Agenda, decisions and draft minutes

To receive any apologies for absence.

Apologies were received from:-

·         Angela Jones (Eryri National Park) with Keira Sweenie deputising

·         Emlyn Jones (Denbighshire Council) with Mike Jones deputising

·         Iwan Evans (Monitoring Officer)

To receive any declarations of personal interest.

There were no declarations of personal interest.

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

No urgent matters were raised.

The Chair shall propose that the minutes of the meeting held on 6 October 2025 be signed as a true record.

The Chair signed the minutes of the previous meeting held on 6 October 2025 as a true record.

Transport for Wales to present.

An update on bus franchising was presented by Lee Robinson (Transport for Wales).

Network North Wales to present.

An update on the North Wales Network was presented by Anthony McKenna (North Wales Network).

Transport for Wales to present.

It was decided to defer the update on the T-Network Advisory Panels by Transport for Wales.

Claire Incledon, Deputy Monitoring Officer (interim), to present the report.

To recommend the following changes to the Terms of Reference for the CJC:

• That the requirement to produce a quarterly progress report is replaced with bi-annual reporting.

• That the sub-committee have the delegated power to consider and make recommendations to the CJC on regional transport funding and scheme commitments.

It was highlighted that the terms of reference stated that the Sub-Committee must review its terms of reference annually, and that any amendments must be recommended to, and approved by, the Corporate Joint Committee.

It was explained that the terms of reference included powers delegated to the Sub-Committee, and that the Sub-Committee must apply those rules and procedures as adopted in their terms of reference.

The context was provided for the first recommendation. It was noted that the strategic nature of the Sub-Committee's role was to review and make recommendations on policy development on a regional basis. To monitor this progress, the Sub-Committee provided performance and management reports to the CJC in the form of quarterly reports, which included regular updates on resource management and policy development.

It was explained that officers were of the view that the requirement to produce a quarterly report under the current terms of reference created a great deal of work within a short period of time, and therefore felt that it undermined its purpose as the Sub-Committee only met quarterly. Members were asked to consider the option to revise the terms of reference, where they adopted six-month reporting as a more sustainable way of reporting on performance and progress to the CJC.

It was explained that the second recommendation related to the recent delivery of the Regional Transport Plan, which included new ways of working through the modernisation of grants. It was noted that the Regional Transport Fund supported the development of the programme of plans to deliver the Regional Transport Delivery Plan by prioritising plans and grant funding.

Furthermore, it was explained that the current role of the Sub-Committee was to make recommendations on Regional Transport plans and policies. It was highlighted that the work of the Sub-Committee during the first transitional year of grant programming had shown a gap in the functions of the Sub-Committee. It was explained that while the Sub-Committee Members were involved in the process of prioritising schemes and allocating grants, the Sub-Committee had no powers to make recommendations to the Corporate Joint Committee. Members were asked to consider amending the terms of reference to include the power to make recommendations to the CJC on funding and scheme commitments.

The officers were thanked for their work, and the importance of revising the terms of reference was highlighted so that the Sub-Committee could make recommendations to the CJC. It was noted that any recommendations would have to be reported and approved by the CJC at the meeting on 23 January.

Claire Incledon, Deputy Monitoring Officer (interim) to present the report.

It was reported on any conclusions and recommendations deriving from the self-assessment to the CJC.

Members were reminded that the work of the Sub-Committee had commenced in October 2024 and since then extensive work had been carried out including the review of the Regional Transport Plan, the Regional Transport Delivery plan, and related policy approval documents.

It was elaborated that, alongside its work, the Sub-Committee had benefited from face-to-face networking events and informal sessions with updates and presentations on national and regional transport initiatives and proposals.

Members were reminded that the membership of the Sub-Committee consisted of executive officers from each local authority, and that there had been many changes in the membership of the Sub-Committee in the last year.

It was noted that the Sub-Committee was required to complete an annual self-assessment of its activities, and as part of this work, Members were asked to consider whether they had received appropriate and adequate support to carry out their role, and whether the Sub-Committee's annual work plan was viable. It was highlighted that this had been an opportunity to assess the activities of the Sub-Committee in particular. Members were thanked for their engagement.

It was further noted that the questionnaire asked about the work of the Sub-Committee, and whether Members felt they were being supported from the point of being co-opted to their time and work on the Sub-Committee. It was reported that feedback from Members was positive, and that the Sub-Committee was properly fulfilling its role with the forward work plan, agendas, and sharing information.

The officers were thanked for their time preparing the report.

Adam Graham, Senior Transport Officer to present the report.

To note the Commitments Register and the covering report.

It was highlighted that the Regional Transport Plan covered a broad scope of policies and was supported by the Regional Transport Delivery Plan.

It was explained that some policies and aspirations did not fit within the remit that local authorities were developing through the Regional Transport Delivery Plan, and that these would be provided as an update to members. It was added that matters such as how Ambition North Wales worked with the Welsh Government on strategic road networks and policies, and other projects such as the Hydrogen Centre in Holyhead, were included. It was noted that the aim was for this document to be a live document that will be updated regularly.

It was agreed that regular updates would be provided to the Sub-Committee every six months.