Cyflwynwyd gan:Cyng / Cllr Dyfrig Siencyn
Decision:
¾ The Overarching Business Plan was formally
confirmed and it was recommended for the Council to approve it as the document
that sets out the arrangements for delivering the North Wales Growth Deal as
the basis for completing the Final Deal Agreement and acceptance of the Grant
Funding Letter with the UK and Welsh Governments.
¾ The provisions in Governance Agreement 2 weres
confirmed, which formally involves the executive functions and recommends that
the Council approves the provisions involving non-executive functions and that
it (the Cabinet) specifically adopts the delegations and the Terms of Reference
in "Governance Agreement 2: Appendix 1" as the basis for completing
the Final Deal Agreement and acceptance of the Grant Funding Letter with the UK
and Welsh Governments.
¾ Subject to completing Governance Agreement 2,
that Gwynedd Council agrees to act as the Host Authority and the Accountable
Body and signs the letter of the Grant Funding Proposal on behalf of the
Partners through the Chief Finance Officer.
¾ It was formally confirmed and recommended that
the Council approves the method used to calculate the cost of borrowing which
is required in principle to facilitate the negative cash flow for the Growth
Deal, and to include a provision within the Council Budget to pay this
contribution and the established core and supplementary contributions as set
out in GA2.
¾ That the Chief Executive, in consultation with
the Leader, the Monitoring Officer and the Section 151 Officer, be granted
delegated authority to agree minor changes to the documents with the Partners
as necessary to complete the agreement.
Minutes:
The report was presented by Cllr Dyfrig Siencyn.
DECISION
¾ The Overarching Business
Plan was formally confirmed and it was recommended for the Council to approve
it as the document that sets out the arrangements for delivering the North
Wales Growth Deal as the basis for completing the Final Deal Agreement and
acceptance of the Grant Funding Letter with the UK and Welsh Governments.
¾ The provisions in
Governance Agreement 2 were confirmed, which formally involves the executive
functions and recommends that the Council approves the provisions involving
non-executive functions and that it (the Cabinet) specifically adopts the
delegations and the Terms of Reference in "Governance Agreement 2:
Appendix 1" as the basis for completing the Final Deal Agreement and
acceptance of the Grant Funding Letter with the UK and Welsh Governments.
¾ Subject to completing
Governance Agreement 2, that Gwynedd Council agrees to act as the Host
Authority and the Accountable Body and signs the letter of the Grant Funding
Proposal on behalf of the Partners through the Chief Finance Officer.
¾ It was formally confirmed
and recommended that the Council approves the method used to calculate the cost
of borrowing which is required in principle to facilitate the negative cash
flow for the Growth Deal, and to include a provision within the Council Budget
to pay this contribution and the established core and supplementary
contributions as set out in GA2.
¾ That the Chief Executive,
in consultation with the Leader, the Monitoring Officer and the Section 151
Officer, be granted delegated authority to agree minor changes to the documents
with the Partners as necessary to complete the agreement.
DISCUSSION
The report was submitted noting that it was the
culmination of three years of hard work on the Growth Plan. The programme team
was thanked for working hard to create the documents and the business plans to
complete the Final Deal Agreement.
The Programme Manager highlighted the main aim
of the Growth Plan to build a thriving, sustainable and robust economy in north
Wales. It was expressed that the methods would deliver growth in an inclusive
and sustainable way that could be extended in line with the Well-being of
Future Generations Act. The funding sources which included investment from the
Private Sector and the Public Sector were emphasised.
Attention was drawn to the Growth Plan’s
regional benefits which included growth in regional prosperity and creating
better quality jobs for the labour market. The benefits for Gwynedd
specifically were emphasised and they included improving digital connectivity
for businesses, residents and visitors; access to innovative research and
support with sustainable farming techniques; an investment of £20m in the
infrastructure of the Trawsfynydd site and
opportunities to develop strategic sites as part of the long-term Land and
Property programme.
The Overarching Business Plan was outlined,
emphasising that it set out the arrangements for implementing the North Wales
Growth Deal, including an overview of the programmes and projects in order to
secure the approval of all partners to the Funding requirements to implement
the deal. It was added that the Programme Office had consulted with the UK
Government and the Welsh Government throughout the process of developing the
documents.
In relation to the Final Deal Agreement, it was
noted that it was a deal that had been created jointly between the NWEAB and
both Governments. It was emphasised that it was currently in draft form and
that it would continue to be adapted over the next weeks. It was noted that the
Programme Officer had been working hard on the relevant documents, and that the
Final Deal Agreement would be secured based on a Portfolio Business Case and
Five Programme Business Cases.
The Head of Legal Services noted that Governance
Agreement 2 moved the partnership to the implementation phase of the Growth
Deal. It was added that it was continuing with the governance model adopted in
GA1, namely a Joint-committee supported by a host authority and providing for
the Partners' commitments and responsibilities to the partnership. Attention
was drawn to arrangements noting that the scrutiny work would be shared between
the six local authorities to lighten the burden.
The Head of Finance Department expressed that
GA2 was of crucial importance to having an accountable body. The Income and Expenditure
were outlined, noting that the expenditure profile would be over approximately
six years, with the governments' funding contributions being equal over 15
years, therefore there would be a negative cash flow. However, it was noted that the host authority
would facilitate this for the partners and would have made reasonable
presumptions before spreading the cost equally over the 15 years of the deal,
in order to offer an achievable annual cost. It was added that this would
commit the partners to the Growth Deal for 15 years.
Observations arising from the discussion
¾ Gratitude was expressed for the work and the funding for Parc Glyn Cegin in Bangor was
welcomed. A question was asked in relation to fibre internet connections for
companies if it was to be developed for all residents in Gwynedd. It was
expressed that mapping work had been carried out to seek out the fibre
not-spots and that these areas would be targeted by the growth deal.
¾ A question was asked in
relation to contributions from the two Governments and if this meant that the
deal was accountable to both Governments. It was noted that it did mean this,
but the deal was also accountable to all councils in the region and to
electors. It was emphasised that accountability to the county's residents would
be the main priority.
¾ The report was welcomed
as there would be an opportunity to build a stronger economy and an opportunity
to create high value jobs that would be crucial for the young people of
Gwynedd.
-
It was noted that this was
the first time that authorities had volunteered to work together to create
something for the benefit of the residents. The Head of Finance Department and
the Monitoring Officer were thanked for their work.
Awdur:Sioned Williams and Alwen Williams
Supporting documents: