Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Chris Aldred, Derek Bastiman, Nick Brown, Bryn Griffiths and Greg White.  A number of substitutes attended as follows:

·          Councillor Roberta Swiers substituted for Councillor Greg White

·          Councillor Caroline Dickinson substituted for Councillor Nick Brown

·          Councillor Peter Wilkinson substituted for Councillor Derek Bastiman

Resolved – That the Minutes of the meetings held on the 9^th and 16^th June 2025 be confirmed and signed by the Chair as a correct record.

All Members are invited to declare at this point any interests they have in items appearing on this agenda, including the nature of those interests.

There were no declarations of interest made.

Members of the public may ask questions or make statements at this meeting if they have given notice to Melanie Carr of Democratic and Scrutiny Services and supplied the text (contact details below) by midday on Wednesday 6 August 2025, three working days before the day of the meeting.  Each speaker should limit themselves to 3 minutes on any item.  Members of the public who have given notice will be invited to speak:

·            at this point in the meeting if their questions/statements relate to matters which are not otherwise on the Agenda (subject to an overall time limit of 30 minutes);

·            when the relevant Agenda item is being considered if they wish to speak on a matter which is on the Agenda for this meeting.

If you are exercising your right to speak at this meeting, but do not wish to be recorded, please inform the Chair who will instruct anyone who may be taking a recording to cease while you speak.

There were no public questions or statements received.

The Chair welcomed members to the meeting and drew attention to the report which detailed the reason why the call-in meeting had been arranged. 

He confirmed the Committee was required to determine whether the Executive’s decision should be upheld, requiring no further action to be taken, or referred back to the Executive for review, or referred to Full Council.  He also confirmed the process the meeting would undertake and the order in which he would invite the attendees to speak.   

Considered – A report of the Corporate Director for Environment seeking a decision on whether to refer the Executive decision of 15 July 2025 back to the Executive; to refer it to Full Council; or to take no further action.

The Chair invited Cllr Janet Jefferson, as signatory of the Call-In notice, to present her reasons for the call-in.  Cllr Jefferson thanked members for attending the meeting, and confirmed she had wanted to raise her concerns at the Executive meeting at which the original decision had been taken on 15 July 2025, but was unable to participate as a result of technical issues with joining the meeting remotely.  She went on to read out the following statement:

“My call in today (together with my supporters) relates to the fact that we do not believe that North Yorkshire Executive were made aware within the Legacy Harbour Project of the alternative option of replacing steel sheet piling which would have extended the life of the West Pier from 10 to 50 years and the added advantages this would bring.

The Executive appeared to have little information with regard to the potential of a 10 year repair and a 50 year replacement  -  This was a Scarborough Borough Council (SBC) legacy project dating back to 2021 (four years ago) and we are a new Unitary Authority –  We need a lasting legacy for Scarborough Harbour with long term plans to bring sustainability and secure employment – we need security for 50 years not 10 years.

The West Pier, formed using steel sheet piling, dates back to the late 1980’s – it is not only the main fish landing area in Scarborough Harbour and where the vessels are moored, but also provides load bearing with a combination of the weight of the land that the wall retains together with the weight of the buildings on the pier – with additional buildings and infrastructure proposed under the West Pier Development.    If they had seriously considered replacement of the steel sheet piles, this would not only have secured 50 extra years life of the Pier but also taken on board the introduction of the ‘Blue Sky Thinking Project’ and the essential infrastructure needed for the boat hoist.

Executive Members should have been informed of the various survey reports dating back to the  2011 Whitby and Scarborough Harbour Walls Diving Survey and Report, the Northern Divers report of 2021(which is what the SBC Legacy report took on board) and the Neom (PM Diving Services) partial survey/report of 2023 -  emphasising how over the past 45 years  existing steel sheet piles had suffered with corrosion because of harsh salt water and the phenomenon known as ALWC (Accelerated low water corrosion) which seriously caused deterioration of the steel pile and thus reducing the structures lifespan.

The report referred to the Harbour Account being in deficit with insufficient funds to pay for the Legacy Project and confirmed that an interest free loan would have to be provided,  What about the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 67.