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 were reported on behalf of Alderman Webb and Councillors M. E. Campbell, McKee and Newton.

            Moved by the Right Honourable the Lord Mayor (Councillor Mallon),          Seconded by Alderman Stalford and

      Resolved – That the minutes of the proceedings of the special meeting and the monthly meeting of the Council of 1st July be taken as read and signed as correct.

            Moved by Councillor Reynolds,

            Seconded by Councillor Carson,

      That the minutes of the proceedings of the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee of 22nd August be approved and adopted.

Amendment

Leisure Transformation Programme –

Implementation Update

            Moved by Councillor McVeigh,

            Seconded by Councillor Hargey,

      That point 4 of the decision under the heading “Leisure Transformation Programme – Implementation Update” be amended to provide that, having considered the agreed criteria, Active Belfast Limited would defer its decision to appoint a Strategic Operating Partner until such times as Elected Members had been appointed to the Board.

            On a vote by show of hands eighteen Members voted for the amendment and twenty-nine against and it was accordingly declared lost.

Amendment

Request for the use of the City Hall

and the Provision of Hospitality –

Falls Community Council Event

            At the request of Councillor Hargey, the Council agreed that the minute under the heading “Request for use of the City Hall and the Provision of Hospitality”, insofar as it related to the Falls Community Council event, be amended to provide that appropriate hospitality be provided for the event on 29th September.

Amendment

Disposal of Land at Maysfield

            Moved by Councillor Mullan,

            Seconded by Alderman Stoker,

      That the decision under the heading “Disposal of Land at Maysfield” be referred back to the Committee for consideration.

            On a recorded vote, eleven Members voted for the amendment and thirty-six against and it was declared lost.

Adoption of Minutes

            Subject to the foregoing amendment, the minutes of the meeting of the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee of 22nd August were approved and adopted.

            Moved by Councillor Mac Giolla Mhín,

            Seconded by Councillor Ó Donnghaile and

      Resolved - That the minutes of the proceedings of the Parks and Leisure Committee of 14th August be approved and adopted.

            Moved by Councillor Hargey,

            Seconded by Councillor Beattie and

      Resolved – That the minutes of the proceedings of the Development Committee of 19th August be approved and adopted.

            Moved by Councillor Corr,

            Seconded by Councillor McCarthy and

      Resolved – That the minutes of the proceedings of the Health and Environmental Services Committee of 6th August be approved and adopted.

            Moved by Alderman Ekin,

            Seconded by Councillor Mullan and

      Resolved – That the minutes of the proceedings of the Licensing Committee of 20th August, omitting those matters in respect of which the Council had delegated its power to the Committee, be approved and adopted.

            Moved by Councillor Hanna,

            Seconded by Councillor Ó Muilleoir and

      Resolved – That the minutes of the proceedings of the Town Planning Committee of 7th and 26th August, omitting those matters in respect of which the Council had delegated its powers to the Committee, be approved and adopted.

Northern Ireland Housing Executive

Belfast District Housing Plan 2014/2015

            Arising out of discussion of the minutes of the Special Meeting of 26th August, at the request of Alderman Stoker and with the consent of the Chairman, the Council agreed that comments on the aforementioned Plan be submitted to the Housing Forum, with a draft response to be presented to the Town Planning Committee for approval prior to being submitted to the Northern Ireland Housing Executive.

            In accordance with Notice on the Agenda, Councillor Ó Muilleoir proposed:

      “This Council recognises the commitment of Tom DiNapoli, Comptroller of New York State, to the regeneration of Belfast and to the peace process since his election in 2007.  As chief financial officer of New York State, the Comptroller controls $172bn (£101bn) of investments, including substantial stock holdings in multi-national corporations with operations in Belfast.  The Comptroller has, at all times, used his influence to encourage fair employment practices at companies in which the State of New York holds stock.

      In March 2014, in the largest-ever investment in a local equity fund, the Comptroller invested $15m (£8.8m) in Crescent Capital to enable it to fund early-growth technology companies here.  At the time, he stated: ‘We've found a dynamic opportunity to provide the New York State Common Retirement Fund with a solid return on investment.  Northern Ireland has the young, skilled workforce and the solid infrastructure that are hallmarks of the long-range economic growth that is critical to our international investment strategy.  This partnership will benefit our pension fund and Northern Ireland in the years to come.’

      Therefore, this Council commends Comptroller DiNapoli on his recent investment, urges him to continue on his commitment to double that investment in the time ahead and invites him to visit Belfast again to view additional investment opportunities which can bring a return to the pension holders of the State of New York Retirement Fund, which includes police officers, teachers, fire fighters and other public servants and help build cement the peace here with jobs.”

            The Motion was seconded by Councillor Ó Donnghaile.

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

            In accordance with Notice on the Agenda, Alderman Kingston proposed:

      “This Council:

i.    wishes to commend and congratulate all those athletes and competitors who represented Northern Ireland in the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games;

ii.    appreciates that they represented the people of Northern Ireland with honour and distinction;

iii.   recognises the contribution made by coaches, families and sports clubs in Belfast and across Northern Ireland to supporting our athletes and competitors to achieve their high standard of ability; and

iv.  expresses hearty congratulations and appreciation to those who won 12 medals for Team NI - gold, silver and bronze, with particular congratulations to our gold medal winning boxers Paddy Barnes and Michael Conlan.”

            The Motion was seconded by Councillor Kelly.

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

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

“This Council:

      Agrees to become a Charter for Compassion Partner which seeks to endorse the following principles of the Charter for Compassion:

      The principle of compassion lies at the heart of all religious, ethical and spiritual traditions, calling us always to treat all others as we wish to be treated ourselves.  Compassion impels us to work tirelessly to alleviate the suffering of our fellow creatures, to dethrone ourselves from the center of our world and put another there, and to honour the inviolable sanctity of every single human being, treating everybody, without exception, with absolute justice, equity and respect.

      It is also necessary in both public and private life to refrain consistently and empathically from inflicting pain. To act or speak violently out of spite, chauvinism, or self-interest, to impoverish, exploit or deny basic rights to anybody, and to incite hatred by denigrating others - even our enemies- is a denial of our common humanity.  We acknowledge that we have failed to live compassionately and that some have even increased the sum of human misery in the name of religion.

      We therefore call upon all men and women - to restore compassion to the center of morality and religion - to return to the ancient principle that any interpretation of scripture that breeds violence, hatred or disdain is illegitimate - to ensure that youth are given accurate and respectful information about other traditions, religions and cultures - to encourage a positive appreciation of cultural and religious diversity - to cultivate an informed empathy with the suffering of all human beings - even those regarded as enemies.

      We urgently need to make compassion a clear, luminous and dynamic force in our polarized world.  Rooted in a principled determination to transcend selfishness, compassion can break down political, dogmatic, ideological and religious boundaries.  Born of our deep interdependence, compassion is essential to human relationships and to a fulfilled humanity.  It is the path to enlightenment, and indispensable to the creation of a just economy and a peaceful global community.

      The Council will commit to exploring how the charter will translate into a tangible plan for compassionate action among our citizens and communities, and how it can be best used to promote understanding our unique city context."

            The Motion was seconded by Councillor Kyle.

            In accordance with Standing Order 11(e), the Lord Mayor confirmed that the matter would be referred without discussion to the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee.

            In accordance with Notice on the Agenda, Alderman Stalford proposed:

“This Council:

      Mindful of the need to create a more family friendly city will make provision within all car parks that it controls for family designated parking spaces.”

            The Motion was seconded by Councillor Attwood.

            The Lord Mayor confirmed that, in accordance with Standing Order 11(e), the Motion, which would be placed also on the agenda for the meeting on 9th September of the Shadow Council, would be referred without discussion to the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee.

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

“This Council:

      Is reminded of the Notice of Motion presented by Councillor Hussey on 1st November, 2012, namely:

      ‘This Council is committed to transparency in how it spends Rate Payers’ money.  Every Rate Payer has the right to know what we spend their money on.

      This Council believes that the principle of transparency is meaningless unless we present our published financial information in a way that is accessible and relevant to rate payers.

      To this end, we will provide an online service to every rate payer which will show them, in a comprehensible way, the services and capital projects on which their money is spent.  This breakdown will include the pro-rata monetary share of their own rates bill spent on these items alongside the total amount spent by this Council.  A comprehensive breakdown of the costs of delivering those services and capital projects will be contained within that breakdown.’

      This Council notes that the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee of 14th December, 2012, decided that this proposal should be advanced and Council staff created a working model of this service capable of being fully integrated into the existing Council website.

      This Council therefore directs that this service be made available for the use of the Rate Payers of Belfast without further delay.”

            Councillor Hussy informed the Council that he had been advised that the online rates model was due to be implemented in the near future and, therefore, no further action was required in respect on his motion.

Noted.

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

      “This Council is totally opposed to the imposition of Tory welfare cuts, which would have a devastating impact on the most vulnerable in our society, including working families, the poor and people with disabilities.”

            The Notice of Motion was seconded by Councillor Mac Giolla Mhín.

Amendment

Moved by Alderman Ekin,

Seconded by Councillor McNamee,

            That the Notice of Motion standing in the name of Councillor Corr and seconded by Councillor Mac Giolla Mhín be replaced with the following:

      “This Council notes that the Parties who take their seats in Westminster will propose the passage of the Welfare Reform Bill; further notes that the principle of parity means that retaining Westminster funding for welfare in Northern Ireland is based on harmonisation of social security legislation; and, therefore, calls on the Northern Ireland Assembly to resolve this issue as soon as possible.”

            On a vote by show of hands twenty-two members voted for the amendment and twenty-two against.  There being an equality of votes, the Right Honourable the Lord Mayor (Councillor Mallon) exercised her second and casting vote against the amendment and it was declared lost.

            The original Motion standing in the name of Councillor Corr was thereupon put to the meeting, when, by show of hands, twenty-two Members voted for and twenty-one against and it was declared carried.