Issue - meetings

To consider the report of the Cabinet Member for Environment informing Members of the results of the egg & nest removal programme and seeking approval to extend the current programme for a period of 1 year through to 1^st April 2019 and to undertake a gull breeding survey during the summer of 2018 to assess the impact of the treatment programme.

RESOLVED that:

1.    The positive impact that the egg & nest removal programme has had on the treatment sites be noted and that the continuation of such a treatment programme in order to further decrease the urban gull population growth rate be endorsed.

2.    Approval be granted for a 1 year extension of the current egg & nest removal contract through use of Condition 4 of the contract between the Council and Mitie Pest Control Ltd, and

3.    Approval be granted to procure a gull breeding survey to be carried out in 2018 and for delegation to be provided to The Head of Communities in consultation with the Cabinet Member of Environment and s.151 Monitoring Officer to award the contract in line with the Council’s procurement rules.

Cabinet considered the report of the Cabinet Member for Environment that informed them of the results of the egg & nest removal programme and sought Cabinet’s approval to extend the current programme for a period of one year through to 1^st April 2019 and to undertake a gull breeding survey during the summer of 2018 to assess the impact of the treatment programme.

The Cabinet Member for Environment commented on anecdotal evidence of gull displacement away from the city centre and population reduction at Hempsted due to changes in the way food waste is processed at the waste management site. The Cabinet Member for Performance and Resources advised Members that he had seen fewer gulls in the city and received fewer complaints in his ward.  The Cabinet Member for Housing and Planning suggested that less refuse in the streets was a contributing factor in the perceived reduction.

RESOLVED that:

1.    The positive impact that the egg & nest removal programme has had on the treatment sites be noted and that the continuation of such a treatment programme in order to further decrease the urban gull population growth rate be endorsed.

2.    Approval be granted for a 1 year extension of the current egg & nest removal contract through use of Condition 4 of the contract between the Council and Mitie Pest Control Ltd, and

3.    Approval be granted to procure a gull breeding survey to be carried out in 2018 and for delegation to be provided to The Head of Communities in consultation with the Cabinet Member of Environment and s.151 Monitoring Officer to award the contract in line with the Council’s procurement rules.