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.
Minutes:
Before Commencement with questions, the Leader made the following announcements to Council:
The Leader offered her condolences to those who had families in Libya who were victims of the recent flooding.
Pride in the Port
I’d like to start by saying how fantastic it was to see so many people supporting the second Pride in the Port weekend at the start of this month.
The whole weekend, from the parade and festival to the fringe events, was a wonderful celebration of our LGBTQIA+ community.
I spoke to many people who were so happy to be able to experience this event, and importantly felt they were able to be their authentic selves. Inclusivity and acceptance are vital aspects of our city’s character where everyone feels welcomed and embraced for who they are. It shows why events like this matter, and I’m already looking forward to next year’s celebrations.
Food Festival
There is just over two weeks to go until the Newport Food Festival returns to the city centre, and I’m delighted that this year’s event will be bigger than ever, taking place over three days instead of one.
The festival has become established as one of the highlights of Newport’s events calendar, and we’re sure that this year’s programme will prove popular with residents, visitors, and businesses alike.
The festival kicks off with a supper event on the evening of Friday 13 October at the Mercure Hotel’s NP20 Bar and Kitchen.
The festival’s patron chef, Hywel Jones, will be taking diners on a culinary exploration of fabulous Welsh, Georgian and German cuisine, to celebrate Newport’s links with our twin cities of Kutaisi and Heidenheim.
Tickets for the supper are on sale and can be booked through the food festival website.
Saturday will see the traditional food market set up in the city centre, with street entertainment, chef demonstrations in Newport Market, a vegan and vegetarian village in John Frost Square, and the return of the final of the Teen Chef competition.
Finally, on the Sunday there will be a new event for the festival, with live music and street food vendors taking over High Street.
We have worked closely with local bars Le Pub, McCanns, and Madame JoJo to put together a fabulous line-up of entertainment for the Sunday event, which we are sure is going to be a popular addition to the festival programme.
The Leader added that the impact on the local economy should not be underestimated and encouraged residents to attend the festival.
I am pleased to confirm that the final set of restoration works at the historic Newport Market Arcade are now underway.
The restoration project, which began back in 2018, has seen the council transform the once declining arcade into a vibrant and viable commercial attraction within the city centre.
This phase of the work will see internal refurbishments to several of the units in the arcade, as well as the remaining external refurbishments.
The transformation of the Market Arcade would not have been possible without the generous support of the National Lottery Heritage Fund, CADW and Welsh Government’s Transforming Towns fund.
Plaques have been installed at either end of the arcade and the ongoing support allows us to run activities and events in our pop-up heritage centre in Unit 14 and to manage and maintain the site in future years.
Business Grants
We have also just announced further good news for our businesses and economy with a new business grant scheme.
For several years, the council has given grants to small and medium-sized businesses in the city to help with start-up and other costs and this is continuing.
Thanks to funding from the UK government’s Shared Prosperity Fund, as part of its levelling up agenda, we are now able to offer grants of between £25,000 and £75,000 towards capital investment.
We know businesses have faced many challenges in recent years and so we want to continue to offer support whenever and however we can. The accelerated growth programme is aimed at well-established or new companies to set up premises, or for existing city businesses to accelerate their plans for growth.
Potential applicants are invited to get in touch with the Council’s business services team who can talk them through the process and assess their eligibility.
Dogs Home
I am delighted to report that Newport City Dogs Home won gold in two categories at the 2023 RSPCA Cymru PawPrint Awards for their work with stray dogs.
This is the twelfth year that the team has been recognised with a gold award in the stray dog category for their hard work looking after the dogs in their care. They also won a second gold award for their work with kennelling stray dogs.
I’m sure you will join me in congratulating the team on the wonderful work they are doing.
Graffiti Wall
I was pleased to be part of the recent unveiling of a new graffiti wall in Glebelands Park.
The dedicated space gives artists a place to display their works, whilst bringing a splash of colour to the area, and is already proving popular.
The designation of a legal graffiti space aims to encourage innovation and creativity in a safe environment, while reducing the level of graffiti in unauthorised areas.
Thank you to the ward councillors in St Julian’s and Councillor Yvonne Forsey, Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Biodiversity, who have worked in partnership with Welsh Government and the South Wales Trunk Road Agency who helped to bring this project to life.
Digital Strategy
The council has recently published its new digital strategy that defines the digital aspirations for the city over the next five years and sets out how the council will use technology to transform the delivery of its services.
It will support and improve the wellbeing of residents and employees, as well as enabling businesses to thrive in the city based on four key themes: digital transformation, digital skills and inclusion, data and collaboration, and digital infrastructure and connectivity.
Over the last few years, we have seen some of the biggest changes in society and how people interact with public services. It has also highlighted inequalities in our communities regarding access to digital technology and the skills to use it effectively.
The new digital strategy aims to address these issues and support the delivery of our objectives set out in the corporate plan.
One of the initiatives is a new city centre hub which showcases the latest in assistive technology.
Recently opened in Newport Market, the hub is a place where people can speak to members of the Council’s occupational therapy team and get advice about using the latest in assistive technology, helping residents to live independently and safely at home.
Tigers Jump
A reminder that The Tigers, one of the British Army's leading parachute display teams, will be making a spectacular landing in Newport this Saturday.
They will be dropping into Rodney Parade just before kick-off for the Dragons v Ospreys match.
They were due to descend on Newport as part of the Wales National Armed Forces Day celebrations, but unfortunately the conditions were not in our favour, so fingers crossed for this weekend.
The team always puts on an impressive show, and it promises to be a real spectacle. It’s also a great opportunity to find about more about a career with the Army. Make sure you’ve got your match tickets!
Questions to the Leader
Councillor Evans:
Regarding the recent WG 20mph enforcement, there was a Senedd Parliament e-Petition which had received over 40,000 signatures submitted, requesting to rescind the 20mph speed limit. The figures are growing, and a conservative estimate showed that over 40,000 signatures were from Newport residents. Would the Leader listen to the residents of Newport and review this policy and ensure consistent signage.
Response:
The Leader mentioned that 120 countries signed a declaration acknowledging that speed reduction improved road safety in 2020. This speed limit is therefore not unique to Wales. In the UK, 28 million people already live in local authorities where 20mph was accepted as the speed limit. Scotland will follow by 2025. In England, many communities including Norwich, Tunbridge, and Chichester already have 20mph limits. In Europe, Spain, Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Finland, and Sweden all used 30kmph extensively in urban and built-up areas. The Leader will continue to review on a regular basis and will consider any requests for amendments and exceptions to the 20mph speed limit.
Councillor Morris:
Considering the recent appointment of the City Centre Manager did the Leader consider that all procedures were followed.
Response:
The Leader advised that there was no councillor involvement in recruitment of officers below the Head of Service level and asked that Councillor Mogford direct his question to the Head of Paid Service or Monitoring Officer who would be happy to respond.
The Chief Executive advised that staffing queries were not appropriate for discussion in Full Council and councillors could direct their questions to officers in private. The Monitoring Officer confirmed that officers could not be discussed in public meetings due to data protection legislation.
Councillor Whitehead:
Councillor Whitehead referred to reports from residents in his Ward concerning lack of response from Home Options and other services such as City Services. Councillor Whitehead asked that officers provide residents with a response to keep them updated or issue a standard reply to confirm responses would be delayed in busier periods.
Response:
The Leader said that Councillor Whitehead had raised an important issue that affected residents. The Leader recognised the importance of effective communication across the Council and that it was important that residents required a prompt response. It was noted that members had experienced frustration when using web-based systems. The Leader was pleased to announce that investment to improve the Newport City Council’s website and access was underway, which would help residents and Councillors too. Home Options are in particular demand, putting extreme pressure on the service, which could mean a delay in responses. The Leader was pleased to say that under the guidance of the Cabinet Member, the Home Options system was being reviewed and there is an excellent Head of Service in place who is leading on delivering improvements for applicants. The Leader welcomes feedback on specific issues in relation to untimely responses and commended the Heads of Service within Newport City Council for their hard work.
Councillor Bright:
Councillor Bright asked if the Leader could provide an overview of the work on the CCR, City Deal and planned progress following the report considered by Council this evening.
Response:
The Leader thanked Councillor Bright for his question and considered there would be elected members unfamiliar with the structure and the important role it played to Newport City Council. The Leader gave an overview of the Cardiff Capital Region City Deals which includes the 10 Local Authorities in Southeast Wales: Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend, Caerphilly, Cardiff, Merthyr Tydfil, Monmouthshire, Newport, Rhondda Cynon Taff, Torfaen, and Vale of Glamorgan. Across the area, there is a population of around 1.5m, which equates to about half the population of Wales.
This is a diverse region with two cities: Cardiff and Newport, a range of market towns, rural communities, and a coastal belt. In 2016, the £13bn Cardiff Capital Region (CCR) City Deal, which was funded by UK Government, Welsh Government and the 10 Southeast Wales Local Authorities, was established. CCR had several priority cluster areas to invest in and develop. These areas are the compound semiconductor cluster, Fintech, cyber security and analytics, the creative economy, MedTech, sport, energy, and environment. Within this group are several key areas of focus, including skills, digital, property, and innovation. £735m of the fund delivered tangible developments within the Southeast Wales metro. £495m wider investment funds sits with CCR and is being invested across the region in a whole range of projects and is on track to add £179m Gross Value Added (GVA) to the region’s economy every year. £44m of this was through the Compound Semiconductors (CS) Foundry Project in Newport. New funds have been established, including a strategic premises fund, housing viability gap fund, local wealth building challenge fund and an innovation fund. CCR owns two companies limited by shares, alongside a ranging portfolio of investments. CCR recently invested in a 500-acre former coalfired power station, which is in the early stages of comprehensive redevelopment for domestic clean energy generation. This has been successful in securing two UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Strengthening Places Fund Awards.
Today the Council had considered the CJC, and it is important to note that Wales does not have primary legislative powers to create combined authorities, however through a piece of work undertaken by WG, the framework for regional investment in Wales had resulted in legislation for CJC’s. These new corporate entities have been built around four regions in Wales and mirror the city and growth deal. The CCR is a voluntary undertaking, whilst the CJC is a statutory requirement. This arrangement provides a range of powers to regional bodies, putting them on par with other public bodies. The transition from CCR to the CJC will see the CCR become a corporate legal entity public body with a number of corporate duties, alongside the statutory requirement for regional land use, transport planning and economic wellbeing duty.
The Leader was proud to say that emerging findings from the UK Competitiveness Index indicated an increase in competitiveness in the region as a whole and within this there was emerging evidence of an increase in competitiveness for Newport. This is the impact of 10 local authorities coming together for the benefit of the region.