Agenda, decisions and draft minutes

To receive any apologies for absence.

Apologies were received from:

·       Councillor Dyfrig Siencyn (Cyngor Gwynedd)  

·       Councillor Gary Pritchard (Anglesey County Council) with Councillor Robin Williams deputising

·       Iwan Evans (Monitoring Officer) 

·       Iwan Jones (Eryri National Park Authority)

To receive any declaration of Personal Interest.

None to note.

To note any items that are a matter of urgency in the view of the Chair for consideration.

None to note.

The Chair shall propose that the minutes of the previous meeting held on the 6^th of September, 2024 be signed as a true record.

The Chair signed the minutes of the previous meeting, held on 6 September 2024, as a true record.

Alwen Williams (Interim CJC Chief Executive) and Iwan Evans (Monitoring Officer) to present the report.

DECISION:  

1.     To accept the update, the progress made to prepare for the proposed transfer of the Growth Deal, its funding and the PMO into the CJC, but recognising the challenge and reasons outlined for delay, which will impact the current plans to transfer on 1 November, 2024.

2.     To direct that a further report be submitted on setting out a revised transfer date and supported by a comprehensive risk assessment and detailed plan.

The report was submitted by Alwen Williams, Interim Chief Executive of the CJC.

RESOLVED:

1.     To accept the update, the progress made to prepare for the proposed transfer of the Growth Deal, its funding and the PMO into the CJC, but recognising the challenge and reasons outlined for the delay, which will impact the current plans to transfer on 1 November 2024.

2.     To direct that a further report be submitted on setting out a revised transfer date and supported by a comprehensive risk assessment and detailed plan.

DISCUSSION

A summary of the report was provided which updated CJC members on the progress that had been made to establish the Corporate Joint Committee, which included the transfer of the Growth Deal, its funding and the Portfolio Management Office.

The CJC was reminded of the background and the original decision which was a decision in principle as legislation relating to the CJC continued to develop. It was noted that the work related to the programme plan to identify and mitigate potential risks that may affect the transfer on the 1 November continued. The key legal issues being developed as set out in part 5.2 of the report were mentioned before referring to the challenges that could cause delays.

It was acknowledged that significant progress had been made on most aspects of the project but that the process would take longer than expected and that contingency planning was underway to establish whether certain elements of the transfer could be achieved this year and which would transfer in 2025. It was reiterated that it was a complex change involving the transfer of people to a new corporate body and therefore there was a responsibility to ensure that that body was ready to receive the people and for the working arrangements to be adequate.

The Chair thanked the Interim Chief Executive of the CJC for the comprehensive progress report and thanked her for her patience in the effort to transfer the Growth Deal. It was reported that the Welsh Government was also working incredibly hard to meet the targets. It was hoped to be able to meet the target in terms of the date aimed for, but it was recognised that this could be challenging which was why a revised contingency transfer date was required.

It was noted that the report was clear and detailed the different concerns and various complexities involved in the process of establishing the Corporate Joint Committee.

Iwan Evans (Monitoring Officer) to present the report.

DECISION:  

To approve the appointment of the following co-optees (non-voting) to the Strategic Transport Sub-Committee of the CJC:

• Representative of the Eryri National Park

• Representative of Transport for Wales

The report was submitted by Claire Incledon (Solicitor and deputising for the Monitoring Officer).

RESOLVED to approve the appointment of the following co-opted members (without a vote) to the CJC's Strategic Transport Sub-committee:

• Representative of Eryri National Park

• Representative of Transport for Wales

DISCUSSION

The report was submitted stating that the first meeting of the CJC's Strategic Transport Sub-committee was held on 1 ⁠October. It was noted that this report required approval to appoint two co-opted members to the Sub-committee, namely the Eryri National Park Representative and the Transport for Wales Representative.

One error was highlighted in the report which recommended that the appointments would be effective for an initial period until 31 March 2025; it was noted that the correct period was until 31 March 2026.

There were no further questions or observations.

Alwen Williams (Interim CJC Chief Executive) to present the report.

DECISION:  

To accept and approve the IWBA Scoping Report, including technical appendices (available on request), which must be prepared in support of the RTP, as recommended by the Strategic Transport Sub-Committee.

The report was submitted by Alwen Williams, Interim Chief Executive of the CJC.

RESOLVED to accept and approve the IWBA Scoping Report, including the technical appendices (available on request), which must be prepared in support of the RTP, as recommended by the Strategic Transport Sub-committee.

DISCUSSION

The report was submitted which presented the work to develop an Integrated Well-being Appraisal Scoping Report (IWBA) required so that the Regional Transport Plan enabled the CJC to fulfil its statutory duties.

It was noted that the Corporate Joint Committee was required to produce a Regional Transport Plan and a Regional Transport Delivery Plan by 31 March 2025. It was reported that the IWBA was a crucial step in the road map plan and that the Strategic Transport Sub-committee in its meeting on 1 October had adopted the IWBA Scoping report and recommended that the CJC approve the steps to take the work forward to the scoping consultation phase.

The background and relevant considerations were provided as set out in part 4 of the report. It was highlighted that technical appendices were available on request, it was noted that they were not included with the report.

The Interim Chief Executive of the CJC was thanked for the report.

Alwen Williams (Interim CJC Chief Executive), Ian Bancroft (Chief Executive, Wrexham County Borough Council) and Neal Cockerton (Chief Executive, Flintshire County Council) to present the report.

DECISION:  

To accept the report.

The report was submitted by Alwen Williams, Interim Chief Executive of the CJC.

RESOLVED to accept the report.

DISCUSSION

The report was a joint one between the Chief Executive of Wrexham County Borough Council, the Chief Executive of Flintshire County Council and the Interim Chief Executive of the CJC. It was reported that the purpose of the report was to provide the latest information on the progress of the new Investment Zone in Flintshire and Wrexham which focused on Advanced Manufacturing. It was highlighted that the Investment Zone focused on investments in Flintshire and Wrexham but was expected to have wider beneficial impacts across the north.

It was reported that good progress was being made on the development of Porth 2 and that the draft Porth 2 document had been prepared for formal review by the Government. It was noted that Porth 3 would follow at the end of November once Porth 2 had been approved.

It was noted that the report provided an overview of proposed Tax Sites and clarified that the Investment Zone could have three Tax Sites, up to 200ha each. Reference was made to part 5 of the report detailing the Tax Sites and their benefits, noting that there was potential to support more than 6,400 new jobs. It was noted that a further report with more details and a summary of the opportunity would follow once further work had been undertaken.

The delivery structure and resources of the Investment Zone Team were mentioned, and reference made to the example of the proposed team structure set out in part 9.4 of the report.

The Interim Chief Executive of the CJC was thanked for the update and presentation, noting that the report was comprehensive. Thanks were also expressed to the two Local Authorities working together, noting that this was an important element and gratitude was expressed to the authors of the report.

It was stated that the work seemed to be moving forward quickly and pride was expressed in what had been achieved to date. It was believed that there was good interaction with the Welsh Government and the UK Government to drive the plan forward, this was identified as being both positive and necessary.

It was a pleasure to see that the Warren Hall site was included in the report and there was delight that something was now being done here. The development was declared an exciting piece of work; it was noted that the aspect of job creation and the aspects of economic growth were huge and something to be proud of.