1. A-Z of Services
  2. A
  3. B
  4. C
  5. D
  6. E
  7. F
  8. G
  9. H
  10. I
  11. J
  12. K
  13. L
  14. M
  15. N
  16. O
  17. P
  18. Q
  19. R
  20. S
  21. T
  22. U
  23. V
  24. W
  25. X
  26. Y
  27. Z

Agenda and minutes

Venue: Council Chambers - Civic Centre. View directions

Contact: Eleanor Mulligan  Head of Democratic Services

Media

Items
No. Item

1.

Preliminaries

      i.        To receive any apologies for absence.

     ii.        To receive any declarations of interest.

    iii.        To receive any announcements by the Mayor.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

i)          To receive any apologies for absence

 

The Monitoring Officer reported apologies for absence.

 

ii)         To receive any declarations of interest

 

Councillor Rahman declared a non-prejudicial interest in item 5: Cardiff Capital Region City Deal Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee as the proposed nominee for the Committee.

 

iii)        To receive any announcements by the Mayor

 

RSPCA Award

 

The Mayor led the Council in offering its congratulations to colleagues who achieved an award in the Community Animal Welfare Footprint Awards for 2018, winning gold in the Stray Dog Category.  This award scheme was run by RSPCA Cymru and recognised councils, housing associations and other public sector organisations that go above and beyond basic requirements to ensure higher welfare standards for animals in the services they provide. 

2.

Minutes pdf icon PDF 303 KB

To confirm and sign the minutes of the last meeting.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The following correction was highlighted:

 

-       Under item 12: Questions to the Leader of the Council: University Provision: “with only a fraction of USW’s 20,000 students now coming to Newport”.

 

The minutes of the meeting held on 24 July were approved as a true record subject to the correction above. 

3.

"Anti Social Bob" Film

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Council watched the “Anti-Social Bob” film produced by our Youth Offending Service.

 

The Leader of the Council thanked the officers for attending and showing the film, and for their continued hard work in this important area. 

4.

Police Issues

30 minutes is allocated for questions to the Gwent Police representative.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Chief Inspector Richard Blakemore provided an update on current local policing priorities before inviting questions from Members.

 

-       Responding to queries about parking, the Chief Inspector confirmed that colleagues would respond to reports of dangerous parking, and would link in with neighbourhood teams to examine problem hotspots reported. 

-       The Chief Inspector agreed to provide further information on the enforcement of the PSPO in the city centre.

-       Thanks were noted for actions taken recently in the wards, including at Black Ash Park.

-       The Chief Inspector agreed to provide further information on the causes of the recent RTA in Caerleon.

-       The Chief Inspector agreed to pass on details of the reported grave thefts at Bassaleg Cemetery.

-       Responding to a question about austerity measures, the Chief Inspector reported on the approach of Gwent Police in protecting the neighbourhood policing model.

-       The Chief Inspector agreed to follow up on concerns raised about

o   last minute cancelled meetings

o   traffic volume in Rogerstone

o   101 call costs

o   Allocations of officers in specific wards

5.

Cardiff Capital Region City Deal Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee pdf icon PDF 177 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Leader of the Council presented a report asking Council to formally endorse the establishment of the Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee (JOSC) for the Cardiff Capital Region City Deal (CCRCD).

 

The Cardiff Capital Region Joint Working Agreement states that Councils shall work together to create and agree terms of reference for, to the extent permissible by law, a Joint Audit Committee and a Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee and how the same will be resourced and funded.

 

This report is being presented to all 10 partner councils within the city deal, detailing the draft terms of reference for the JOSC, and asking each Council to formally endorse the creation of this committee and nominate its representative.

 

In discussing the report, Members queried the nomination process for this body and whether the nominee had the appropriate skill set to carry out this role.  It was confirmed that this had been discussed previously at the Performance Scrutiny Committee – Partnerships, and it was considered that the nominee had the appropriate skills to carry out the role. 

 

It was

 

Resolved

 

1.         To formally endorse the establishment of a Cardiff Capital Region City Deal – Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee (CCRCD JOSC);

 

2.         To agree that the necessary additions be made to the Council’s constitution to incorporate the CCRCD JOSC; and

 

3.         To recommend that the Chair of the Performance Scrutiny Committee – Partnerships be nominated as this Council’s non-executive representative on the CCRCD JOSC.

 

6.

Appointments pdf icon PDF 163 KB

To consider any proposed appointments.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

To approve the following nominations:

 

Internal Appointments

 

Committee

No. of Vacancies / Replacements

Nominations Received

Performance Scrutiny Committee – People

1 replacement

Cllr Ken Critchley to replace Cllr Tracey Holyoake

Planning Committee

1 replacement

Cllr David Fouweather to replace Cllr Ray Mogford

 

Appointments to External Organisations

 

Organisation

No. of Vacancies / Replacements

Nominations Received

Cardiff Capital Region City Deal Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee

1 vacancy

Cllr Majid Rahman as Chair of the Performance Scrutiny Committee - Partnerships

 

Governing Body Appointments

 

Governing Body

No. of Vacancies / Re-appointments

Nominations Received

Llanwern High School

1 reappointment

Cllr Mark Spencer

St Julians School

2 reappointments

Cllr Deb Davies and Cllr Phil Hourahine

St Mary’s RC Primary School

1 appointment

Nicholas Clark

Ysgol Bryn Derw

1 appointment

Nathan Kethro

 

Also to note the following additional governors appointed by the Chief Education Officer:

 

-       Angela Lloyd appointed to Llanwern High

-       Anne Drewett and Emma Johnson appointed to Maesglas Primary

 

 

7.

Treasury Management pdf icon PDF 423 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Leader of the Council presented the treasury management report covering the 2017/18 financial year. 

 

In line with the agreed Treasury Management Strategy, the Council continued to be both a short term investor of cash and borrower to manage day-to-day cash flows.  Current forecasts indicated that in the future, temporary borrowing would continue to be required to fund normal day to day cash flow activities.  

                       

The first half of the year saw the successful sale of the Friars Walk development which allowed borrowing which had been undertaken in relation to the loan provided to Queensberry Newport Ltd to be repaid.  All borrowing in relation to this development were now fully repaid, and this had meant that loan borrowing for the year had fallen from £209.2m to £147.5m during the year.

                       

All borrowing and investments undertaken during the year were expected and within the Council’s agreed limits for 2017/18.

 

The report had been through both Audit Committee and Cabinet for noting and to provide comments to the Council.  Minutes from both of the meetings were available and both endorsed the report to go to Council for approval.

 

It was unanimously

 

Resolved

 

1.         To note the Annual Report on Treasury Management for the Financial Year 2017/18.

 

2.         To note and approve that 2017/18 Prudential Indicators for Treasury Management were in line with those set by Council in March 2018.

 

8.

Welsh Language Annual Report pdf icon PDF 259 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Deputy Leader presented the report asking Council to approve the annual Welsh Language monitoring report for 2017/18.

 

The Council was required to report annually on its progress in complying with the Welsh Language Standards under the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011.

 

This report covered the second year of implementation, following the imposition of the majority of Welsh language standards in March 2016. The report which had previously been received by Cabinet provides an overview of the Council’s progress in meeting the Welsh Language Standards.

 

The following points were raised in relation to this report:

 

-       Concerns over expenditure on Welsh Language Standards in light of other budget pressures.

-       Queries over the publication of the Welsh in Education Strategic Plan.

-       Concerns that bilingual communication could be confusing.

-       Confirmation that the Welsh Language Standards were legal requirements with which the Council had to comply.

 

It was

 

Resolved

 

To approve the attached final monitoring report and publish it on the Council’s website, in accordance with statutory deadlines. 

9.

Strategic Equality Annual Report pdf icon PDF 249 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Deputy Leader of the Council presented the Annual Report for 2017-18 on the Strategic Equalities Plan. 

 

Under the Equality Act (2010) the Council was required to report annually on the progress made against the nine Strategic Equality Objectives contained within the Strategic Equality Plan. The Equality Act also required local authorities to publish staff equalities data, which this report also contained.

 

It was

 

Resolved

 

To approve the attached annual report and publish it on the Council’s website, in accordance with statutory deadlines.

10.

Overview and Scrutiny Annual Report pdf icon PDF 320 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chair of the Performance Scrutiny Committee – Partnerships presented the Overview and Scrutiny Annual Report to Council, as required by the Council’s constitution.  As well as providing a commentary on scrutiny activity in the past year, the report was structure to review performance on the targets set last September, and agree the priorities for the next 12 months which would be used as the basis for the performance review next year. 

 

In discussing the report, it was commented how much scrutiny had improved in recent years.

 

It was unanimously

 

Resolved

 

To agree the content of the annual report as a basis for the work of the Scrutiny Committees in the coming year. 

11.

Democratic Services Committee Annual Report pdf icon PDF 321 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chair of the Democratic Services Committee presented the Annual Report of the Democratic Services Committee to Council.  This was a requirement of the Local Government (Wales) Measure 2011.  The report included the annual report of the Committee, as well as the annual report of the Head of Democratic Services on the adequacy of staff to support members.  Both reports had been considered and approved by the Democratic Services Committee at its meeting on 24 May 2018.

 

It was unanimously

 

Resolved

 

To receive the Committee’s annual report to the Council in order to meet the requirements of the Local Government Measure. 

 

To note the content of the Head of Democratic Services Annual Report, as supporting evidence that the Committee has carried out its responsibility to review the adequacy of staff to support members.

12.

Mayoralty Protocol pdf icon PDF 233 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chair of the Democratic Services Committee presented proposals to revise the protocol for deferring nominations to the Mayoralty, as recommended by the Democratic Services Committee. 

 

In February 2017, the Committee had reviewed and recommended a new protocol to manage deferrals of nominations for the office of Mayor.  This protocol was first put into practice at the Council meeting in January 2018, when it was requested that the protocol be referred back to the Committee for further consideration.  This further review took place at the Committee’s meeting in May 2018 when it was agreed to recommended a revised protocol to Council. 

 

It was unanimously

 

Resolved

 

To agree the revised protocol for deferrals of mayoral nominations.

13.

Questions to the Leader of the Council

To provide an opportunity for Councillors to ask questions to the Leader of the Council in accordance with the Council’s Standing Orders.

 

Process:

 

No more than 15 minutes will be allocated at the Council meeting for questions to the Leader of the Council.

 

The question must be addressed through the Mayor or the person presiding at the meeting and not directly to the person being questioned.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Leader’s Announcements

 

In response to the first question from the Mayor, the leader made the following announcements:

 

-       The success of the recent Tour of Britain stage which visited the city, and the unveiling of the newly renamed Geraint Thomas National Velodrome of Wales.

-       The attendance of the Mayor at the closing ceremony of the British Transplant Games in Birmingham, ahead of Newport hosting the event next year. 

-       Congratulations to all pupils for excellent exam results and school attendance records.

-       The appointment of the new Chair of the Newport Fairness Commission, Dr Gideon Calder.

 

Parking Charges at Belle Vue Park

 

Councillor Matthew Evans raised concerns about the impact of introducing parking charges at Belle Vue Park, asking how this linked with the Council’s wellbeing objectives.

 

The Leader responded by outlining the difficult financial position faced by the Council, where every aspect of expenditure had to be looked at to meet the shortfall in funding, and difficult decisions had to be made to balance the books. 

 

In response to Councillor Evans’ supplementary question about links with the wellbeing objectives, the Leader confirmed that the wellbeing objectives were at the heart of decision making but reiterated the challenge faced in setting a balanced budget, and that these decisions were not made lightly. 

 

Usk Barrage

 

In response to Councillor Evans’ request to reinvigorate the Usk Barrage proposals, the Leader agreed to follow up on the suggestion to look into this idea further in light of new technologies available. 

 

Deep Cleaning

 

Councillor Townsend complimented the positive impact of deep cleaning undertaken in preparation for the Tour of Britain and the Newport Marathon.  The Leader agreed to look into the suggestion to extend this to district shopping areas, whilst also noting the limited resources available.

 

Civil Parking Enforcement Progress

 

In response to Councillor Hughes’ question about civil parking enforcement progress, the Leader confirmed that the draft application had been approved, and City Services were ready to submit this to Welsh Government.  It was confirmed that back office support would be provided on a regional footprint and those arrangements were progressing well.  Implementation was planned to be completed in Autumn 2019 at the latest.

 

Congestion Charge

 

Councillor Fouweather asked for assurances that there were no plans to introduce a congestion charge in Newport for the full term of this Council, and only to introduce a charge if this was a clear commitment in the manifesto.  Councillor Fouweather’s supplementary question outlined the concerns about introducing such a charge.  The Leader responded to both questions that she would not be drawn by the opposition to rule anything in or out.

 

 

14.

Questions to the Cabinet Members

To provide an opportunity to pose questions to Cabinet Members in line with Standing Orders.

 

Process:

 

No more than 10 minutes will be allocated at the Council meeting for questions to each Cabinet Member.

 

Members must submit their proposed questions in writing in advance in accordance with Standing Orders.  If members are unable to ask their question orally within the allocated time, remaining questions will be answered in writing.  The question and response will be appended to the minutes.

 

The question must be addressed through the Mayor or the person presiding at the meeting and not directly to the person being questioned.

 

Questions will be posed to Cabinet Members in the following order:

 

      i.        Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Assets and Member Development

     ii.        Cabinet Member for Education and Skills

    iii.        Cabinet Member for Social Services

   iv.        Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Housing

    v.        Cabinet Member for Community and Resources

   vi.        Cabinet Member for Streetscene

  vii.        Cabinet Member for Licensing and Regulation

 viii.        Cabinet Member for Culture and Leisure

 

For information:  A digest of recent decision schedules issued by Cabinet, Cabinet Members and Minutes of recent meetings of Committees has been circulated electronically to all Members of the Council.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

There were no questions for the Cabinet Members.

15.

Questions to the Chairs of Committees

To provide an opportunity to pose questions to the Chairs of the Committees in line with Standing Orders.

 

Process:

 

No more than 10 minutes will be allocated at the Council meeting for questions to each Chair.

 

Members must submit their proposed questions in writing in advance in accordance with Standing Orders.  If members are unable to ask their question orally within the allocated time, remaining questions will be answered in writing.  The question and response will be appended to the minutes.

 

The question must be addressed through the Mayor or the person presiding at the meeting and not directly to the person being questioned.

 

Questions will be posed to Committee Chairs in the following order:

 

      i.        Scrutiny Committees

a.    Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee

b.    Performance Scrutiny Committee – People

c.    Performance Scrutiny Committee – Place and Corporate

d.    Performance Scrutiny Committee – Partnerships

     ii.        Planning Committee

    iii.        Licensing Committee

   iv.        Democratic Services Committee

 

For information:  A digest of recent decision schedules issued by Cabinet, Cabinet Members and Minutes of recent meetings of Committees has been circulated electronically to all Members of the Council.

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

There were no questions for the Committee Chairs.