Agenda and minutes

www.swansea.gov.uk/disclosuresofinterests

The Chief Legal Officer gave advice regarding the potential personal and prejudicial interests that Councillors and / Officers may have on the agenda.

 

The Head of Democratic Services reminded Councillors and Officers that the “Disclosures of Personal and Prejudicial Interests” sheet should only be completed if the Councillor / Officer actually had an interest to declare. Nil returns were not required. Councillors and Officers were also informed that any declarable interest must be made orally and in writing on the sheet.

 

In accordance with the provisions of the Code of Conduct adopted by the City and County of Swansea the following interests were declared:

 

1)        Councillors C Anderson, P M Black, M C Child, J P Curtice, N J Davies, P Downing, M Durke, V M Evans, W Evans, S J Gallagher, F M Gordon, K Griffiths, M Jones, E J King, A S Lewis, M B Lewis, C Lloyd, P Lloyd, P M Matthews,  C L Philpott, C R Richards, K M Roberts,  B J Rowlands, M Sherwood, R C Stewart, D G Sullivan, G J Tanner, M Thomas, W G Thomas, L V Walton, G D Walker, T M White, declared a Personal Interest in Minute 69 “Amendment to Inter Authority Agreement (IAA) of the Wales Pension Partnership (WPP) and Funding & Investment Performance Update and Climate Change Risk Update.

 

2)        Jeff Dong, Adam Hill, Tracey Meredith, Martin Nicholls & Ben Smith declared a Personal and Prejudicial interest in Minute 64 “Public Questions” and left the meeting prior to its consideration.

 

3)        Jeff Dong, Adam Hill, Tracey Meredith, Martin Nicholls, Ben Smith declared a Personal and Prejudicial interest in Minute 65 “Senior Management Review” and left the meeting prior to its consideration.

 

 

To approve & sign the Minutes of the previous meeting(s) as a correct record.

Resolved that the following Minutes be approved and signed as a correct record:

 

1)       Ordinary Meeting of Council held on 7 October 2021.

There were no written questions asked at the last Ordinary Meeting of Council.

a)              Condolences

 

i)                Former Councillor & Honorary Alderman Susan Waller Thomas

 

The Presiding Member referred with sadness to the recent death of former Councillor & Honorary Alderman Susan Waller Thomas. Susan represented the Newton Ward for approximately 25 years serving:

 

Ø   Swansea City Council – 1986-1996.

Ø   City & County of Swansea – 1995-2010.

 

Susan was Lord Mayor 2007-2008 and former Presiding Officer of the City & County of Swansea.

 

ii)              Former Councillor Linda Wixey

 

The Presiding Member referred with sadness to the recent death of former Councillor Linda Wixey. Linda represented Sketty North for approximately 4 years serving:

 

Ø   West Glamorgan County Council 1990-1995.

 

All present sat silently as a mark as sympathy and respect.

 

b)       LAPF Investment Awards 2021

 

The Presiding Member was delighted to announce that the City & County of Swansea Pension Fund had been shortlisted in this year’s LAPF Awards (Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) Oscars) for 3 awards. The winners will be announced on 15 December 2021. The categories being:

 

·                 Pension Fund of the Year (assets > £2.5BN).

·                 Best Climate Change Strategy.

·                 Best Investment Innovation.

 

c)              Respect for Equilibrium

 

The Presiding Member stated that Swansea had become one of the first local authorities in Wales to have developed and implemented its own accredited domestic abuse perpetrator programme. Equilibrium has achieved prestigious accreditation from Respect - a leading national organisation on domestic abuse.

 

To achieve this, the Equilibrium Team had to go through an incredibly detailed, nationally recognised, quality assurance process that ensures best working practices are evidenced throughout the programme.

 

The Presiding Member thanked everyone for their work and achievement.

a)              Ironman 70.3 Swansea. Half Ironman Triathlon

 

The Leader of the Council stated that the Inaugural edition of Ironman 70.3 Swansea Half Ironman Triathlon race was scheduled for 7 August 2022.

 

Athletes participating in Ironman 70.3 Swansea will take on a 1.2-mile (1.9km) swim, a 56-mile (90km) bike course followed by a half marathon, 13.1-mile (21.1km).

 

b)              Increased funding for the Recovery Fund

 

The Leader of the Council stated that an additional £5M was to be added to the Recovery Fund. This additional money included £1.9M for Play Areas and Playgrounds. The commitment means that every play area /playground within Swansea across all Electoral Wards will be raised to the green play standard. This also includes up to £500,000 being allocated to skate facilities throughout Swansea.

 

c)              Blue Eden

 

The Leader of the Council referred to the proposed Blue Eden project, which included a tidal lagoon. The project would also include a battery factory, a data centre and the largest floating solar array in the UK. The heat from the data centre being used to heat local housing.

 

d)              Skate Park. Declaration of Interest

 

The Leader of the Council stated that following advice from the Monitoring Officer he would not be participating in the forthcoming item relating to the Mumbles Skate Park at Cabinet.

Questions must be submitted in writing to Democratic Services democracy@swansea.gov.uk no later than noon on the working day prior to the meeting.  Questions must relate to items on the agenda. Questions will be dealt with in a 10 minute period.

 

A number of questions were submitted.

 

a)            James McGettrick asked a question in relation to Minute 73 “Councillors’ Questions – Question 3”.

 

The Cabinet Member for Delivery & Operations responded.

 

b)            Neil Jones asked a question in relation to Minute 69 “Amendment to Inter Authority Agreement (IAA) of the Wales Pension Partnership (WPP) and Funding & Investment Performance Update, and Climate Change Risk Update”.

 

The Chair of the Pension Fund Committee stated that a written response would be provided.

 

c)            Nortridge Perrot asked questions in relation to:

 

i)             Minute 75 “Notice of Motion – Nature Emergency”.

 

The Section 151 Officer responded.

 

ii)            Minute 68 “Treasury Management Annual Report 2020/21”.

 

The Section 151 Officer responded.

 

iii)           Minute 65 “Senior Management Structure”.

 

The Chief Executive responded.

The Chief Executive submitted a report that sought approval in respect of the new Senior Management Structure for the Council.

 

Resolved that:

 

1)              The structure set out in Appendix 2 (and paragraph 2.1.5) of the report subject to the consultation detailed in the report be approved.

 

2)              The Chief Executive be authorised to consult all affected staff.

 

3)              Subject to 2) above, identifying no significant changes, the Chief Executive be authorised to implement the structure.

 

4)              The appointment of an interim Chief Executive on an internal basis, ring fenced to existing Directors be approved.

 

5)              The payment of the interim Chief Executive be approved as the same remuneration as the current Chief Executive.

 

6)              The commissioning of a pay and grading review for Directors and Heads of Service be approved.

The Cabinet Member for Children Services presented a report that sought approval of the Swansea’s Children and Young People’s Rights Scheme following consultation and to agree to continue with a co-productive approach for mechanisms for listening to children and young people.

 

Resolved that:

 

1)              The results of the Consultation at Appendix 2 be noted.

 

2)              The Swansea Children’s Rights Scheme at Appendix 1 of the report be approved.

 

3)              The establishment of 6 co-production forums to work with children and young people on themes identified as priorities as part of the consultation be agreed.

 

4)              The continuation of conversations and co-production with children and young people and other stakeholders to add detail to the operation of each co-production forum be agreed.

The Section 151 Officer provided a verbal update on the Mid-term Budget Statement 2021-2022.

The Section 151 Officer presented a ‘for information’ report that detailed the Council’s Treasury Management activities during 2020/21 and compared actual performance against the strategy laid down at the start of the year.

The Chair of the Pension Fund Committee presented a report that sought  approval to amend the previously approved Inter Authority Agreement (IAA) of the Wales Pension Partnership (WPP) to incorporate revised governance arrangements which allow a scheme member representative on the Joint Governance Committee (JGC) along with other operational changes identified and to inform Council of the funding position of the pension fund and recent investment performance and progress against mitigating climate change risk in the investment portfolio.

 

Resolved that:

 

1)              The amended Inter Authority Agreement (IAA) attached at Appendix 1 of the report be approved.

 

2)              The funding position and investment performance in Section 4 of the report and the progress on addressing climate change risk and journey to achieving net zero within its investment portfolio in sections 5-10 of this report be noted.

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 4 the Presiding Member adjourned the meeting in order to facilitate a 10-minute comfort break.

The Head of Democratic Services presented a report that sought adoption of the Councillor Induction & Training Programme 2022.

 

Resolved that:

 

1)              The mandatory / compulsory training areas outlined in Paragraph 3 of the report be agreed.

 

2)              The Councillor Induction & Training Programme 2022 be adopted.

 

3)              The Head of Democratic Services work with CMT to populate the Training Provider, Date, Venue and Time of the Councillors Training & Induction.

The Presiding Member, Monitoring Officer and Head of Democratic Services presented an information report making amendments in order to simplify, improve and / or add to the Council Constitution.

 

Section 60 of the Local Government (Democracy) Wales Act 2013 amended the Local Government (Wales) Measure 2011 in relation to the Democratic Services Committee.

 

As a result of this legislative change, the following has been added to the Terms of Reference of the Democratic Services Committee:

 

i)            “At the request of the Local Authority, the Democratic Services Committee may review any matter relevant to:

 

a)          The support and advice available to Members of the Authority

 

b)          The terms and conditions of Office of those Members.”

1)       Part A ‘Supplementary Questions’

 

Seven (7) Part A ‘Supplementary Questions’ were submitted.  The relevant Cabinet Member(s) responded by way of written answers contained in the Council Summons.

 

Those supplementary questions required a written response are listed below.

 

Question 2

 

i)                 Councillor C A Holley referred to the Facebook page claiming that children living at Dan-y-Coed were not receiving the Care & Education they require. He asked what actions were taken as a result of this?

 

The Cabinet Member for Children Services stated that a written response would be provided.

 

ii)               Councillor M H Jones referred to the Improvement Plan in place and asked whether the Cabinet Member was happy with the Plan, and whether he felt the Council were receiving value for money?

 

The Cabinet Member for Children Services stated that a written response would be provided.

 

Question 3

 

Councillor A M Day asked when the report would be available?

 

The Cabinet Member for Delivery & Operations stated that a written response would be provided.

 

Question 5

 

Councillor C A Holley asked for a question in relation to the Apprenticeship Scheme.

 

The Leader of the Council stated that a report relating to the Apprenticeship Scheme would be presented to Council in due course.

 

2)       Part B ‘Questions not requiring Supplementary Questions’

 

Six (6) Part B ‘Questions not requiring Supplementary Questions’ were submitted.

Proposed by Councillor A Pugh and Seconded by Councillor R C Stewart.

 

“The huge social and political changes that the country has seen over the last few years have given rise to major social division especially along the lines of race, ethnicity, religion and nationality. One of the most worrying consequences of this is the sharp rise in reported race hate crimes which have increased by almost 30% since 2016. There is no place in a modern society for racial discrimination and intolerance and we should make a commitment to unite and eradicate it in all its guises.

 

The adoption of the Unity over Division Charter would provide a starting point for what will hopefully be a more proactive approach to building an inclusive workplace.

 

And so, we the Elected Members named above request that Swansea Council:

 

1.               Swansea Council will adopt the Unity of Division Charter.

 

2.               Swansea Council will appoint an Inclusion Champion, who will be the lead person for the Unity over Division Charter agenda, with the support of Trade Unions and the Council to collaborate, monitor, facilitate and promote workplace inclusion wherever possible.

 

3.               Swansea Council will ensure that all staff members including schools are given mandatory training on how to adhere to the Council’s Equality and Diversity Policy and will ensure that this document is reviewed annually.

 

4.               Swansea Council stands together with Trade Unions provide informative and up to date materials aimed at helping to promote equality and harmony within the workplace.

 

5.               Swansea stands together with Trade Unions to condemn incidents where there are local and national examples of hate crime and discrimination.

 

6.               Swansea Council will work with all appropriate other agencies and organisations to promote cohesion inside and outside the workplace”.

 

Resolved that the Notice of Motion outlined above be approved.

Proposed by Councillor P K Jones and Seconded by Councillor A S Lewis.

 

“This Council notes with alarm the urgency to take strong, relevant, and immediate measures to counter and minimise the scale and impacts upon mankind and wildlife of human-caused loss of biodiversity and global climate change.

 

The Council also notes the failure of countries globally (including the UK) to meet nearly all of the UN sustainable development goals, including for biodiversity, set in 2010, now to be reviewed at the COP 15 in October in Kunming, China – Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystems (IPBES).

 

We are facing a combined and inter-related local and global climate and ecological disaster, with 17% of species in Wales at risk of extinction. But we can change this by putting nature into recovery, which will also help to tackle climate change.

 

On 30 June 2021, the Welsh Government was one of the first parliaments in the world to declare a nature emergency. Climate Change Minister, Julie James, MS, announced that ‘Restoring nature and mitigating the impact of climate change are top priorities for this government’.

 

Swansea Council declared a climate emergency in June 2019 and has since been developing a Climate Change Action Plan for the Council and for Swansea as a whole in collaboration with Swansea Environmental Forum and other stakeholders.

 

This Council recognises that biodiversity loss is every much as serious to our future survival as climate change – Nature contributes so much to our world, both in practical ecosystem service terms – carbon sequestration, fresh-water management, soil management, air pollution control, shade, cooling and flood prevention, food plants, medicines – and also in terms of natural beauty affecting mental health and well-being.

 

We therefore propose that, in support of the Welsh Government’s declaration of a nature emergency, the Council declares a nature emergency and commits fully to preparing and delivering a Nature Recovery Action Plan to be implemented in tandem with the developing Climate Action Plan.

 

Much work is already being done:

 

·                 The Council has included a corporate priority well-being objective for nature recovery in its Corporate Plan for 2020-2022.

·                 It has supported the delivery of the ‘Working With Nature’ objective in the Swansea Public Services Board Well-being Plan.

·                 The Council has established a Climate Change and Nature Programme Board and a Steering Group to ensure that both issues are fully taken into account across all Service areas plans and projects.

·                 We have appointed a part time Biodiversity Officer, to work in collaboration with all Council Services, to ensure compliance with our Environment (Wales) Act biodiversity duty and to monitor and record progress, as well as providing advice and support for the preparation and delivery of a Section 6 Action Plan.

·                 We provide a lead role in co-ordinating and supporting the Local Nature Partnership (LNP), which has over 97 members from local wildlife and other organisations wishing to contribute to nature recovery.

·                 We also employ a temporary part time LNP officer who will co-ordinate the preparation of a Local Nature Recovery Action Plan.

However, whilst there is much good work being done and much progress being made, we need to do more.

 

The scale of the challenge requires increased prioritisation, additional commitment, and resources to ensure that we meet our targets to reverse the decline of biodiversity.

 

Specific actions could include:

 

·                 Maintaining and strengthening our corporate priority for Natural resources and Biodiversity including Climate Change.

·                 Refreshing the Swansea Climate Charter to become an integrated Climate and Nature Charter.

·                 Extending the terms of reference and membership of the current steering group on climate change to include nature and biodiversity and become the Climate Change and Nature Steering group.

·                 Continuing to work collaboratively with the Local Nature Partnership (LNP) and other key networks across Wales to make more space to enable nature to become abundant again.  The LNP includes active nature conservation NGOs, such as RSPB, the Wildlife Trusts, Plantlife and Buglife as well as statutory agencies and research bodies, such as Natural Resources Wales and Swansea University.

·                 Increasing our work with local community groups and schools to facilitate the widest possible engagement of Swansea residents in maintaining and enhancing local wildlife.

·                 Seeking further support from UK and Welsh governments to provide us with the necessary powers and resources to ensure that we are empowered to maintain and enhance biodiversity.

·                 Seeking resources to provide sustainable long term core revenue and capital funding, thus enabling us to build the capacity and resources to plan and deliver long term strategies and initiatives for nature recovery (rather than relying on short term grant funded projects).

 

This Council resolves that:

 

-                  The Council declares a nature emergency and creates a Climate Change and Nature Action Plan.

-                  The Council extends the terms of reference and membership of the current Climate Change Programme Board and the Climate steering group to become the Climate Change and Nature Programme Board and respectively the Climate Change and Nature Steering Group.

-                  The Council refreshes the Climate Change Charter to become an integrated Climate and Nature Charter.

The Leader of the Council writes to both the UK Prime Minister and to the First Minister for Wales requesting extra resources and powers to enable the Council to deliver upon a fully-fledged and integrated Action Plan for Nature and Climate Change”.

 

Resolved that the Notice of Motion outlined above be approved.