Venue: Siambr Dafydd Orwig, Council Offices, Caernarfon, Gwynedd, LL55 1SH
Contact: Eirian Roberts 01286 679018
No. | Item |
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APOLOGIES To receive
any apologies for absence. Additional documents: Minutes: Councillors Alan Jones Evans, Alwyn
Gruffydd, Sian Wyn Hughes, Edgar Wyn Owen, Elfed P. Roberts, Gareth A.Roberts, Mike Stevens, Hefin Underwood and Cemlyn
Williams. |
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The
Chairman shall propose that the minutes of the annual meeting of the Council
held on 18th May, 2016 be signed as a true record. (attached) Additional documents: Minutes: The Chair signed
the minutes of the Council's Annual Meeting held on 18 May, 2017 as a true
record. |
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DECLARATION OF PERSONAL INTEREST To receive any declaration of personal interest. Additional documents: Minutes: With reference to
item 9 on the agenda - Review of Gwynedd Electoral Boundaries, the Monitoring
Officer explained that he was not of the opinion that the report represented an
interest as it was a consultation on a matter what would not come into force
for five years and that any effect was subject to a number of other factors
being present. Councillor Peter
Read declared a personal interest in item 19(A) on the agenda – a Notice of
Motion by him regarding the distribution of wheelchairs in north Wales as he
was a service user. The member was not
of the opinion that it was a prejudicial interest, and he did not withdraw from
the meeting during the discussion on the item. The following
members declared a personal interest in item 19(C) on the agenda – Notice of
Motion from Councillor Glyn Daniels regarding the new Blaenau Ffestiniog hospital, for the reasons noted:- ·
Councillor Linda Ann Jones as she was a member of the
Blaenau Ffestiniog Hospital Defence Committee,
representing people with learning disabilities in the Blaenau area. ·
Councillor Glyn Daniels as he was a member of the
Defence Committee. ·
Councillor Gareth Thomas as his company had undertaken
work for the Health Board at the beginning of the consultation process. ·
Councillor Elin Walker Jones as she was employed by
the Health Service. The members were
not of the opinion that they were prejudicial interests, and they did not
withdraw from the meeting during the discussion on the item. |
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THE CHAIRMAN'S ANNOUNCEMENTS To receive any Chairman’s
announcements. Additional documents: Minutes: (1) Condolences Condolences were
expressed to Councillor Alwyn Gruffydd on the recent loss of his father. It was noted that Mr E.H.Griffiths
had been a very active member of Gwynedd and Dwyfor Councils
in his day and Councillor Owain Williams paid tribute to him. Condolences were
also expressed to the family of Irfon Williams of
Bangor, a cancer campaigner and founder of the Hawl i
Fyw/Fighting Chance campaign. It was also noted
that the Council wished to express condolences to everyone in the county's
communities who had lost loved-ones recently. The Council stood
as a mark of respect (2) Congratulations Everyone from
Gwynedd who had been successful at this year's Urdd
Eisteddfod recently was congratulated. (3) Note It was noted that
the Introduction to the Library Service Pack had been left in the members'
pigeon holes and everyone was asked to collect them before leaving at the end
of the meeting. It was explained
that, though not every Council member had a library in his/her ward, the
service was preparing an on-line digital offer, which was available to Gwynedd
residents who had internet access. It was also noted that the service's mobile
library visited a great number of rural wards and the Home Service was
available to those who were house-bound. |
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CORRESPONDENCE, COMMUNICATIONS OR OTHER BUSINESS To receive any correspondence,
communications or other business brought forward at the request of the Chairman. Additional documents: Minutes: None. |
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URGENT ITEMS To note any items
which are urgent business in the opinion of the Chairman so they
may be considered. Additional documents: Minutes: MEMBERSHIP
OF THE POLICE AND CRIME PANEL This item had not
been included on the agenda; however, the Chair agreed that it could be
discussed as an urgent item under Section 100B(4)(b) of the Local Government Act
1972 because a seat on the Panel had become vacant and that a member of the
panel needed to be appointed as soon as possible. The Chair noted:- ·
As reported at the last full Council meeting, that the
Council was required to identify one member of the Plaid Cymru
Group and one member of the Independent Group to represent the Council on the
Police and Crime Panel. ·
Further to Councillor Dilwyn Morgan's nomination as a
member of the panel, he had resigned from the appointment due to work pressures
and, therefore, the Plaid Cymru Group seat on the
panel had become vacant. RESOLVED to nominate Councillor Peter Read (Plaid Cymru) as a member of the Police and Crime Panel for the
period until the next local government elections. |
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QUESTIONS To consider any questions the appropriate notice for which
have been given under Section
4.19 of the Constitution. Additional documents: Minutes: (1) Question by Councillor Aeron Jones "What does the Council propose to do about the caravans and vans
which park overnight on the beaches at Dinas Dinlle, on land at y Foryd, where
'No Overnight Parking' signs have been erected, but are being ignored by
visitors?" Response by the Cabinet Member for Economic
Development, Councillor Ioan Thomas (and also on behalf of the Cabinet Member
for the Environment, Councillor Dafydd Meurig). (The Cabinet Member's
written response to the original question had been distributed to the members
in advance). "We do not
encourage visitors to use these sites for overnight parking. Practically, it is difficult for the Council
to take immediate enforcement action to remove vehicles, due to the timescales
involved in serving notices, and then presenting an application for a
possession order in the local county court. Supplementary
question by Councillor Aeron Jones. "How much
assurance can the Cabinet Member give that the owners of these vans do not pour
their chemical toilet waste and waste water in these spots and that they will
be penalised for overnight parking in future?" Response by the Cabinet Member for Economic
Development, Councillor Ioan Thomas. "I will
discuss with the Cabinet Member for the Environment and the relevant officers
to provide a full answer in due course, but I understand your concerns." (2) Question
from Councillor Sion Jones "How will the
Leader ensure equality and opportunities to work for Gwynedd Council,
particularly for women?" Response by the Leader, Councillor Dyfrig Siencyn. (The Leader's written
response to the original question had been distributed to the members in
advance). "Clearly, everyone
is in agreement here that we want to promote equality across either sex or any
boundaries or race, etc., and our policies reflect this. The Council is
currently undertaking work to seek to identify opportunities to promote the
role of women within the Council and, therefore, we are very aware that things
need to be improved, as in several fields. The Deputy Leader, who is
responsible for equality and human resources, will be involved with this work
and will report on progress and the developments with the questionnaires, etc.,
that we have developed recently. She has also drawn my attention to the
cross-party local government commission which looks at the role of women in
local government and she will be very eager to contribute to that discussion and
to learn from any recommendations it may have." A supplementary
question by Councillor Sion Jones. "Of the 10
Cabinet Members, how many are men and how many are women?" Response by the Leader, Councillor Dyfrig Siencyn. "There is one woman, namely the Deputy Leader, and nine men. I am very pleased of my party's record where women are in question. I have a Deputy Leader who is a woman; we have a female Chair of the Council and a female Vice-chair of the Council. We have a female Assembly Member in Arfon. We have a female Member of Parliament in Dwyfor / Meirionnydd, ... view the full minutes text for item 7. |
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GWYNEDD PERFORMANCE REPORT 2016/17 PDF 48 KB To submit
the report of the Head of Corporate Support
(attached). Additional documents:
Minutes: The Leader, Councillor Dyfrig Siencyn, submitted a report which
recommended that the Council approved the document as a balanced, fair and
accurate reflection of the Council’s performance in 2016/17, and to adopt the
report. The Leader thanked
the officers that had been involved with the work. The Leader and relevant officers responded to questions / observations
from the members in relation to:- ·
The percentage of the Council's
procurement expenditure that goes to companies with headquarters in Gwynedd. ·
The format and
implementation of the Gwynedd Citizens' Panel and focus groups. ·
The variances from year to
year in the average number of calendar days taken to provide the Disabled
Facilities Grant. It was explained that this was an indicator which could be
difficult to manage as the work tended to be substantial work which would take
time to plan and that delays could also occur. The Leader agreed to scrutinise
the situation if the performance was not as good as it had been. ·
Concern that work pressures
had led to an increase in staff sickness absences. It was noted that, though
this Council remained in the highest quartile, this was something to keep an
eye on and it was suggested that there was room for a scrutiny committee to
look at this also. ·
The substantial increase in
the investment to the county via projects and the concern that it would not be
possible to sustain this level of investment in the future as a result of
losing European funding. RESOLVED to
approve the report as a balanced, fair and accurate reflection of the Council’s
performance in 2016/17, and to adopt the report. |
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REVIEW OF GWYNEDD ELECTORAL BOUNDARIES PDF 262 KB To submit
the report of the Senior Manager (Corporate Support) (attached). Additional documents:
Minutes: The Chair of the Audit and Governance Committee, Councillor R.Medwyn Hughes, submitted a report inviting the Council to
submit observations to the Boundary Commission on its review of Gwynedd
Council's electoral boundaries. He also referred to the content of the additional paper distributed to
the members which updated the Council on proposals for the Bangor City area and
proposals for the Pen Llŷn area following local
discussions. An amendment was proposed and seconded that more consideration should be
given to the Pen Llŷn Area and the Bangor Area
due to the unique circumstances in those areas, namely the number of taxpayers
who lived in some of the areas in Pen Llŷn, many
who paid full tax and more; Bangor wards, which had a high number of students
which again were not considered in this paper and the Marchog
ward, which was a Communities First area, and therefore unique again. The Chief Executive explained that the timetable did not allow for more
consideration of the specific proposals as the Council's response needed to
reach the Boundary Commission by the following morning. In response to an observation that the community councils had not given
much response to the review, the Senior Manager - Corporate Support explained
that this had been because of the difficulties with the timetable, which
bridged the electoral period for those councils, as with this Council. He noted that every community council had
received a letter from the Commission and that this Council had contacted
community councils in the areas which were specifically affected by the
proposals. In response to the amendment, the Senior Manager - Corporate Support
noted that he could include the points regarding the unique situation of the
Pen Llŷn and Bangor areas in the letter to the
Commission. It was noted that the Independent Group had submitted some additional
observations to its assistant at the group meeting that morning and it was
agreed that the Senior Manager - Corporate Support would contact the officer to
obtain those observations. With the Council's agreement, the proposer withdrew his amendment as the
substance of the amendment would be incorporated in the Council's response to
the review. RESOLVED (a)
To approve the Audit and Governance Committee's
recommendation that no change should be proposed to the following
constituencies:- ·
Arfon
– Arllechwedd, Bethel, Deiniolen,
Dewi (Bangor), Gerlan, Glyder
(Bangor), Groeslon, Llanberis,
Llanrug, Ogwen, Pentir, Penygroes, Tregarth and Mynydd Llandygai, Waunfawr, Felinheli. ·
Dwyfor
– Abererch, Cricieth, Dolbenmaen, Efail Newydd / Buan, Llanystumdwy, Nefyn, Porthmadog (East), Porthmadog
(West), Porthmadog (Tremadog),
Pwllheli (South), Pwllheli
(North). ·
Meirionnydd
– Aberdyfi, Barmouth, Brithdir and Llanfachreth / Ganllwyd / Llanelltyd, Bowydd and Rhiw, Corris and Mawddwy, Dolgellau (South), Dolgellau (North), Penrhyndeudraeth, Bala. (b) To approve the specific proposals recommended by the Audit and Governance Committee (and highlighted in full in the report - paragraphs 9.1 - 9.9) ... view the full minutes text for item 9. |
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2016-17 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR OF SOCIAL SERVICES PDF 551 KB To submit
the report of the Statutory Director of Social Services (attached). Additional documents: Minutes: The Statutory Director of Social Services submitted her annual report for
2016/17. In her presentation, the Director provided an overview of how social
services had been provided over the past year and the main priorities for
2017/18. She noted that the report was an attempt to provide an assessment of
the effectiveness of social services for adults, children and families in
Gwynedd. She took advantage
of the opportunity to thank all staff for their tireless and committed work
once again this year. She particularly thanked Marian Parry Hughes (Head of
Children and Families Department), Aled Davies (Head of Adults, Health and
Well-being Department) and Llinos Edwards (Senior Executive Officer) who had
worked closely with her in creating the annual report. She also thanked the
members of the Services Scrutiny Committee for their work and constructive
observations and the Cabinet Members in the care field, Councillors W.Gareth Roberts and Mair Rowlands for their support over
the year. She also noted that she looked forward to working with Councillor
Dilwyn Morgan, who had taken over as portfolio member for children and young
people. The Deputy Leader, Councillor Mair Rowlands, thanked the Director for all
her support during her time as Cabinet Member for Children and Young People,
and she also thanked all the staff of social services, who carried out very
difficult work. She also thanked the foster parents and wished her successor,
Councillor Dilwyn Morgan, well as he took over the portfolio. Following the presentation, the Director responded to questions /
observations from members in relation to:- ·
The need to create more
specific measures for children with autism. ·
The importance of early
intervention. ·
The increase in the number
of children coming into care. ·
The difficulties in accessing
Derwen services. ·
The risks which faced the
service and the effect of the cuts. ·
The importance of respite
care. The Director and her staff were thanked for all their work over the
course of the year. |
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SCRUTINY ANNUAL REPORT 2016-17 PDF 676 KB To submit
the Scrutiny Annual Report 2016-17
(attached). Additional documents: Minutes: The Chair of the
Scrutiny Forum, Councillor Angela Russell, submitted the Scrutiny annual report
for 2016/17. She thanked Councillor Beth Lawton, Chair of the Services Scrutiny
Committee and the other scrutiny chairs for their work and noted that it was
important that the new committees built on the good work achieved, while doing
more advance scrutiny. She also thanked all members of the scrutiny committees
over the past five years and Arwel Ellis Jones (Senior Manager - Corporate
Support), Vera Jones (Democracy Manager), Gareth James (Member Support and
Scrutiny Manager) and the rest of the Member Support Team for all their
assistance. |
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APPOINTMENT OF ELECTED AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO THE STANDARDS COMMITTEE PDF 128 KB To submit
the report of the Monitoring Officer
(attached). Additional documents: Minutes: The Deputy Leader, Councillor Mair Rowlands, submitted a report on the
process of appointing Elected Members and Community Committee Members to the
Standards Committee, and invited the Council to accept the recommendation of
the Business Group to appoint Councillor Dewi Roberts, Abersoch,
as an Elected Member of the Committee.
She also noted that two vacancies remained on the committee for elected
members. She also referred to the content of the additional paper distributed to
the members which reported on the discussions of the Standards Committee Panel,
which had met on 12 June, to interview candidates for the post of Community
Committee Member of the Standards Committee. She noted:- ·
That interviews had been
held by a panel of three Independent Members including the Chair of the
Standards Committee. ·
That seven Community
Councillors, who had been nominated by their councils, had been interviewed. ·
Following careful and
thorough consideration of all applications, the Panel had decided to recommend
appointing Mr Richard Parry Hughes, who had been nominated by Llannor Community Council, to the post. RESOLVED (a)
To appoint Councillor Dewi Roberts, Abersoch, to act as Elected Member of the Standards
Committee for the Council term. (b)
To appoint Mr Richard Parry Hughes as
a Community Member of the Standards Committee for the term of the Community
Council. |
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APPOINTING A LAY MEMBER TO THE AUDIT AND GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE PDF 123 KB To submit
the report of the Head of Finance and the Monitoring Officer (attached). Additional documents: Minutes: The Chair of the Audit and Governance Committee, Councillor R.Medwyn Hughes, submitted a report on the process of
appointing a Lay Member to the Audit and Governance Committee. He also referred to the content of the additional paper distributed to
the members which reported on the discussions of the Panel, which had met on 13
June, to interview candidates for the post.
He noted:- ·
That interviews had been
held by a panel which included the Chair of the Council, the Chair of the Audit
and Governance Committee and the Cabinet Member for Finance, advised by the
Statutory Finance Officer and the Monitoring Officer. ·
That three candidates had
been interviewed for the role of Lay Member on the Audit and Governance
Committee and following careful and thorough consideration of the applications,
the Panel had decided to recommend appointing Mrs Sharon Warnes
to the post. In response to an enquiry regarding the role of the lay member on the
committee, the Monitoring Officer explained that there was a statutory
requirement that at least one lay member served on the Audit Committee and that
the objective of the legislation was to bring an independent voice to the
committee's discussions. RESOLVED to
appoint Mrs Sharon Warnes as a Lay Member of the
Audit and Governance Committee for a period of four years. |
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To submit
the report of the Head of Legal Services / Monitoring Officer (attached). Additional documents: Minutes: The Monitoring Officer submitted a report formally stating that the
Constitution had been amended as a result of the appointment of the new Cabinet
and the reshuffling of Portfolios. RESOLVED to accept
the report. |
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HEAD OF DEMOCRATIC SERVICES ANNUAL REPORT 2016-17 PDF 525 KB To submit
the report of the Head of Democratic Services
(attached). Additional documents: Minutes: The Head of Corporate Support Department submitted his annual report on
behalf of the Democratic Services Committee in relation to the support that had
been developed, and was being developed, for members. The Head thanked the chairs of the committee over the previous Council
term, former Councillors T.G.Ellis and Lesley Day and
Councillor Dewi Owen and also Councillor Anne Lloyd Jones who had been
Vice-chair for three years. |
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APPOINTMENT OF CHAIRMAN OF THE DEMOCRATIC SERVICES COMMITTEE To appoint
a Chairman of the Democratic Services Committee. [In
accordance with the requirements of Section 14 of the Local Government Bill
(Wales) 2011, the Chairperson of the Democratic Services Committee shall be
appointed by the Full Council and it cannot appoint a member of a political
group which is represented on the executive.] Additional documents: Minutes: The Council was invited to appoint a chair for the Democratic Services
Committee for 2017/18. RESOLVED to elect
Councillor Dewi Roberts as Chair of the Democratic Services Committee for
2017/18. |
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To submit
the report of the Head of Democratic Services
(attached). Additional documents: Minutes: The Deputy Leader, Councillor Mair Rowlands, submitted a report inviting
the Council to adopt a series of ‘descriptions of roles’ for the roles noted
below:- ·
Cabinet Member ·
Council Leader and Deputy ·
A member of Gwynedd Council
(applicable to all members) ·
A member of the Audit
Committee ·
Chair of the Audit Committee
·
A member of a Scrutiny
Committee ·
Chair of a Scrutiny
Committee ·
A member of the Democratic
Services Committee ·
Chair of the Democratic
Services Committee ·
A member of the Standards
Committee ·
Chair of the Standards
Committee ·
A member of the Licensing
Committee ·
Chair of the Licensing
Committee ·
A member of the Planning Committee ·
Chair of the Planning
Committee ·
Chair of the Council ·
Opposition Leader and Deputy RESOLVED to adopt
the 'description of roles' for the roles listed above. |
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SCRUTINY CHAIRS BASED ON THE POLITICAL BALANCE PDF 118 KB To submit
the report of the Head of Democratic Services
(attached). Additional documents: Minutes: The Leader, Councillor Dyfrig Siencyn, submitted a report on the need to
identify which groups were to appoint Chairs to which committees and
recommending orally that the chairmanships were to be distributed as follows:- ·
Care Scrutiny Committee –
Chair – Independent; Vice-chair – Independent ·
Communities Scrutiny
Committee – Chair – Plaid Cymru; Vice-chair –
Independent ·
Education and Economy
Scrutiny Committee – Chair – Independent; Vice-chair – Plaid Cymru RESOLVED to adopt
the above allocation of chairmanships. |
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NOTICES OF MOTION Additional documents: |
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Notice of Motion by Councillor Peter Read In
accordance with the Notice of Motion received under Section 4.20 of the
Constitution, Councillor Peter Read will propose as follows:- “In my opinion, there is a need to review the
system of distributing wheelchairs in North Wales in light of several cases
where these chairs are not suitable for the individuals. Though this work is not a direct
responsibility of the Council, we do have a responsibility to listen to the
concerns of the County’s vulnerable citizens. Proposal That the Council refers the question of the
suitability of the arrangements for providing wheelchairs for Gwynedd residents
for consideration for the scrutiny programme.” Additional documents: Minutes: (1) Submitted - the following notice of motion
by Councillor Peter Read, in accordance with Section 4.20 of the Constitution
and it was seconded:- "There is a need to review the system of
distributing wheelchairs in north Wales in light of several cases where these
chairs are not suitable for the individual.
Though this work is not a direct responsibility of the Council, we do
have a responsibility to listen to the concerns of the County's vulnerable
citizens. Proposal That the Council refers the question of the
suitability of arrangements to provide wheelchairs to the residents of Gwynedd
for consideration on the scrutiny programme." RESOLVED to adopt
the motion. |
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Notice of Motion by Councillor Owain Williams In
accordance with the Notice of Motion received under Section 4.20 of the
Constitution, Councillor Owain Williams will propose as follows:- “That the Council asks the Cabinet Member for
Education to consider encouraging the County’s schools to display our national
flag – namely the red dragon, on school grounds of buildings. This practice is already undertaken by
several of our schools – but not all of them by far.” Additional documents: Minutes: (2) Submitted - the following notice of motion
by Councillor Owain Williams, in accordance with Section 4.20 of the
Constitution and it was seconded:- "That the Council encourages the County’s
schools to display our national flag - namely the Red Dragon, on school grounds
or buildings. This practice is already undertaken by several of our schools -
but not all of them by far." The
Monitoring Officer explained that the wording of the proposal was a little
different to the written notice received from the member, which read as
follows:- "That the Council asks the Cabinet
Member for Education to consider encouraging the County's schools to display
our national flag - namely the Red Dragon, on school grounds or buildings. This
practice is already undertaken by several of our schools - but not all of them
by far." The Council consented for the proposer to amend the wording of his
original proposal by omitting the words "asks the Cabinet Member for Education to consider”. Support was expressed to the proposal by several members, but it was also
stressed that it was the work which happened on the classroom floor which
contributed most to promoting the awareness of a Welsh identity. RESOLVED to adopt
the amended motion. |
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Notice of Motion by Councillor Glyn Daniels In
accordance with the Notice of Motion received under Section 4.20 of the
Constitution, Councillor Glyn Daniels will propose as follows:- “I propose that Gwynedd Council supports the
Hospital Defence Committee and the residents of Blaenau Ffestiniog
to press on the Betsi Cadwaladr
University Health Board and relevant authorities to ensure that appropriate and
necessary facilities are provided in the new hospital being built in the town. With this I mean facilities that are usually
found in local hospitals, such as a x-ray unit, minor injuries unit and a
sufficient number of beds for inpatients.
Given that Blaenau Ffestiniog is the third
largest town in Gwynedd and also that the response of the vast majority of
residents in a recent referendum insisted that the town deserved to be treated
better, I believe that there is no reason why the Council should not support
this proposal.” Additional documents: Minutes: (3) Submitted - the following notice of motion
by Councillor Glyn Daniels, in accordance with Section 4.20 of the Constitution
and it was seconded:- "I propose that Gwynedd Council supports
the Hospital Defence Committee and the residents of Blaenau Ffestiniog
to press on the Betsi Cadwaladr
University Health Board and relevant authorities to ensure that appropriate and
necessary facilities are provided in the new hospital being built in the
town. With this I mean facilities that are usually
found in local hospitals, such as a x-ray unit, minor injuries unit and a
sufficient number of beds for inpatients.
Given that Blaenau Ffestiniog is the third
largest town in Gwynedd and also that the response of the vast majority of
residents in a recent referendum insisted that the town deserved to be treated
in a better way, I believe that there is no reason why the Council should not
support this proposal." The
Monitoring Officer referred to a court case last year which had gone to a
Judicial Review hearing as a result of a motion submitted to the Council and
noted that decisions on notices of motion were significant decision, and that
they were no different to other decisions taken by the Council in terms of
status or significance. He explained
that the Council must make its decisions based on evidence and facts, but that
he was not of the opinion that the evidence necessary for the Council to reach
a conclusion on the nature of the health provision in Blaenau Ffestiniog had been presented in this case. In
light of the aforementioned guidance, it was suggested that the matter should
be referred to the Care Scrutiny Committee, and to invite representatives of
the Health Board and the Defence Committee to attend the committee to present
evidence. An
amendment was proposed and seconded that the matter should be referred
immediately to the Care Scrutiny Committee to be discussed as soon as possible. Several
members expressed their support for the amendment, despite concerns being
stated also regarding the workload of the Care Scrutiny Committee. It was
noted that time was of the essence for the Council, if it was to put pressure
on the Health Board and the Chair of the Care Scrutiny Committee, Councillor
Eryl Jones-Williams, expressed his willingness to convene an extraordinary
meeting of the committee to address this matter urgently. RESOLVED to refer the matter immediately to the
Care Scrutiny Committee and to discuss it as soon as possible. |