To allow Members an opportunity to [a] declare any personal, prejudicial or disclosable pecuniary interests they might have in any items which appear on this agenda; and [b] record any items from which they are precluded from voting as a result of Council Tax/Council rent arrears; [c] the existence and nature of party whipping arrangements in respect of any item to be considered at this meeting. Members with a personal interest should declare that at the start of the item under consideration. If Members also have a prejudicial or disclosable pecuniary interest they must withdraw from the meeting during the consideration of the item.

Councillor Julie Connolly declared a non-pecuniary interest in item 7 and would remain in the meeting for the duration of the discussion.

To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 25 May 2023.

Decision:

That the minutes of the previous meeting, held on 25 May 2023, be approved as a correct record.

Report of the Chief Executive.

This report provides figures and a full update on how the new duties of the Elections Act 2022 impacted on the 4 May 2023 local election, with specific focus on voter registrations, polling station accessibility, voter ID requirements and the local Greater Manchester / Manchester communications campaign to raise awareness of these changes.

The committee considered a report of the Chief Executive which provided a full update on how the new duties of the Elections Act 2022 impacted on the local election on 4 May 2023.

Key points and themes within the report included:

• Providing an introduction and background to the Elections Act 2022;
• Figures on the number of applications for a Voter Authority Certificate (VAC) received by the Council;
• The number of enquiries received by the Contact Centre before and on Polling Day;
• 60, 742 electors voted in person at the election out of a total of 313,519 eligible;
• 1,060 polling station electors were not initially issued with a ballot paper but later returned with accepted ID;
• 589 polling station electors applied for but were not issued with a ballot paper by close of poll;
• The Electoral Commission were collating data from all 230 councils who held elections in May to produce a report evaluating the full impact of the voter ID requirement and a report on the key findings of this would be provided to the Scrutiny Committee when it is published;
• The reasonable equipment provisions that were in place at polling stations;
• The impact of the communications campaign; and
• The changes expected from July 2023 as a result of the second tranche of legislation through the Act.

Key points and queries that arose from the committee’s discussions included:

• Thanking the Elections team and all staff who worked on polling stations and the count;
• How many people in Manchester had been charged with voter fraud in the last 10 years;
• The costs incurred by Manchester City Council as a result of involvement in Greater Manchester’s communications campaign;
• Requesting further information on the gradual move to online postal voting applications as stipulated in the Elections Act 2022;
• What ongoing communications there would be to encourage electors to apply for VACs; and
• Noting that a new parliamentary boundary map was expected to be released imminently and querying whether discussions with neighbouring authorities regarding cross-boundary constituencies were underway.

In opening the item, the Chair stated that the introduction of voter ID was a wholly unnecessary, politically motivated scheme that had cost millions of pounds, but he congratulated council staff for their efficiency and consideration in dealing with VAC applications. He also paid tribute to the electorate who adhered to the change in requirements.

The City Solicitor also expressed her thanks to staff and acknowledged the challenges that the changes arising from the Elections Act 2022 posed. She stated that representatives from central government, the Electoral Commission, the Association of Electoral Administrators (AEA), a London authority and a Scottish authority observed Manchester on polling day, and all praised the work and good practice within polling stations, with some national organisations noting this work to share across the country. She noted further challenges arising within the coming year, including changes to postal and proxy vote applications which the Council was awaiting further guidance on. A polling district review would also be undertaken after new parliamentary boundaries  ...  view the full minutes text for item 29.

Report of the Deputy Chief Executive and City Treasurer and the Director of HR, OD and Transformation.

This report provides an update on the work undertaken so far to replace the Council’s legacy SAP HR and Finance system (also referred to as an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system), the procurement approach and timescales, alongside the risks and opportunities presented by such an important system implementation.

The committee considered a report of the Deputy Chief Executive and City Treasurer and the Director of Human Resources, Organisational Development and Transformation (HRODT) which provided an update on the work undertaken so far to replace the SAP HR and Finance system, the procurement approach and timescales, and the risks and opportunities presented by this implementation.

Key points and themes within the report included:

• Providing an introduction and background to SAP, which was implemented in 2006;
• The programme vision and how this project aligned to the Digital Strategy;
• The approach to implementation, including governance and scrutiny processes;
• How the replacement system would be procured, designed, configured, and implemented;
• Lessons learned from other system implementations; and
• Next steps and the timeline for the project.

Key points and queries that arose from the committee’s discussions included:

• Whether the Head of Internal Audit would be consulted on the project;
• Requesting that a short note on the controls within the new system be provided to the Audit Committee at the appropriate time;
• Whether a robust testing period would be planned and whether feedback on any issues would be provided to the Audit Committee;
• Acknowledging that the current system had been in place for 17 years;
• Noting that the programme team had engaged with other Local Authorities implementing new Finance and HR systems, and querying what other learning methods were available;
• Seeking clarification on what was meant by ‘transformation’ and ‘vision’;
• Requesting further information on STAR Procurement, who were commissioned to provide tailored professional advice and support; and
• Noting the procurement timeline and querying whether this was challenging.

The Deputy Chief Executive and City Treasurer stated that the replacement of the HR and Finance system was fundamental in delivering improvements to how the Council worked. She stated that she was responsible for the project overall and would provide visible and proactive leadership. She expressed her thanks to the Deputy City Treasurer and the Director of HRODT and their teams for their work on the project thus far.

The Director of HRODT stated that the project provided a great opportunity for the Council to continue its transformation journey. He stated that there would be an emphasis on supporting staff through this change and ensuring that officers were equipped with the necessary digital skills to use this new technology.

The Deputy City Treasurer explained that the tender was now out to market and requests to participate from a number of suppliers had been received. These were currently being evaluated with an anticipated six suppliers being invited to tender by the Programme Board. The evaluation of this would be undertaken throughout the summer with an appointment anticipated to be made in December 2023. He stated that the transactional aspect of the system was scheduled to go live on 1 April 2025.

In response to a member’s query, the Deputy City Treasurer explained that the Head of Internal Audit was aware of the programme and would be responsible for the approval of financial controls  ...  view the full minutes text for item 30.

Report of the Head of Integrated Commissioning and Procurement and the Strategic Lead – Commissioning.

This report provides an update on the Council’s key contracts, the Council’s approach to procurement of these contracts and assessments of how to source contracts due for renewal and / or extension.

The committee received a report of the Head of Integrated Commissioning and Procurement and the Strategic Lead – Commissioning which provided an update on the Council’s key contracts, the approach to procurement of these contracts and assessments of how to source contracts due for renewal and/or extension.

Key points and themes within the report included:

• An introduction to major contracts, how they are classified as major contracts and a summary of oversight arrangements;
• Background to the Major Contracts Board;
• An overview of the procurement pipeline and recommissioning status of the major contracts; and
• Next steps for the work on major contracts and the contract management programme of work more generally.

Key points and queries that arose from the committee’s discussions included:

• Noting the brevity of the report;
• Requesting that milestones be built into the Board’s work programme to enable the Resources and Governance Scrutiny Committee to comment on the procurement of contracts;
• Whether progress updates on the Housing Repairs Contract could be provided to the Resources and Governance Scrutiny Committee at 12- and 24-month points;
• Requesting that a report on the Housing Repairs Contract be provided to the Scrutiny Committee;
• How many contracts had plans to be insourced;
• Emphasising the democratic will of the Council to insource services, and querying what obstacles there were to this;
• Requesting that a future report includes an appendix with more detailed information on each contract;
• Whether trade union consultation had been considered by the Joint Consultative Committee (JCC); and
• Noting that the implications of the new Procurement Act could fall within the remit of the Audit Committee and requesting that both the Chair of Resources and Governance Scrutiny Committee and the Chair of Audit Committee are kept informed.

In introducing the item, the Deputy Chief Executive and City Treasurer apologised for the lateness of the report, advising that there was currently limited capacity within the Procurement team and that lessons would be learnt. She explained that the work of the Major Contracts Oversight Board work aligned with the developing insourcing policy. It ensured that the Council worked ahead of schedule on the contracts pipeline and had sufficient lead-in time to consider all options and undertake feasibility studies in advance of contracts expiring. It also focused on ensuring that the appropriate contract monitoring mechanisms were in place.She provided assurances that the Biffa waste service contract was within the remit of the board and had been considered recently.

In response to a member’s request, the Strategic Lead – Commissioning stated that the Board would meet the week after and would ensure that the work programme aligned with that of the Scrutiny Committee. He also stated that the Board was examining general updates on the performance of major contracts in addition to future procurement.

In response to a request for 12- and 24-month progress updates on the Housing Repairs Contract, the Deputy Chief Executive and City Treasurer stated that she would discuss with the Executive Member what the appropriate mechanism would be for sharing this information  ...  view the full minutes text for item 31.

Report of the Head of Integrated Commissioning and Procurement and the Strategic Lead – Commissioning.

This report provides an update on the Council’s ethical procurement and fair tax assessments in procurement and development decision-making.

The committee received a report of the Head of Integrated Commissioning and Procurement and the Strategic Lead – Commissioning which provided an update on the Council’s ethical procurement and fair tax assessments in procurement and development decision-making.

Key points and themes within the report included:

• The purpose and objectives of the Council’s Ethical Procurement Policy;
• New national procurement regulations were expected to take effect from October 2024;
• Under current procurement legislation, local authorities are unable to exclude companies from supply chains on the grounds of tax practices unless they have been prosecuted and convicted of a specific offence;
• The advantages and drawbacks of the Council signing up to the Fair Tax Charter; and
• The suggested approach to progressing the Fair Tax agenda. 

Key points and queries that arose from the committee’s discussions included:

• Whether Fair Tax was classed as a non-commercial matter, which would allow a supplier to challenge a decision to award a contract;
• How regulations prohibiting local authorities from excluding companies from supply chains on the grounds of tax practices unless they have been prosecuted and convicted of a specific offence impacted current due diligence practices; and
• What powers public sector organisations had to exclude companies from supply chains on the grounds of poor reputation, citing the cladding crisis as an example.

The Executive Member for Finance and Resources stated that the Council’s Ethical Procurement Policy had been in place for over 10 years and that the government’s new procurement regulations were expected to be announced in July 2023 and implemented in October 2024. He stated that the Ethical Procurement Policy went as far as it could within the current legislation and highlighted how the Council was a Living Wage accredited authority and had signed up to several charters, including Unison’s Ethical Care Charter and the Unite Construction Charter. He explained that the Council was focussing on the Fair Tax agenda and due diligence work was currently being undertaken on all Joint Ventures that the Council had entered into, following engagement with the Fair Tax Foundation. He also explained that the Council was exploring the possibility of embedding Fair Tax principles when reviewing procurement processes and that the Labour Group was considering submitting a motion to Full Council that would reinforce the commitment to the Fair Tax agenda.

In response to members’ queries, the Strategic Lead – Commissioning stated that Fair Tax was generally a non-commercial consideration but that tax compliance with UK law could be used as grounds to exclude a company from the supply chain. He also explained that there was a standard questionnaire used across the public sector which was set by the government and included questions around tax compliance.

It was acknowledged that ultimate ownership of a company could be challenging to ascertain but this was included in the questionnaire.

The Strategic Lead – Commissioning explained that the standard questionnaire provided more scope to disregard tenders where there have been previous breaches of the law and the new procurement regulations would give more scope  ...  view the full minutes text for item 32.

Report of the Head of Integrated Commissioning and Procurement and the Strategic Lead – Commissioning.

This report sets out the Council’s approach to social value.

The committee received a report of the Head of Integrated Commissioning and Procurement and the Strategic Lead – Commissioning which set out the Council’s approach to social value.

Key points and themes within the report included:

• Providing an introduction and background to social value;
• The social value governance and programme;
• An overview of social value in commissioning and procurement;
• Social value key performance indicator (KPIs) targets and actuals to date for the Our Town Hall project;
• Issues and next steps; and
• Case studies of social value within the Highways service.

Key points and queries that arose from the committee’s discussions included:

• Welcoming the work, particularly that in North Manchester;
• Why the KPIs around new apprentices up to level 3 and existing apprentices employed were below target, and requesting that this be referenced in the Our Town Hall Project Update report scheduled for July;
• How social value projects can help with community cohesion where new developments are built in existing communities;
• Noting that social value can help to improve contractors and career progression;
• How social value within procurement can be tracked and monitored;
• Whether a communications plan was in place to publicise the good work being driven through social value;
• How information on social value was captured where the Council had worked with the same suppliers as other organisations; and
• How delivery on the KPIs for the Factory International project would compare with those for Our Town Hall.

The Deputy Executive Member for Finance and Resources stated that the Council’s commitment to social value began in 2007 and that Manchester had the largest social value and zero carbon weightings in their procurement process than any other local authority in the country, which demonstrated how the Council was a pioneer in social value. She explained that the Council had dedicated policies and governance structures to ensure that social value was embedded into procurement and commissioning processes. She stated that social value had provided an innovative way to support deprived communities against a backdrop of funding cuts.

The Social and Economic Project Manager informed the committee of several projects he had worked on to deliver social value with different contractors, education settings and Council teams.

In response to a member’s query regarding the number of apprentices employed on the Our Town Hall project, the Strategic Lead – Commissioning stated that he would confirm this with the project team.

The Social and Economic Project Manager explained that a community group had been established to engage on masterplans and that a review was being undertaken on how to improve community engagement.

The Strategic Lead – Commissioning acknowledged the importance of tracking social value achievements in procurement. He stated that the Council had a dedicated tool for tracking social value on larger contracts such as construction and highways. He recognised that there was a challenge in tracking this across a multitude of contracts, but this was included in the service’s programme of work. A new contract management system was being implemented and would have the capability  ...  view the full minutes text for item 33.

Report of the Governance and Scrutiny Support Unit.

This report provides the Committee with details of key decisions that fall within the Committee’s remit and an update on actions resulting from the Committee’s recommendations. The report also includes the Committee’s work programme, which the Committee is asked to amend as appropriate and agree.

The committee received a report of the Governance and Scrutiny Support Unit which provided details of key decisions that fell within the Committee’s remit. The report also included the Committee’s work programme, which the Committee was asked to amend as appropriate and agree.

The Chair sought assurances that the reports scheduled for the next meeting would be published on time with the exception of The Factory International Project report. The Deputy Chief Executive and City Treasurer confirmed this.

In response to a member’s query regarding whether an update on the naming rights for Factory International would be included within the report, the Deputy Chief Executive and City Treasurer confirmed and stated that this information would be provided in a Part B report to be discussed in closed session.

Decision: That the report be noted.