Agenda, decisions and minutes

To receive any apologies for absence

Apologies were received from Councillors Craig ab Iago, Iwan Huws, Linda Ann Jones, Eryl Jones-Williams, Llio Elenid Owen, Gareth A. Roberts, Einir Wyn Williams and Eirwyn Williams.

The Chair shall propose that the minutes of the previous meeting of the Council held on 6^th July, 2023 be signed as a true record.

The Chairman signed the minutes of the previous meeting of the Council, held on 6 July, 2023 as a true record.

To receive any declaration of personal interest.

No declarations of personal interest were received.

To receive any Chair’s announcements.

Condolences were extended to the following:-

·           Councillor Louise Hughes and family due to the loss of her mother during the summer.

·           Mrs Sharon Warnes, Chair of the Governance and Audit Committee and family following the death of her husband recently.

It was also noted that Councillor Pete Prendergast, Chair of Denbighshire Council had passed away last week, and condolences were expressed to his family and to fellow councillors at Denbighshire Council.

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

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

Best wishes were expressed to Mrs Sharon Warnes, Chair of the Governance and Audit Committee, who was unable to attend this meeting due to hospital treatment.

The following were congratulated:-

·         Everyone who had been successful at the Llŷn and Eifionydd National Eisteddfod in August, especially Rhys Iorwerth from Caernarfon, Alan Llwyd, Treforys, but originally from Abersoch and Alun Ffred, former Leader of this Council, for winning the Crown, the Chair and the Daniel Owen Memorial Prize. Everyone who had helped at the Eisteddfod were also thanked.  

·         Rhodri Jones, Democracy Services Officer, on recently being elected Senior Member of the Year for the Eryri Federation of Young Farmers.

·         Football referee Cheryl Foster, originally from Bangor, for being the first female referee to take charge of a match in the Welsh Premier League. On 9 January 2023, FIFA appointed her to the administration pool for the FIFA 2023 Women's World Cup competition in Australia and New Zealand, and back in May of this year, she had been named as the referee for the final of the 2023 WEFA Women's Champions League between Barcelona and Wolfsburg on 3 June 2023.

·         O Ddrws i Ddrws on celebrating 20 years of service in Dwyfor and Eifionydd.  It had also been given to understand that the O Ddrws i Ddrws Board was eager to thank Cyngor Gwynedd for its support during those years.

·         Councillor Elfed Wyn ap Elwyn on walking 206 miles from Bangor to Cardiff to promote the campaign to reopen railway lines from Aberystwyth to Caerfyrddin and from Bangor to Afonwen. It was also noted that a petition on this matter had succeeded to attract more than 13,000 signatories.

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

None to note.

To consider any questions the appropriate notice for which have been given under Section 4.18 of the Constitution.

(The Cabinet Members' written responses to the questions had been published in advance.)

(1)          Question from Councillor Gruffydd Williams

"Following the announcement that Barclays will close more of its branches including Pwllheli, may I ask why the Council has not considered threatening to change banks because the Council banks with Barclays?  Were the Council to threaten to move to another bank and also ask other county councils to follow suit, it could be possible to persuade them not to close branches."

Response - Cabinet Member for Finance, Councillor Ioan Thomas

"I believe that it is true to say that each one of us is saddened when a bank branch is closes, but the number of visitors and users of these banks have reduced significantly. The Which company notes that 5,838 branches have closed since 2015. This is an average of 54 branches closing every month since 2015, and far more than 300 branches have closed in Wales since 2015.

The Council does not have an account with a specific branch of Barclays bank, it has a corporate agreement instead, and the agreement is in place until September of next year.  It will begin to negotiate for agreements and of course, other banks will be welcome to submit a price for their service to the Council.  However, I must note that only a very small number of banks deal with councils and authorities such as Gwynedd, and therefore it is possible that not many will apply for it, but this process will begin at the beginning of the year."

(2) Question from Councillor Dewi Jones

"What steps will Cyngor Gwynedd take following the publishing in August of the Bevan Foundation’s report on poverty in Arfon?"

Response - The Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for the Economy, Councillor Nia Jeffreys

"Thank you to the member and his fellow councillors for the work you do in Arfon from day to day.  I share the member's passion on this subject, and I also know that the Leader of the Council and every Cabinet Member also appreciate the importance of this subject. We have prioritised this work. We have invested in the work and it is taking place across all departments of the Council. The solutions for this are not always apparent, for example, the Finance Department, and I wish to thank them in particular for their innovative work in this field. Thank you again for raising the question and highlighting this matter at the Full Council. If any councillors have suggestions on what we could do in the field, please contact me, because, otherwise, why are we here as councillors or officers, if we cannot help the most vulnerable people in our society in Gwynedd?"

Supplementary Question from Councillor Dewi Jones

"At the brink of what will be another difficult winter for many, does the Deputy Leader agree with me that austerity has been a complete failure and that the British Government is guilty of driving some of the most vulnerable people in society  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

To submit the report of the Council Leader.

To approve and adopt Cyngor Gwynedd's Annual Performance Report and Self-Assessment 2022-23.

Submitted - the report of the Leader, Councillor Dyfrig Siencyn, asking the Council to approve and adopt the Annual Performance Report and Self-assessment 2022/23.

The Leader thanked the Council's Supporting Business Service Manager and the Team for their work in preparing the report. He then referred to the very difficult financial situation facing the Council, noting:-

·         It did not bode well for the councils’ settlement across Wales for the coming year, and although Cyngor Gwynedd was in a strong financial situation, and that we had taken pride over the years in the fact that we were effective in dealing with Council money, this Council would also have to make some very difficult decisions this time.

·         That most of the Council's money was spent on education, adults and children, namely those fields that nurtured the future of our children and care for the most vulnerable in our society, and if they wished to protect those services, where would the additional cuts come from?

All of the members were encouraged to attend one of the three savings workshops arranged for October.

The Leader then referred to some specific matters, noting:-

·         The reduction of 4,500 in Gwynedd's population, with 1,400 fewer households in the County (according to the figures of the last Census) was a cause for concern for him as this was having a direct impact on the £1.6m settlement. More-so, there were very significant economic considerations to a lower population, which placed greater importance on our work in seeking to develop the economy, attracting high quality jobs to the area and attracting young people back to Gwynedd.

·         The education system in Gwynedd was innovative and set the standard across the whole of Wales, e.g. the new immersion system, and he did not agree with the public criticism there had been of Gwynedd's education system.

·         The Article 4 Direction was one of the interventions the Council had in housing to seek to gain control of the influx of second homes and short-term lets that were damaging our communities and contributing to the depopulation seen in the Census.  Nevertheless, it was not believed that Article 4 would have as much of an impact as people believed, neither was it believed that it would be that effective in gaining control of second homes. It is acknowledged there is concern regarding Article 4, and the Council would look very carefully at those concerns when analysing the responses to the public consultation, seeking additional legal advice, if required, to ensure that we were going in the right direction. The work of analysing the outcomes of the consultation would take place from now to the end of the year, with a report submitted to the Community Scrutiny Committee early in the New Year.

·         There was a significant problem in terms of the intensive care provision across the county, and that the development in Penrhos was one of the excellent innovative schemes the Council had, jointly with the Health Board and the Clwyd Alyn Housing Association, to address  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

To submit the report of the Chair of the Governance and Audit Committee.

To accept the report.

Submitted - the Annual Report of the Governance and Audit Committee 2022/23.  In the absence of the Chair of the Committee, Mrs Sharon Warnes, due to ill-health, and also as it had not been possible for the Vice-chair, Mr Eifion Jones, or any of the other lay members to attend at short notice, the report was submitted by Councillor Paul Rawlinson, as an elected member of the Committee.

Councillor Paul Rowlinson noted that it was a pleasure to submit the Chair's first report, based on Welsh Government's statutory requirements, outlining how the Committee had considered the difficult factors the Council had faced over the period along with the Committee's observations on how the Council has responded firmly to those risks.

All the officers who had been supporting the Committee’s work in a thorough and professional manner were thanked and also both Elected and Lay Members for their key contribution to the Committee's work.

RESOLVED to accept the report.

To submit the report of the Monitoring Officer.

The adopt the amendments to the Consultation listed in the report submitted to the Council and the appendices relating to:

(i)            The Functions of the Full Council;

(ii)          Panel Performance Assessment;

(iii)         Timetable for Members' Questions; and

(iv)         Financial threshold for sealing contracts.

Submitted – the report of the Monitoring Officer inviting the Council to adopt a series of changes to the Constitution as listed in the report and its attachments, regarding:-

(i)         The Functions of the Full Council;

(ii)        Panel Performance Assessment;

(iii)      Timetable for Members' Questions; and the

(iv)      Financial threshold for sealing contracts.

Members were given an opportunity to make observations and ask questions. In response to questions from individual members regarding the Independent Panel that would assess the Council's performance, it was noted:-

·         That the guidelines referred to around 4-5 people on the Panel.  It had been given to understand that the Welsh Local Government Association gathered a pool of applicants with relatively substantial local government background (principal officers and members) that the Council would have to appoint a panel from, and the Panel would have and independent chair.

·         The process was not similar in any way to the local development plan process.  The Panel's recommendation would have to be submitted to the Governance and Audit Committee and to the Cabinet also, it seemed.  The Panel would not act as regulators, their roles would be to provide and opinion and present recommendations for the Council to consider and respond to.

RESOLVED to adopt the amendments to the Consultation as listed in the report submitted to the Council and the appendices relating to:

(i)        The Functions of the Full Council;

(ii)       Panel Performance Assessment;

(iii)      Timetable for Members' Questions; and the

(iv)      Financial threshold for sealing contracts.

In accordance with the Notice of Motion received under Section 4.19 of the Constitution, Councillor Gruffydd Williams will propose as follows:-

We note the increasing threats to farmers and the farming world from unelected super-national bodies that want to force them off their land.

This was seen at work recently in the Netherlands, Ireland and other places, and now the Welsh Government wants to transform 10% of agricultural land in Wales into forests.  This reduces our organic food supply once again even though nearly half the population here are living in poverty.

In light of all this, I call on Cyngor Gwynedd to commit to support the Welsh family farm that contributes so much to the Gwynedd economy, which is also a way of maintaining the unique linguistic and cultural identity of the county, and that Cyngor Gwynedd calls on the Welsh Government to reconsider the decision to transform 10% of agricultural land into forests.

That Cyngor Gwynedd commits to support the Welsh family farm that contributes so much to the Gwynedd economy, which is also a way of maintaining the unique linguistic and cultural identity of the county, and calls on the Welsh Government to reconsider its decision to insist that every agricultural unit has to assign 10% of their lands as forests.

Submitted - the following notice of motion by Councillor Gruffydd Williams, under Section 4.19 of the Constitution, and it was seconded:-

"We note the increasing threats to farmers and the farming world from unelected supra-national bodies that want to force them off their land.

This was seen at work recently in the Netherlands, Ireland and other places, and now the Welsh Government wants to transform 10% of agricultural land in Wales into woodland. This reduces our organic food supply once again even though nearly half the population here are living in poverty.

In light of all this, I call on Cyngor Gwynedd to commit to support the Welsh family farm that contributes so much to the Gwynedd economy, which is also a way of maintaining the unique linguistic and cultural identity of the county, and that Cyngor Gwynedd calls on the Welsh Government to reconsider the decision to transform 10% of agricultural land into woodland."

The member also noted that the reference to 'organic food supply' in the English translation of his motion should be corrected to read 'locally sourced food supply'.

An amendment to the proposal was proposed, as follows:

"That Cyngor Gwynedd commits to support the Welsh family farm that contributes so much to the Gwynedd economy, which is also a way of maintaining the unique linguistic and cultural identity of the county, and to call on the Welsh Government to reconsider its decision to insist that every agricultural unit has to assign 10% of their lands as forests."

The reasons for the decision were noted as follows:-

·         The two first paragraphs of the original motion referred to some sort of international conspiracy by supra-national bodies, and it was not believed that they were relevant to the motion at all, and therefore they should be deleted.

·         Having been given to understand by the farmers' unions that around 7.5% of land that was currently being farmed was woodland, that reaching 10% was not difficult work, but there was a need to be flexible in terms of the 10% as not all farms had land that was suitable for tree planting.

·         It was important to plant the right trees in the right place, and a blanket policy would make it difficult for farmers to implement.

·         As tenants would not be able to turn farming land into woodland without the landlord's approval, this could also be problematic.

·         It was therefore suggested that the Government should be asked to reconsider its decision to insist that every agricultural unit has to allocate 10% of its land as woodland.

The amendment was discussed. Support was expressed for the improvement by some members on grounds of:-

·         That the 2 first paragraphs linked the motion, which in essence was quite sensible, to some extreme right-wing Anglo-american conspiracy theories, which significantly weakened the seriousness of the remainder of the motion.  It would be repugnant for the Council to be associated in any way with the poisonous international politics that believes that we are controlled by undemocratic bodies,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 11.