Agenda item

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 10, to consider motions on notice from Members.

 

7a) Motion submitted by Councillor Steve Fritchley

 

7b) Motion submitted by Councillor Nick Clarke

 

7c) Motion Submitted by Councillor Nick Clarke

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 10, Councillors were able to submit Motions on Notice for consideration at this meeting.

 

The Chair noted that three motions had been submitted.

 

a) Motion from Councillor Steve Fritchley:

 

The All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims was established in 2017 to highlight the aspirations and challenges facing British Muslims; to celebrate the contributions of Muslim communities to Britain and to investigate prejudice, discrimination and hatred against Muslims in the UK.

 

The APPG’s most recent publication is a ‘Report on the inquiry into a working definition of Islamophobia / anti-Muslim hatred’. This inquiry acknowledges that across policy domains, from employment, education and criminal justice to housing, healthcare and hate crime, Islamophobia has a significant negative impact on the life chances and quality of life enjoyed by British Muslims.

 

To demonstrate its commitment to tackling Islamophobia in all forms, Council is asked to adopt the following definition, as proposed in the APPG Report; 

 

“Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.”

 

Councillor Steve Fritchley (Leader of the Council) moved the motion, adding his belief that the Council had a proud anti-prejudice tradition and this definition was in the same vein.

 

Councillor Duncan McGregor (Deputy Leader of the Council) seconded the motion and reserved the right to speak.

 

No other Members wished to speak on the motion.

 

On being put to the vote, the motion was carried.

 

RESOLVED that Council adopts the following definition of Islamophobia, as proposed in the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims Report:

 

“Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.”

 

(Head of Paid Service/Monitoring Officer)

 

 

b) Motion from Councillor Nick Clarke:

 

Bolsover District Council notes that fox hunting, deer hunting and hare hunting with dogs has been illegal under the terms of the Hunting Act 2004, except where an exemption applies.

 

Most registered hunts claim to now be trail hunting, an activity ‘invented’ after the ban which allows hunts to claim that any chase of a wild mammal is purely accidental rather than intentional.

 

This has been shown to be nothing more than a smokescreen in an attempt to deflect from the real truth which is that that trail hunting is in reality illegal fox hunting. If trail hunts were genuine there would be no need for the presence of terrier men who shore up Fox Earths and Badger Setts to prevent foxes going to ground. Last summer there were a series of training webinars where senior members of the hunting fraternity openly admitted how they flout the 2004 Hunting Act. This has been suspected for many years but has now been confirmed. It has been admitted by the Hunting fraternity themselves, that trail hunting where the chase of a wild mammal occurs is deliberate, pre-planned and intentional rather than accidental as they falsely claim. 

 

 In order to prevent any “illegal” hunting on Council owned land, Bolsover District Council will ban all trail hunting, hound exercise and hunt meets in the district of Bolsover with immediate effect.

 

This motion calls on the leader to write to hunt masters in and around the district, neighbouring districts and Derbyshire Constabulary making clear that while investigations into trail hunting are ongoing hunts will not be permitted to cross public or council controlled land or cause a nuisance on public highways within the district of Bolsover and that we will expect any such encroachments to be investigated expeditiously and prosecuted to the fullest extent.

 

Councillor Nick Clarke moved the motion and spoke in further detail about the intent behind it. He stated his belief that trail hunting was often a way to cover up illegal hunts under a different name, and trail hunting only began in 2005 as way to get around the 2004 Hunting Act, so the motion was an attempt to stop illegal hunts which often ended up on Council land. He added that the motion would also build upon some of the aspects about dogs included in the Council’s dog management 2020 Public Spaces Protection Order.

 

(N.B. Councillor Tracey Cannon joined the meeting at this point.)

 

Councillor Nick Clarke also spoke about the negative attention the motion had received from the Countryside Alliance by sending a press release to the local press (Derby Telegraph), a letter to the Leader of the Council and e-mails to all Members. Councillor Nick Clarke believed that the robustness of the response from the Countryside Alliance in the press was the group’s tacit acknowledgement that the majority of the public do not support fox/deer/hare hunting. He also believed that the letter sent to the Leader of the Council was inaccurate and disingenuous because it quoted case law rendered moot by the 2004 Hunting Act, and the e-mails sent to Members claimed a scent was simply laid for hounds to track with their noses, but the fact that trail hunts crossed highways, cemeteries, public parks and private gardens (places where foxes are found) appeared to contradict this.

 

Councillor Nick Clarke felt that the Countryside Alliance was an unelected lobbyist group and hoped Members would not be swayed by the group’s intimidatory tactics. He asked Members to bear in mind that six major private UK land owners had suspended trail hunting on their land since the training webinars in Summer 2020 where senior members of the hunting fraternity admitted flouting the 2004 Hunting Act, and urged Members to do the same on Council owned land by supporting the motion.

 

Councillor Ross Walker seconded the motion and reserved the right to speak until Members had finished their discussions.

 

Councillor Tom Kirkham stated he would support the motion, and spoke about how the e-mails to Members from the Countryside Alliance (mentioned by Councillor Nick Clarke) had mentioned that opposition to hunting in Bolsover District was a matter of Labour Members waging a class war. He believed that this had missed the point because Bolsover currently had a Conservative MP and combined majority of Independent/Community Independent/Conservative Councillors at Bolsover District Council. He felt that opposition to hunting in Bolsover District was more a matter of District residents being passionate about their countryside, and Council Members supporting the protection of animals as they had done in the past.

 

Councillor Andrew Joesbury stated he would support the motion because he felt fox hunting was barbaric, and added that he would also like to see the Leader of the Council send the letter mentioned in the motion to the Government.

 

Councillor Tricia Clough stated she would support the motion and read correspondence received from residents about how hounds from the Barlow Hunt trail hunt had gone through their gardens in Scarcliffe. She felt that this was a cover up of illegal hunting because the large distance between Barlow and Scarcliffe made hounds being so far out of the way for trail hunting unlikely.

 

Councillor Ross Walker used his right to speak as seconder of the motion by stating his belief that the letter in the motion from the Leader of the Council should be sent to the MP for Bolsover and include the fact that the Hunting Act 2004 included a loophole that Parliament needed to close, which was that it did not cover the use of dogs in the process of flushing out unidentified wild animals.

 

Councillor Steve Fritchley (Leader of the Council) spoke about the motion and stated that based on legal advice he had sought on how much land the Council had powers to ban trail hunting in, and the suggestions made by Councillor Andrew Joesbury and Councillor Ross Walker, he would propose an amendment to the motion which would:

 

(i) Send a letter capturing the sentiment of the original motion to hunt masters in and around the district, neighbouring districts, Derbyshire Constabulary, the MP for Bolsover and MPs of neighbouring areas.

 

(ii) Adjourn Council’s debate on the original motion (and the Council’s powers to ban trail hunting) until his letters had been sent.

 

The Monitoring Officer confirmed this amendment was viable because the Constitution stated that one of the reasons an amendment could be presented without notice was to adjourn a debate.

 

AMENDMENT      

 

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 11.1 (Motions and Amendments Without Notice) Councillor Steve Fritchley moved an amendment to motion b) proposing that debate on the motion be adjourned until he had sent a letter capturing the sentiment of the original motion to hunt masters in and around the district, neighbouring districts, Derbyshire Constabulary, the MP for Bolsover and MPs of neighbouring areas. Once this had been sent, the Council’s debate on the original motion and the Council’s powers to ban trail hunting would be reconvened.

 

Councillor Duncan McGregor seconded the amended motion and stated his belief that a national view had to be taken on animal cruelty rather than one just focusing on Bolsover District.

 

Councillor David Dixon stated his support for the amended motion and believed that the issue had to be looked at in a national context, which is what adding MPs to the distribution targets would achieve.

 

Councillor Ross Walker stated he would not support the amended motion because he felt the original motion showed the Council wanted to take quick and decisive action, which would prove the Council’s seriousness on the issue.

 

Councillor Andrew Joesbury stated he would not support the amended motion because he felt that by accepting the original motion it would set a precedent about the Council’s view. He also stated that he could not understand why the original motion and the amended motion could not be carried out right now.

 

Councillor Peter Roberts stated he would not support the amended motion because he agreed with Councillor Andrew Joesbury’s point about how there was nothing to stop Council from taking action on the original and amended motion.

 

Councillor Janet Tait stated she would not support the amended motion because she also agreed with Councillor Andrew Joesbury’s point. She stated that both original and amended motion could be carried out now, and there appeared to be no reason why the Council could not act upon the original motion and then undertake the points in the amended motion.

 

Councillor Anne Clarke stated she would not support the amended motion because she believed the residents she represented wanted her and the Council to take immediate action and send a clear message about the Council’s intentions.

 

Councillor Chris Kane stated he would support the amended motion because he did not think the powers the Council had to ban trail hunting (as stated in the original motion) amounted to anything. He felt that there were no Council owned lands that hunt activities took place on, meaning the Council had no power to ban it.

 

Councillor Maxine Dixon stated she would support the amended motion because she felt adjourning the debate would mean Members being able to listen to views from both sides.

 

Councillor David Downes stated he would not support the amended motion because he felt that even if the Council did not have land or powers to ban trail hunts, the Council could set the precedent of banning whichever trail hunts it can and then lobby Derbyshire County Council to ban it on the Bolsover District land the Council did not own. He added that an example to follow had been set by Nottinghamshire County Council, who had banned all trail hunting on land it owned.

 

Councillor Tom Kirkham stated he would not support the amended version, and believed that because of the sheer number of residents that had contacted him asking to ban trail hunting, he felt the Council owed it to residents to approve the original motion now and consider correspondence afterwards.

 

Councillor Steve Fritchley thanked Members for their comments on his amended motion. He stated that it was not his intention to stifle debate about the issue, but he was mindful of the fact that the Council only owned 5 and a half acres of its own land, meaning that any powers the Council had would be minimal. The Monitoring Officer clarified this by advising that the Council owned no land where trail hunts actually took place.

 

The Chair invited the mover of the original motion (Councillor Nick Clarke) to sum up and bring an end to the debate. Councillor Nick Clarke believed that his original motion would allow the Council to take the lead on the issue of trail hunting being a cover for illegal hunting, and show the way to follow for other local authorities.

 

On being put to the vote, the amended motion was carried.

 

On being put to the vote, the substantive motion was carried.

 

RESOLVED that debate on the original motion be adjourned until the Leader of the Council has sent a letter capturing the sentiment of the original motion to hunt masters in and around the district, neighbouring districts, Derbyshire Constabulary, the MP for Bolsover and MPs of neighbouring areas. Once this had been sent, the Council’s debate on the original motion and the Council’s powers to ban trail hunting would be reconvened.

 

(Head of Leader’s Executive/Monitoring Officer/Governance Manager)

 

c) Motion from Councillor Nick Clarke:

 

Bolsover District Council recognises, through its carbon reduction pledges, the considerable risks from climate change to our planetary life support systems. The Council further recognises the weight of economic evidence from reputable sources, including the Bank of England and Carbon Tracker, that climate change poses a serious risk to returns on investment for pension holders. Bolsover District Council should demonstrate leadership on responsible investment and tackling climate change. The Council therefore calls on the Derbyshire Pension Fund to fully divest from all fossil fuels and to reinvest in more environmentally and socially beneficial alternatives by 2024.

 

Councillor Nick Clarke moved the motion and stated his belief that the time to act on fossil fuels was right now.

 

Councillor Anne Clarke seconded the motion and reserved the right to speak.

 

Councillor Steve Fritchley (Leader of the Council) stated he would support the motion and felt it sent a message to Derbyshire Pension Fund about the view of the District and the country on the importance of carbon reduction.

 

Councillor David Dixon stated that he supported the aspects in the motion about carbon reduction but was concerned that asking Derbyshire Pension Fund to reduce its investments in fossil fuel companies could reduce pay-outs to people with pensions.

 

Councillor Peter Roberts stated he would support the motion and added that if multi-national asset management company BlackRock thought it was a good idea to move away from fossil fuels, he thought the Council should follow suit.

 

The Chair invited the mover of the original motion (Councillor Nick Clarke) to sum up and bring an end to the debate. Councillor Nick Clarke acknowledged the point by Councillor David Dixon that the impact on the pension fund would need to be considered, but he felt that there were renewable energy companies that Derbyshire Pension Fund could invest in instead. He concluded by stating that by moving money away from Derbyshire Pension Fund as soon as possible, it would encourage them to take swift action on carbon reduction.

 

On being put to the vote, the motion was carried.

 

RESOLVED that Bolsover District Council recognises, through its carbon reduction pledges, the considerable risks from climate change to our planetary life support systems. The Council further recognises the weight of economic evidence from reputable sources, including the Bank of England and Carbon Tracker, that climate change poses a serious risk to returns on investment for pension holders. Bolsover District Council should demonstrate leadership on responsible investment and tackling climate change. The Council therefore calls on the Derbyshire Pension Fund to fully divest from all fossil fuels and to reinvest in more environmentally and socially beneficial alternatives by 2024.

 

(Head of Paid Service)