Issue - meetings

To confirm the items to be scrutinised at the Committee’s meeting on 16 May 2024.

To confirm that the following items will be scrutinised at the Committee's meeting to be held on 16 May 2024:

·       Article 4 Direction – Public Consultation

·       Ash Dieback Disease

The report was presented by the Scrutiny Adviser noting the following main points:

It was reported that it had been agreed at the Committee meeting on 22 February 2024, that the Chair and Vice-chair at their contact meetings with the Heads of Department and relevant Cabinet Members, would identify items for discussion along with the 'Article 4 Direction - Public Consultation' item at the meeting on 16 May 2024.

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It was confirmed that an additional item had been identified at the contact meeting of the Chair and Vice-chair with Heads of Department and relevant Cabinet Members as a potential matter for scrutiny, namely 'Ash Die-back Disease'. It was explained that the matter had been included on the risk register of the Highways, Engineering and YGC Department and it was noted that the Council had a work programme to identify the disease in trees and to treat this. It was detailed that the scale of the problem could be scrutinised along with the progress made in terms of dealing with the disease, as well as the cost of dealing with the disease thus far and the future anticipated costs. The Committee was asked to confirm if they wished to scrutinise this item as well as 'Article 4 - Public Consultation' at the meeting held on 16 May 2024.

Members were reminded that there would be an opportunity for them to prioritise items for scrutiny for the other four meetings during the 2024/25 period at the Annual Workshop held over the next few weeks.

In response to observations from members, it was explained that it would be timely to scrutinise the 'Article 4 Direction - Public Consultation' item at the meeting on 16 May 2024 to ensure that the input of Committee Members was received before Cabinet Members discussed the item in the following months. Members were reminded that the timetable to discuss this item had slipped as the Committee had decided at its last meeting to move it from this meeting to the meeting on 16 May 2024 as a result of the pre-electoral period of the Police and Crime Commissioner election between 25 March and 2 May 2024. It was emphasised that scrutinising the item at the 16 May meeting would be timely and an opportunity for the Committee to make recommendations to the Cabinet.

RESOLVED

To confirm that the following items will be scrutinised at the Committee meeting on 16 May 2024:

·       Article 4 Direction - Public Consultation

·       Ash Die-back Disease