Agenda, decisions and minutes

The Cabinet Members and Officers were welcomed to the meeting.

An apology was received from Councillor  Craig ab Iago and Dafydd Wyn Williams (Head of Regulatory Department).

No declarations of personal interest were received.

There were no urgent items.

There were no matters arising from overview and scrutiny. 

The Chair accepted the minutes of the meeting held on 30 November 2021 as a true record.

To approve one-off resources for two years, namely £193,217 in 2022/23 and £155,990 in 2023/24 from the COVID Recovery Fund towards the Supporting People Programme

The item was presented by Cllr. Dafydd Meurig

RESOLVED

To approve one-off resources for two years, namely £193,217 in 2022/23 and £155,990 in 2023/24 from the COVID Recovery Fund towards the Supporting People Programme.

DISCUSSION

The report was submitted, noting that this was a one-off bid for funding to support the Supporting People cross-departmental programme. It was noted that the past two years of the Covid-19 crisis had been difficult and had highlighted how vulnerable some residents of Gwynedd were.

It was explained that over the past two years, the programme had dealt with matters involving fuel poverty and homelessness, but that the work being undertaken now needed to be formalised. It was noted that the programme was in place and attention was drawn to the schemes that would be prioritised such as food poverty, fuel poverty and digital inclusion.

The Corporate Director added that the report outlined the work which had been done cross-departmentally and with partners. Gratitude was expressed about the joint-working which had led to creating a programme which would make a difference in the short-term to the residents of Gwynedd. It was noted that the programme would do everything within the Council's ability to support residents whilst working on long-term schemes. 

The Assistant Head - Supporting Families noted that the report summarised what had been possible to provide during the crisis. It was noted that, with the recovery period following the pandemic and an increase in the demand, there was a need for investment to ensure support for everyone. Gratitude was also expressed regarding the community efforts together with the work of the third sector over the past two years.

Observations arising from the discussion

¾     The report was supported, and thanks were given to the partners and the departments for working together on this programme. It was noted that poverty led to a detrimental impact on children and the need to support families that would come into the benefits system for the first time was noted.

¾     It was expressed that the situation was unusual, on the one hand taking pride in the fact that the Council was able to support residents but on the other hand the shame of living in a country with a Government which pushed individuals to having to use food banks in order to sustain their families.

¾     The food poverty projects were referred to and it was asked whether there were opportunities in terms of tackling food waste together with growing food in the community. It was proposed that this aspect of the programme could be renamed from food poverty to food resilience or Ensuring Food for All.

¾     It was highlighted that poverty was not a recent problem in Gwynedd and that it had been a problem for many years. It was stated that this funding was for a two-year period and it was also stated that poverty would not have disappeared by the end of this period. It was stressed that there was a need to address  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

Agreed in principle to transfer the functions of the North Wales Economic Ambition Board via a delegation agreement to the North Wales Corporate Joint Committee, subject to the following;

a)    that the statutory framework under development by Welsh Government allows for the delegations of the relevant operational functions to a Corporate Joint Committee,

b)    that the North Wales Corporate Joint Committee agrees to establish a Sub-committee, with membership to be agreed with the Councils, to achieve the functions of the Economic Ambition Board.

This transfer was proposed in order to deliver a simpler governance model, and avoid duplication. A further detailed report on the framework for action would be submitted to a subsequent meeting of the Cabinet.

The item was presented by Cllr. Dyfrig Siencyn

RESOLVED

Agreed in principle to transfer the functions of the North Wales Economic Ambition Board via a delegation agreement to the North Wales Corporate Joint Committee, subject to;

a.    the statutory framework under development by Welsh Government allows for the delegations of the relevant operational functions to a Corporate Joint Committee,

b.    that the North Wales Corporate Joint Committee agrees to establish a Sub-committee, with membership to be agreed with the Councils, to achieve the functions of the Economic Ambition Board.

This transfer was proposed in order to deliver a simpler governance model, and avoid duplication. A further detailed report on the framework for action would be submitted to a subsequent meeting of the Cabinet.

DISCUSSION

The report was submitted noting that the North Wales Corporate Joint Committee had now been established under Welsh Government legislation. It was noted that the six counties of North Wales were now required to establish the Corporate Joint-Committee to discuss planning and transportation matters, and that discussing Economic well-being was optional. It was explained that this report requests the transfer of the North Wales Economic Ambition Board functions to the North Wales Corporate Joint-Committee.

The Head of Finance, who had been commissioned to co-ordinate the work of establishing the Joint-Committee, guided the members through the presentation and highlighted the main points.  He emphasised that as the legislation was now in place, there was a need to make the appropriate arrangements to hold the first meeting of the Joint-Committee before the end of January in order adopt the budget for 2022/23. Nevertheless, it was noted that the initial functions of the Joint-Committee would not commence until the end of June 2022.

It was explained that there was a legal duty to deal with planning matters, together with transportation, and that there was an optional power to deal with economic well-being which was currently being dealt with through the Economic Ambition Board. It was noted that the legal requirement and duties were immediate and there was an urgency to proceed. It was emphasised that much good work had been done regionally and that the work of establishing principles had already been done. The need to avoid duplicating discussions, keeping costs down whilst seeking to ensure that decisions were made as close as appropriately possible to the people was highlighted. 

It was noted that the initial functions of the Joint-Committee included preparing and amending a Strategic Development Plan together with developing a regional transportation scheme. It was stressed that the Economic Ambition Board had been doing good work and that transferring it to the Joint-Committee would avoid duplication and would simplify the arrangements. It was noted that work would need to be done on specific field before making the full decision.

In terms of governance, it was noted that the Sub-committees would do the heavy lifting in terms of the Corporate Joint-Committee and that an Audit Sub-committee and a Standards Committee would be needed. It was explained that the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

To accept and note the information in the report.

The report was submitted by Cllr. Catrin Wager.

RESOLVED

To accept and note the information in the report.

DISCUSSION

The report was submitted noting that it considered two departments, starting with the Highways and Municipal Department. Attention was drawn to the Clean and Tidy Communities project highlighting that this exciting project was one of the Council's priorities. It was stressed that there was a need to work with communities to ensure that areas looked clean and tidy. It was added that, during the previous Cabinet meeting, and investment was made in the teams to lead on this work.

It was noted that the work of de-carbonising the fleet continued and that two electric bin collection vehicles would arrive before the end of the year. It was added that a grant of £300,000 has been received in order to invest in large vehicle charging points within the Council's locations.

The Playing Fields scheme was highlighted, emphasising that Playing Fields had an important role within society. It was explained that the department would re-commence the scheme of contacting Community Council or community groups in order to give them an opportunity to look after and run the children's playing fields. It was noted that the department would submit a bid to the transformation fund to build on the work undertaken until March 2020.

In terms of the performance of the Highways Department, it was noted that there had been a reduction in the recycling rates across the county. The need to remind individuals to recycle was outlined, and that the service would continue over the Christmas period. It was noted that there had been and overspend in the Waste field and that this was a result of grant uncertainty, and it was explained that the department had commissioned reviews by WRAP to look in detail at the service and it was hoped to be able to report to the Cabinet shortly.

It was noted that the main priority of the Gwynedd Consultancy department was Managing Flood Risks in order to keep the residents of Gwynedd safe. Attention was drawn to the Wnion scheme in the Meirionnydd area where the department was collaborating with Snowdonia National Park and neighbouring farms to see how it could be possible to prevent flooding through natural control methods and promoting biodiversity in doing so.

A budgetary concern was highlighted within the Consultancy department as the income figure had reduced after Welsh Government had withdrawn from the Llanbedr By-pass scheme. Despite this, it was stated that the staff were busy seeking to recover the income through alternative schemes.

Observations arising from the discussion

¾     The report was welcomed and it was asked with the Wnion scheme in the Dolgellau area whether discussions would be held with the Local Members. It was noted that local discussions would be arranged in January.

¾  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

To accept and note the information in the report.

The report was submitted by Cllr Gareth Griffith  

DECISION

To accept and note the information in the report.

DISCUSSION

The report was submitted noting that this was the department's second report under the new regime. It was explained that, in September, the department's situation was quite bleak, specifically the Public Protection Service. It was noted that the situation across the department had improved and that several bids for funding had been made in order to improve the department's situation. It was noted that the problem of appointing staff to the Public Protection Service had been highlighted nationally and that the department was looking at how to deal with this.

Observations arising from the discussion

¾     It was noted that, having been a part of the Performance Challenging Meeting, the report was a fair reflection of the department's performance. It was noted that the department had been under considerable pressure as a result of the pandemic, but that several services had improved in recent months.

¾     It was explained that there was a lack of detail about the savings situation within the department, but that it had been under increasing pressure.

¾     In terms of the Test, Trace and Protect service, it was asked whether there had been a recruitment problem as staff were appointed via another county. It was noted that the staff had been working extremely hard over the past year, but that the public's attitude towards them had changed in recent months. Nevertheless, with changes in the way the team worked, it had been easier for them to receive the information from individuals.

To approve the Forward Work Programme included with the meeting papers. 

The report was submitted by Cllr Dyfrig Siencyn  

DECISION

To approve the Forward Work Programme included with the meeting papers. 

Before closing the meeting, the Chair noted his thanks and appreciation of Gareth Williams, who had been a democracy correspondent in recent years and who was leaving his post at the end of the week.

It was noted that Welsh Government had started to release information about the settlement and it was explained that the settlement was better that had been seen over the past decade. It was noted that this highlighted the appreciation of Central Government of the work undertaken by Local Government during the pandemic.