Steve Atkinson MA(Oxon) MBA FIoD FRSA
Chief Executive
Hinckley Hub • Rugby Road • Hinckley • Leicestershire • LE10 0FR
Telephone 01455 238141 • MDX No 716429 • Fax 01455 251172 •
www.hinckley-bosworth.gov.uk
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Our ref: FOI 3430
Date: 15/04/2016
Hinckley Hub • Rugby Road • Hinckley • Leicestershire • LE10 0FR
Telephone 01455 238141 • MDX No 716429 • Fax 01455 251172 •
www.hinckley-bosworth.gov.uk
Dear J Newman
Freedom of Information Act 2000 request HR/3430
Please find our response to your FOI request below. You requested:
1)Does HBBC have a list of preferred retailers or will it accept any retailer who is able to comply with whatever is required?
· HBBC does not have a list of preferred of retailers. We work with our agents Strutt and Parker to identify potential tenants.
2) You have stated that the inducements offered to retailers are “negotiated” and assessed on their “merits”.A “negotiation” is characterised by BOTH parties offering something quantifiable to the other to reach a compromise. For its part, HBBC has offered money; what merits have been offered to HBBC in return and how will delivery of the associated commitments made to HBBC be audited?
· It is important to note that the Crescent Development is a key regeneration scheme for the town and to the wider Borough. There is therefore a wider benefit to the wider community. Delivery of the scheme itself and its ongoing management (for HBBC assets) would be audited by the Council’s existing audit arrangements.
· The scheme would now be valued greater than the value of land prior to the project and therefore in land terms alone will prove to be a positive investment.Central Government is pushing local Authorities to act in a more commercial manner.
3) What grades of staff (by job title) would be permitted to undertake such negotiations and what are the terms of reference provided to them? I am assuming this is documented in the interests of transparency and to ensure consistency
· The negotiations are carried out by a combination of the following (in conjunction with our agents): Estates and Asset Manager, Deputy Chief Executive (Corporate Direction) and Chief Executive. There are no “terms of reference”.
4)How are final agreements over inducements recorded? An example of the document which I'm assuming will have two signatories with no name or amount will suffice.I am assuming there is a standard format.
· They are recorded as part of the tenancy lease. Tenancy leases are drafted by our legal team and signed by an appropriately authorised officer. All leases are created on a case by case basis and therefore we do not have a standard document to release; as such, the leases are unique to each company. The individual leases are exempt from disclosure under section 41 breach of confidence and section 43(2) commercial sensitivity under the FOI act.
Annex
S43 Commercial Interests(2) release of the information is likely to prejudice the commercial interests of any person. (A person may be an individual, a company, the public authority itself or any other legal entity.)
Factors for withholding / Factors for disclosure
Disclosure would make it less likely that companies or individuals would provide the council with commercially sensitive information in the future and consequently undermine the ability of the council to fulfil its role
Disclosure would be likely to prejudice the commercial interests of the contractor by affecting adversely its bargaining position during contractual negotiations which would result in the less effective use of public money
Disclosure would, as a consequence, make it more difficult for individuals to be able to conduct commercial transactions or have other dealings with public bodies which are not a typical commercial transaction - for example where an organisation obtains a grant or financial assistance from a public authority - without fear of suffering commercially as a result.
It would not, for example, be in the public interest to disclose information about a particular commercial body if that information was not common knowledge and would be likely to be used by competitors in a particular market to gain a competitive advantage / There is a public interest in the disclosure of commercial information in order to ensure that:
there is transparency in the accountability of public funds
there is proper scrutiny of government actions in carrying out licensing functions in accordance with published policy
public money is being used effectively, and that departments are getting value for money when purchasing goods and services
departments' commercial activities, including the procurement process, are conducted in an open and honest way
Reasons why public interest favours withholding information
If the council were to release the information that relates to individual payments, it is likely that it would have a detrimental impact on its commercial revenue and that of the contractor. It could weaken our position in a competitive environment by revealing market-sensitive information or information of potential usefulness to our competitors.
5) How does the payment process work when (presumably) there is no supplier invoice and what constitutes an audit trail?
· Incentive payments are subject to VAT and therefore a supplier invoice is received to facilitate payment
5a) Who is charged with auditing these inducements to:
•Prove no impropriety has taken place - All transactions are subject to our controls and auditing as part of the Internal Audit Plan.
•Ensure any conditions are fulfilled and at what time intervals?- Our legal team along with the Estates and Asset Manager.
6) Are these inducements one-off payments, ongoing payments or potentially a combination of both? If they are ongoing, are they budgeted as such (i.e. not capital) and if so where in the HBBC accounts? [Please note that “payment” here also includes dispensations HBBC may offer – e.g. reduction in business rates etc].
· These incentives are sometimes provided as rent free periods (revenue) and sometimes one off payments (capital), and sometimes a combination of both. Payments are budgeted for accordingly as either revenue or capital expenditure in accordance with CIPFA’s recommended practice and the Local Government Act 2003 (and its associated regulations). I can confirm we do not provide reductions in business rates.
The information that we provide in response to the Freedom of Information Act 2000 requests is subject to copyright protection.The copyright is owned by eitherthe Councilor a third party. Simply because the information is available under the regulations does not mean the council or the third party has waived its copyright.
If you are dissatisfied with the handling of your request you should write to:
Julie Kenny, Chief Officer for Corporate Governance & Housing Repairs
Hinckley Hub, Rugby Road, Hinckley, Leicestershire, LE10 0FR
Please quote your FOI reference no. and ask that your request be reviewed under the Council's internal appeals procedure.
If after the appeal process you are still dissatisfied, you can complain to the Information
Commissioner at: Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF
Telephone:01625 545 700
www.informationcommissioner.org.uk
Yours sincerely
Mrs H Rishworth
Information Governance Officer
Hinckley Hub • Rugby Road • Hinckley • Leicestershire • LE10 0FR
Telephone 01455 238141 • MDX No 716429 • Fax 01455 251172 •
www.hinckley-bosworth.gov.uk