, country.

(2)       Takes pride that Aberdeen is a vibrant diverse, tolerant and multicultural city in which everyone can contribute to the local community and economy irrespective of race, religion or social background.

(3)       Commits itself to:-

(i)     continue to work with others to tackle and prevent racism, xenophobia and hate crimes.

(ii)    maintain Aberdeen as a welcoming and friendly international destination.”

On a division, there voted:-

For the motion  (9)  -  Depute Provost; and Councillors Boulton, Delaney, Donnelly, Finlayson, Greig, Malone, Jennifer Stewart and Yuill.

For the amendment  (32)  -  Lord Provost; and Councillors Allan, Cameron, Carle, Cooney, Copland, Corall, Cormie, Crockett, Dickson, Jackie Dunbar, Lesley Dunbar, Flynn, Graham, Grant, Hutchison, Ironside, Jaffrey, Laing, Lawrence, MacGregor, Malik, Milne, Jean Morrison, Nathan Morrison, Nicoll, Noble, Samarai, Sandy Stuart, Taylor, Townson and Young.

The Council resolved:-

to adopt the amendment.

In terms of Standing Order 15(6), the Depute Provost and Councillors Boulton, Delaney, Donnelly, Finlayson, Greig, Malone, Jennifer Stewart and Yuill intimated their dissent against the foregoing decision.

“1)  Council regrets that almost 3 years ago Newlands Crescent was chosen as the name for a new street in the Charleston development in Cove, mirroring the name of a long-established street in the Broomhill area.

2)    Council notes that a system has now been put in place to prevent such duplication arising again in the future.

3)    Further notes that there are, however, numerous streets across our city which share the same name.

4)    Council acknowledges that a majority of residents of Newlands Crescent, Cove, are firmly against the name of their street being changed for a variety of reasons.

5)    Council therefore instructs officers not to proceed with a name change in relation to Newlands Crescent, Cove.”

The Council had before it the following notice of motion by Councillor Flynn:-

“(1)      Council regrets that almost 3 years ago Newlands Crescent was chosen as the name for a new street in the Charleston development in Cove, mirroring the name of a long-established street in the Broomhill area.

(2)       Council notes that a system has now been put in place to prevent such duplication arising again in the future.

(3)       Further notes that there are, however, numerous streets across our city which share the same name.

(4)       Council acknowledges that a majority of residents of Newlands Crescent, Cove, are firmly against the name of their street being changed for a variety of reasons.

(5)       Council therefore instructs officers not to proceed with a name change in relation to Newlands Crescent, Cove.”

Councillor Yuill moved as a procedural motion, seconded by Councillor Greig:-

That the Council remit the motion to the Communities, Housing and Infrastructure Committee.

On a division, there voted:-

For the procedural motion  (5)  -  Councillors Delaney, Greig, Malone, Jennifer Stewart and Yuill.

Against the procedural motion  (34)  -  Lord Provost; and Councillors Allan, Cameron, Carle, Cooney, Copland, Corall, Cormie, Crockett, Dickson, Donnelly, Jackie Dunbar, Lesley Dunbar, Finlayson, Flynn, Graham, Grant, Hutchison, Ironside, Jaffrey, Laing, Lawrence, MacGregor, Malik, Milne, Jean Morrison, Nathan Morrison, Nicoll, Noble, Samarai, Sandy Stuart, Taylor, Townson and Young.

Declined to vote  (2)  -  Depute Provost; and Councillor Boulton.

The Council resolved:-

to reject the procedural motion.

Councillor Flynn moved, seconded by Councillor Finlayson:-

            That the Council approve the terms of the motion.

Councillor Yuill moved as an amendment, seconded by Councillor Greig:-

That the Council remit consideration of the motion to the Communities, Housing and Infrastructure Committee so it may be considered together with the responses to the consultation on renaming Newlands Crescent, Cove Bay, currently being carried out by the Council.

On a division, there voted:-

For the motion  (36)  -  Lord Provost; Depute Provost; and Councillors Allan, Boulton, Cameron, Carle, Cooney, Copland, Corall, Cormie, Crockett, Dickson, Donnelly, Jackie Dunbar, Lesley Dunbar, Finlayson, Flynn, Graham, Grant, Hutchison, Ironside, Jaffrey, Laing, Lawrence, MacGregor, Malik, Milne, Jean Morrison, Nathan Morrison, Nicoll, Noble, Samarai, Sandy Stuart, Taylor, Townson and Young.

For the amendment  (5)  -  Councillors Delaney, Greig, Malone, Jennifer Stewart and Yuill.

The Council further resolved:-

to adopt the motion.

“That the Council supports the Royal British Legion’s ‘Count Them In’ campaign which aims to see questions about service in our armed forces included in the 2021 Census.  Notes that there is currently very limited information about where our veterans now live and what support they may need. Believes that by gathering this information through the Census it will allow for an improved understanding of this unique community and ensure that the Council, alongside others, can ensure we are fully meeting the needs of our serving personnel, veterans and their families. Instructs the Chief Executive to write to the Royal British Legion and Poppy Scotland to offer our support to their campaign.”

The Council had before it the following notice of motion by Councillor Hutchison:-

“That the Council supports the Royal British Legion’s ‘Count Them In’ campaign which aims to see questions about service in our armed forces included in the 2021 Census. Notes that there is currently very limited information about where our veterans now live and what support they may need. Believes that by gathering this information through the Census it will allow for an improved understanding of this unique community and ensure that the Council, alongside others, can ensure we are fully meeting the needs of our service personnel, veterans and their families. Instructs the Chief Executive to write to the Royal British Legion and Poppy Scotland to offer our support to their campaign.”

The Council resolved:-

to approve the terms of the motion.

In accordance with the decision recorded under Article 2 of this minute, the following items were considered with the press and public excluded.

The Council had before it a report by the Interim Director of Corporate Governance which presented the minute and recommendations from the Social Work Complaints Review Committee meeting of 23 November 2016.

The report recommended:-

that the Council approve the recommendations and the minute of the Social Work Complaints Review Committee meeting of 23 November 2016.

The Council resolved:-

(i)           to approve the recommendation; and

(ii)          to note the Director of Education and Children’s Services comments in the foreword.

MATTER OF URGENCY

The Lord Provost intimated that he had directed in terms of Section 50(B)(4)(b) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, that the following item be considered as a matter of urgency to enable a decision to be made sufficiently far in advance of the next financial year.

DECLARATION OF INTEREST

Councillor Jean Morrison declared an interest in the following item of business by virtue of her position as a Council appointed representative on the Board of Aberdeen Renewable Energy Group and considered that the nature of her interest required her to leave the meeting and took no part in the Council’s deliberations thereon.

The Council had before it a report by the Director of Communities, Housing and Infrastructure which provided an update on the European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre (EOWDC), sought approval for a proposed agreement relating to the financial implications of the EOWDC and for Council representation on the AREG Board, and noted proposed changes to the operation of AREG.

The report recommended:-

that the Council -

(a)          note the progress on the EOWDC development;

(b)          agree the proposed approach to accounting for the proceeds arising from the sale of AREG’s shareholding in Aberdeen Offshore Windfarm Ltd (AOWL) as set out in section 5 of the report;

(c)          agree to the appointment of the Head of Economic Development to the Board of AREG; and

(d)          note that Aberdeen City Council will cease providing membership services to AREG from April 2017, subject to the AREG Board confirming that a suitable alternative is in place.

The Council resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

- GEORGE ADAM, Lord Provost.