Agenda, decisions and minutes

To receive any apologies for absence

Councillors Nigel Pickavance and Gareth A. Roberts.

The Chairman shall propose that the minutes of the previous meeting of the Council held on 3^rd December, 2020 be signed as a true record. (attached)

The Chair signed the minutes of the previous meeting of the Council held on 3 December, 2020 as a true record.

To receive any declarations of personal interest.

Members had received a guidance note from the Monitoring Officer in advance regarding item 8 on the agenda – Council Tax: Discretionary Powers to Allow Discounts and / or Charge a Premium 2021/22.

The following members declared a personal interest in item 8 on the agenda - Council Tax: Discretionary Powers to Allow Discounts and / or Charge a Premium 2021/22:-

·         Councillor Aled Wyn Jones because a close relative of his had a second home and holiday homes in Gwynedd.

·         Councillor Elfed Roberts because a close connection of his paid the tax on a second home.

·         Councillor Menna Baines because she was a joint owner of an empty property.

·         Councillor Gethin Glyn Williams as close connections of his had empty properties and second homes.

·         Councillor Angela Russell because she owned a second home.

·         Councillor Linda Morgan because she had family who owned second homes and a connection with somebody who paid the premium.

·         Councillor Anwen Daniels because a close relative of hers had a second home in her ward.

·         Councillor Peredur Jenkins because he had registered in two homes, Hafod and Hendre.

·         Councillor Dyfrig Siencyn as he had a close connection to a person who paid the premium for second homes and empty properties.

·         Councillor Dewi Roberts as he had a close connection to a person who had a second home.

The members were of the opinion that they were prejudicial interests, and they withdrew from the meeting during the discussion on the item.

The Monitoring Officer declared a personal interest in item 9, 'Annual Review - Council's Pay Policy 2021/22' - on behalf of the chief officers who were present, as the report involved their salaries.

Along with the Corporate Director, the Head of Finance and the Head of Corporate Support, the Monitoring Officer left the meeting during the discussion on the item.

To receive any Chairman’s announcements.

Condolences were expressed to the family of Lucille Hughes, the former Head of Social Services, Gwynedd County Council, who had died recently.

The Chief Executive paid tribute to Gwenan Parry, the former Head of Customer Care and former Head of Adults, Health and Well-being at the Council, who had died recently, and he expressed his sincerest sympathy to the family in their bereavement.

Councillor Owain Williams paid tribute to the late John B. Jenkins.

It was also noted that the Council wished to sympathise with everyone within the county’s communities who had recently lost loved ones.

The Council stood in silence as a mark of respect and remembrance.

Councillor Alwyn Gruffydd was welcomed to the meeting following recent ill-health.

It was noted, to celebrate International Women's Day on 8 March, that the Council intended to launch a page on the Council's intranet, which was a part of the Women in Leadership Project Group, where relevant information on the subject would be shared with Council staff. Morwena Edwards, Corporate Director, would create a video to emphasise the importance of the date, and the Communications Team would circulate a video to celebrate the achievements of famous women from the county.

It was noted that the Council would be celebrating its twenty-fifth anniversary at the beginning of April and during that period, it had been fortunate to have three talented Chief Executives, namely Geraint R. Jones, Harry Thomas and Dilwyn Williams, the current Chief Executive. However, as Mr Williams had declared his intention to retire, the Council would move forward to the next twenty-five years, under the leadership of a new Chief Executive.

The Leader expressed his gratitude to Dilwyn Williams, on behalf of all members, for his service over the years, and he was wished every happiness on his retirement.

To receive any correspondence, communications or other business brought forward at the request of the Chairman.

None to note.

To note any items which are urgent business in the opinion of the Chairman so they may be considered.

None to note.

To consider any questions the appropriate notice for which have been given under Section 4.19 of the Constitution.

No questions were received.

To submit the report of the Cabinet Member for Finance  (attached).

For 2021/22, that Gwynedd Council:

·         Allows NO discount on class A second homes, in accordance with Section 12 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992.

·         Allows NO discount and RAISES A PREMIUM of 100% on class B second homes, in accordance with Section 12B of the Local Government Finance Act 1992.

Allows NO discount on homes that have been empty for 6 months or more and RAISES A PREMIUM of 100% on homes that have been empty for 12 months or more, in accordance with Section 12A of the Local Government Finance Act 1992.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Councillor Ioan Thomas, presented a report asking the Council for formal confirmation for 2021/22, of the previous decisions not to give discounts to second homes and to disallow discounts on empty properties, and to raise a premium of 100% on such relevant properties.

The Assistant Head of Finance (Revenue and Risk) elaborated on the outcome of the public consultation on the proposal to increase the Premium on second homes and long-term empty properties to up to 100% for the 2021/22 financial year, as well as the legal requirements. He also drew attention to the importance of the Equality Impact Assessment, and members were reminded that they had to consider this assessment when making their decision. An explanation and guidance was provided on the findings, and particular attention was given to the allegation that the proposal could indirectly discriminate groups with protected characteristics, and the need for members to balance this when making their decision.

Members of Council staff from various departments were thanked for ensuring the success of the public consultation.

A member noted that although he agreed with the Cabinet's opinion that there was increasing pressure on the local housing stock and that holiday home owners had the means to pay a bit more, he was concerned that the proposal to increase the availability of affordable housing by increasing the Premium meant that the Cabinet had misunderstood the situation. There was a risk that increasing the Premium by 100% would trigger more second home owners to let their properties and transfer them to the non-domestic rates, which would mean that those houses would be lost forever, as there were no powers available to get them back onto Domestic Rates. He did not believe that Welsh Government had done enough about the situation, and he believed that it should be a requirement to obtain planning permission to transfer houses to Non-domestic Rates. He expressed his concern that the Council would ultimately lose a lot of income, and he was of the opinion that it was premature to raise the Premium by 100%, and that it would be better to wait and see what the situation would be following the Welsh Senedd Election in May. On that basis, he proposed an amendment to stick to the current procedure of charging a 50% premium for 2021/22, amending the second and third bullet-points of the recommendation in the report as follows:-

"For 2021/22, that Gwynedd Council:

·                Allows NO discount and CHARGES A PREMIUM OF 50% on class B second homes, in accordance with Section 12B of the Local Government Finance Act 1992.

·                Allows NO discount on homes that have been empty for 6 months or more and CHARGES A PREMIUM OF 50% on homes that have been empty for 12 months or more for 2018/19, in accordance with Section 12A of the Local Government Finance Act 1992."

The amendment was seconded.

During the discussion on the amendment, other members supported the amendment on the basis:-

·         That tourism was  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

To submit the report of the Chair of the Chief Officers Appointments Committee  (attached).

To approve the recommendation of the Chief Officer Appointment Committee to adopt the Pay Policy for 2021/22, including the decision to increase the salary of the post of Monitoring Officer immediately to a maximum of approximately £70,000.

The Chair of the Chief Officers Appointment Committee submitted a report recommending that the Council approved the recommendation of the Chief Officer Appointment Committee to adopt the Pay Policy for 2021/22, including the decision to increase the salary of the post of Monitoring Officer immediately to a maximum of approximately £70,000, as the current salary of the post is not competitive with comparable posts undertaking equivalent responsibilities in other regional local authorities, and that this poses an unacceptable risk to the effective operation of the Council.

A member noted that she believed that now was not the time to increase salaries, as many people in the county were losing their jobs, without any hope of getting another job.

RESOLVED to approve the recommendation of the Chief Officers Appointment Committee to adopt the Pay Policy for 2021/22, including the decision to increase the salary of the Monitoring Officer post immediately to a maximum of approx. £70,000.

To submit the report of the Council Leader  (attached).

To adopt the Gwynedd Council Plan 2018-2023: 2021/22 Review to be implemented during 2021/22.

The Leader presented a report inviting the Council to adopt the Gwynedd Council Plan 2018-23: 2021/22 Review to be implemented during 2021/22.

The Leader thanked each member of Council staff for contributing to the response to the pandemic, by being so willing to adapt to different ways of working, to change roles and to commit to respond and provide services for the residents of Gwynedd.  He noted that the county councils had responded heroically and effectively to the disease, and that governments now realised how essential, and how prepared to act, local authorities were.

RESOLVED to adopt the Gwynedd Council Plan 2018-2023: 2021/22 Review to be implemented during 2021/22.

To submit the report of the Cabinet Member for Finance  (attached).

1. To approve the recommendations of the Cabinet, namely:-

(a) Establish a budget of £275,669,610 for 2021/22 to be funded through a Government Grant of £194,793,140 and £80,876,470 of Council Tax income with an increase of 3.7%.

(b) Establish a capital programme of £47,085,960 in 2021/22, to be funded from the sources noted in Appendix 4 of the report.

2. That it be noted that the Cabinet Member for Finance, in a decision notice dated 18 November 2020, approved the calculation of the following amounts for 2021/22 in accordance with Regulations made under Section 33 (5) of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 (“The Act”):-

(a)    51,885.56 being the amount calculated as Gwynedd's Tax Base in accordance with the Local Authorities (Calculation of Council Tax Base) (Wales) Regulations 1995 as amended, as its Council Tax base for the year.

(b)    Part of the Council’s Area - Community Tax Base -

namely the amounts calculated as the Council Tax Base amounts for the year for dwellings in those parts of its area to which one or more special items relate.

3. That the following amounts now be calculated by the Council for the year 2021/22 in accordance with Sections 32 to 36 of the Act:-