Issue - meetings

To submit the report of the Cabinet Member for Corporate Support.

DECISION

TO SUPPORT THE REVISED TIMETABLE FOR CONDUCTING A CONSULTATION ON THE SINGLE TRANSFERABLE VOTE SYSTEM FOR ELECTIONS TO THE CYNGOR GWYNEDD COUNCIL FROM 2027 ONWARDS

Submitted – the report of the Cabinet Member for Corporate Support asking the Council to support an amended timetable for holding a consultation on the adoption of a Single Transferable Vote System for Cyngor Gwynedd elections from 2027 onwards. It was noted that the timetable was being amended in light of holding a general election in the UK at the beginning of July 2024. It was highlighted that it would have been inappropriate to hold a consultation during a general election and therefore the process had been postponed and an alternative timetable had been formulated to conduct the process.

A proposed timetable was submitted with the intention of beginning the consultation on 15 July 2024.

Members were given an opportunity to make observations and ask questions.  The following matters were raised by individual members:-

In response to a question on how local residents would be notified of the campaign, the monitoring officer noted that information would be available on the Council website, in libraries and information would be shared with Community and Town and City Councils.

In response to a question whether an equality impact assessment had been undertaken, the monitoring officer noted that an initial equality assessment had been completed, but a detailed equality assessment would be completed before submitting the final report to a special meeting of the Full Council on 24 October 2024. In response to an ancillary question, it was noted that the assessment would include the impact on the Welsh language.

In response to a request for any presumptions of the possible geographical areas that would be necessary to ensure there was contact between the councillor and the area, the monitoring officer noted that the statute was to create a ward of between 3 and 6 members (accepting that 3 members was very low for rural areas), but that it was not intended to highlight boundaries / set a map due to concerns that this could lead to opinions being formed based on the boundaries. He reiterated that the commission had established a threshold of establishing wards by considering the number of electors in each electorate – any presumption of the size and form of the ward could be misleading.

Concern was expressed that merging urban wards to secure a population figure could lead to mismanagement with the surrounding rural areas losing out. Had consideration been given to creating new wards rather than merging wards?  In response, the monitoring officer noted that it would be a general review of wards.

RESOLVED

TO SUPPORT THE REVISED TIMETABLE FOR CONDUCTING A CONSULTATION ON THE SINGLE TRANSFERABLE VOTE SYSTEM FOR ELECTIONS TO THE CYNGOR GWYNEDD COUNCIL FROM 2027 ONWARDS