Contact: Stuart Jarvis, ext 6124 email: [email protected]

Kevin Gardner ext 7381 [email protected]

1. Summary

1.1 This report invites Cabinet to consider and recommend to the County Council the establishment of formal joint arrangements with the unitary councils of Portsmouth and Southampton together with the District/Borough Councils of East Hampshire, Havant, Gosport, Fareham, Winchester Eastleigh, Test Valley and New Forest to replace the existing informal arrangements of the Partnership for Urban South Hampshire (PUSH).

1.2 The joint arrangements would provide for the establishment of a Joint Committee, the principal role of which would be to implement the sub-regional strategy for South Hampshire which aims to regenerate and develop the sub-regional economy, and deliver a strategy of managed growth conditional on the provision of infrastructure to ensure the development of sustainable communities and the protection of quality of life and the environment of South Hampshire over the next 20 years. The joint arrangements would also provide for the establishment of an Overview and Scrutiny Committee to carry out overview and scrutiny functions in relation to PUSH.

1.3 The proposed arrangements will also provide a Governance basis for the partnership which increases transparency and local accountability, as well as providing a sound basis for engagement with Government and partner organisations, to secure investment and support for the sustainable development of the sub-region, accompanied by adequate and timely investment in infrastructure. The report seeks approval of the Cabinet to the making of the necessary arrangements for delegating executive functions to the new Joint Committee, and requests that Cabinet recommend to the County Council that the proposed overview and scrutiny arrangements be made.

2. Recommendation

2.1 It is recommended that Cabinet:

2.1.1 Approves the establishment of joint arrangements between the County Council, Southampton and Portsmouth City Councils, East Hampshire, Eastleigh, Fareham, Gosport, Havant, New Forest, Test Valley and Winchester District/Borough Councils (together referred to as "the PUSH Authorities") to replace the existing voluntary partnership for Urban South Hampshire "PUSH" based on the broad structure and functions described in Section 4 of the Report, and Appendices 1 and 2.

2.1.2 Approves the establishment of a Joint Committee with delegated authority to discharge such functions of the Executive as are necessary to implement the Business Plan for PUSH, subject to the Business Plan being approved on an annual basis by the County Council.

2.1.3 Appoints the Leader as the County Council's representative on the Joint Committee or, in the event that the Leader is unable to attend, such other member of the Executive as is nominated by the Leader.

2.1.4 Authorises the Leader to finalise the detail of the joint arrangements, in consultation with the Director of Environment and the Chief Executive, on the basis set out in the Report and Appendices.

2.1.5 Recommends to the County Council

(i) The approval of the joint arrangements referred to in paragraph 1.1 above and the establishment of an Overview and Scrutiny Committee, as part of these arrangements, with authority to carry out overview and scrutiny functions in relation to the matters delegated to the Joint Committee.

(ii) The appointment of a non-executive member as its representative on the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, and a second non-executive member to serve as deputy member in their absence.

(iii) That authority is given to the Chief Executive, in consultation with the Leader and Director of Environment, to finalise the detail of the joint arrangements in relation to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, on the basis set out in the Report and Appendices.


(iv) That the Chief Executive be authorised to amend Chapter 6 paragraph 6.3 and Chapter 11 paragraph 11.1 of Part 1 of the Council's Constitution to give effect to these decisions.

3. Background

3.1 PUSH came together initially in 2003/04 with a common purpose of regenerating the sub-regional economy, addressing regional and sub-regional economic disparities, tackling pockets of deprivation and social exclusion and securing the long-term prosperity and quality of life of the residents of the area through ensuring South Hampshire had a strong and prosperous economy. With the advent of the South East Plan, PUSH's role embraced the sub-regional input to the Regional Spatial Strategy, and championed the cause of local determination of the future development of the area. The County Council has been a member of the partnership from the start, and helped to ensure that PUSH embraced equality of membership and opportunity for the four districts whose areas are only partly within the South Hampshire sub-region (East Hampshire, Winchester, Test Valley and New Forest) as well as the two cities and the four core districts wholly within the PUSH area (Havant, Fareham, Gosport and Eastleigh).

3.2 PUSH has been widely acclaimed for its active and in-depth engagement with the South East Plan process, and helped to provide a model for the new sub-region dimensions to the planning system that were introduced in the Planning and Compensation Act in 2004. The Partnership is mentioned in Government publications as an exemplar of good practice, and the South Hampshire sub-region was awarded growth point status in 2006 and secured just under £4 million of growth point funding for
2006-08. The area is also designated as a diamond for growth in the Regional Economic Strategy, in recognition of the economic-led sub-regional strategy proposed by PUSH.

3.3 As PUSH has developed and its role has become established it is increasingly apparent that continuing as an informal partnership, which meets in private and has no formal democratic status, is no longer an option. The role of the partnership will also change as the policy framework is finalised, and delivery becomes the key focus of PUSH's activity. Therefore future Governance arrangements for the Partnership have become an area for development and change.

3.4 Over recent months the PUSH Leaders' and Chief Executives' Group has been considering a restructuring and formalisation of the Governance arrangement of the partnership to increase its accountability, effectiveness and ability to develop a "delivery" capability to maximise investment and coordination in South Hampshire, to secure local control and management of the implementation of the sub-regional strategy. PUSH agreed an initial Governance approach at its meeting on 30 January 2007, following which a panel of officers was asked to work up more detailed proposals. These were presented to and agreed, in principle, by PUSH at its meeting on 27 March 2007, subject to agreement on detailed proposals relating to the functions to be delegated and the Overview and Scrutiny arrangements for the partnership. Further proposals on these matters were agreed at the PUSH meeting on 7 June 2007, following a workshop in May to work through detailed proposals and options.

3.5 The Governance proposals were developed by a task and finish group of legal officer representatives from the County Council, Southampton City Council and Test Valley Borough Council, with support from the PUSH project Director, under the guidance of the PUSH officer working group. PUSH leaders, at the March and June meetings, unanimously agreed the proposed Governance arrangements set out in this report.

4. Governance Proposals

4.1 The broad structure of the proposed arrangement is based on formalising the existing Leaders' and Chief Executives' Group into a formal joint Committee of the 11 partners, with each authority nominating its Leader or other appropriate Executive Member to sit and vote on the Joint Committee. The Joint Committee would retain the right to co-opt non-voting Members, which again replicates the existing arrangements where partner bodies like the South East England Development Agency are invited to attend the Leaders' and Chief Executives' Group. An Overview and Scrutiny Committee would also be established to review any decisions from the Joint Committee which are "called in"; each authority would appoint a nominated, non-executive Member to sit on the Committee. The existing officer groups and the Member Topic Groups (Housing, Planning and Sustainability) are envisaged to continue to operate as at present, essentially providing fora for detailed consideration of topics, in an advisory capacity in relation to the formal Joint Committee. The Joint Committee will work closely with Transport for South Hampshire (TfSH) in respect of sub-regional transport matters. Further topic based advisory groups may be established as required in the future.

4.2 The partnership has also recognised the importance of the principle of subsidiarity in the definition of its new role and functions, and this principle applies to the interpretation of the Terms of Reference and all matters relating to the operation of the Joint Committee - in other words, it is only matters of a sub-regional nature that are within the remit of the Joint Committee, and that local matters are better dealt with locally by the relevant authority.

4.3 The Joint Committee will operate in the context of an annual business plan, agreed individually by each authority. Once the business plan has been approved by all authorities, the Joint Committee would then have the necessary delegated authority to implement the Business Plan on their behalf., The detailed proposed Governance arrangements are set out in Appendix 1, based on papers considered and agreed at the two PUSH meetings in March and June 2007.

4.4 The key constitutional issues for the County Council concern:

(i) representation;

(ii) voting arrangements;

(iii) basis of participation in or exit from the Joint Committee;

(iv) Overview and Scrutiny arrangements, together with the retention of the right of individual authorities to make their own submissions and representations on issues of particular concern; and

(v) reserved right to consider and annually approve the business plan.

4.5 The Joint Committee and the Overview and Scrutiny Committees will be formed on the basis of a single representative from each authority, and are not therefore required to be politically proportionate. In respect of voting arrangements, the Joint Committee will operate on a simple majority voting basis, but the strategic authorities have to be within the majority - in other words, Southampton City, Portsmouth City and the County Council retain an effective veto on the Joint Committee. In respect of Overview and Scrutiny , the proposal is that this operates on a light touch basis, with the support of at least two Members of the Committee required to trigger a call-in. If the Overview and Scrutiny Committee disagreed with a decision of the Joint Committee that it calls in, then provided that the decision is consistent with the annual business plan that has been approved by all authorities, the Overview and Scrutiny Committee's powers would be limited to requesting that the matter be reconsidered by the Joint Committee.

4.6 In respect of the effective areas of activity delegated to the Committee, a schedule of the detailed scope of functions is set out in Appendix 2. Of particular significance to the County Council is the relationship with TfSH and the over-arching principle of subsidiarity. Whilst it is acknowledged that these proposals form the basis for potential further exploration and development, this will only be done with the support of each partner. The County Council has to date reserved its position in respect of the further development of a PUSH role in respect of the holding and disbursements of developer contributions, whilst recognising that if the system changes (eg introduction of Planning Gain Supplement) this will need to be further reviewed.

5. Impact Assessments

5.1 Assessment of the Race Relations (Amendment) Act has been considered in this response but no adverse impact has been identified in terms of race, creed or gender.

6. Conclusion

6.1 The formulation of these joint arrangements will strengthen the Governance of the Partnership, and improve local accountability and transparency of decision making. The new arrangement will also enhance the ability and capacity of the Partnership to deliver the sub-regional strategy which will contribute to quality of place and well-being of South Hampshire communities, through provision of employment, housing, infrastructure and facilities to meet social and community needs, whilst protecting the environment and delivering sustainable communities.

1396Rpt/SJ

APPENDIX 1

Issues and Preferred Options

This table integrates the issues and options considered at the PUSH Leaders' and Chief Executives' meeting on 27 March and at the PUSH Leaders' Workshop on 21 May. All agreed by the PUSH Leaders' and Chief Executives' meeting on 7 June.

Under these proposals, power to call-in decisions by the Joint Committee rests with the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, which would be able to refer decisions back to individual authorities only where these were held to be contrary to the approved business plan.

If individual authorities wish to revoke the delegation of functions to PUSH, their opportunity would be when annually considering the PUSH Business Plan.

APPENDIX 2

Specific Functions that could be delegated by councils to the PUSH Joint Committee

This table presents an indicative list of functions to be delegated to the PUSH Joint Committee.