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Agenda and minutes

Venue: Council Chamber - Guildhall, Swansea. View directions

Contact: Democratic Services - Tel (01792) 636923 

Items
No. Item

108.

Disclosures of Personal & Prejudicial Interest.

Minutes:

In accordance with the Code of Conduct adopted by the City and County of Swansea, no interests were declared.

109.

Prohibition of Whipped Votes and Declaration of Party Whips.

Minutes:

In accordance with the Local Government (Wales) Measure 2011, no declarations of Whipped Votes or Party Whips were declared.

110.

Minutes. pdf icon PDF 121 KB

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

 

Minutes:

Resolved that the Minutes of the Scrutiny Programme Committee held on 14 January 2019 be approved and signed as a correct record.

111.

Public Question Time.

Questions must relate to matters on the open part of the Agenda of the meeting and will be dealt with in a 10 minute period.

 

Minutes:

There were no public questions.

112.

Cabinet Member Question Session: Cabinet Member for Environment & Infrastructure Management (Councillor Mark Thomas). pdf icon PDF 135 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Cabinet Member for Environment & Infrastructure Management presented a report on the key headlines of his portfolio.

 

Questions and discussions with the Cabinet Member focussed on the following:

 

Dog Fouling

·                 There had been staffing issues over the Christmas period which affected dog fouling bin collections as household waste collections had been prioritised over this period.  Lessons had been learnt and it was anticipated that the situation would not be repeated next Christmas;

·                 The collection process for dog fouling bins;

Litter & Fly Tipping

·                 The cost of clearing regular fly tipping ‘hot spots’ and whether an amnesty type scheme could make a difference; 

Environmental Health

·                 The increase in the number of rats reported last year was linked to the unusually warm weather rather than any underlying issues.  It was reiterated that Swansea Council was still one of the few Authorities that did not charge for this service;

·                 There would be no change to food safety checks and procedures in schools following Brexit;

·                 Whether all privacy issues in relation to data collection had been considered in relation to the potential collaborative study with Swansea University & Vortex Internet of Things that would look at collecting real-time localised City Centre based air quality, traffic and parking data, etc;

Highways & Infrastructure

·                 Policy / process for dropped kerbs - due to the ageing population, it was highlighted that more dropped kerbs were required for the elderly, particularly in the Castle ward.  In addition, consideration should be given to this at the planning application stage for new builds;

Poverty Reduction

·                 This was a cross-cutting consideration for all Cabinet Portfolios to have regard to;

Burials & Cremations

·                 The numerous options available to the various ethnic minorities were discussed;

Countryside Access

·                 Whether any additional grants / funding could be explored in order to assist the very small team;

Marina, Foreshore and Beach Maintenance

·                 The reason for the sand loss movement issues at Knab Rock was queried;

Nuclear Waste Disposal

·                 The authority would be considering its full response to consultation in due course.

 

A question had also been received from a member of the public in relation to the scale of the University expansion and its impact on local communities and families from HMOs.  The Cabinet Member noted the concerns and stated that his portfolio responsibilities in respect of HMOs were limited to enforcement around environmental issues such as waste, noise, and safety and non-compliance with licensing conditions by landlords / tenants, however  other Cabinet Members would be in a better position to comment on the issues(s) raised.

 

Resolved that the Chair of Scrutiny Programme Committee write to the Cabinet Member, reflecting the discussion and sharing the views of the Committee.

113.

Final Scrutiny Inquiry Report: Natural Environment. pdf icon PDF 122 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Councillor Peter Jones, Convener presented the final report of the scrutiny inquiry into the Natural Environment.

 

He thanked the Cabinet Member for Environment & Infrastructure Management for his support to this topic and for the invaluable assistance and input from Bethan Hopkins, Scrutiny Officer in supporting the inquiry.

 

There was some discussion around the balance between economic regeneration and the environment and conflict that can exist between development and environmental protection.

 

There was some discussion around the balance between economic regeneration and the environment and conflict that can exist between development and environmental protection.

 

The Chair commended the comprehensive report and praised the Inquiry Panel for their work.

 

Resolved that the report be agreed for submission to Cabinet.

114.

Scrutiny Performance Panel Progress Report. pdf icon PDF 119 KB

Adult Services (Councillor Peter Black, Convener)

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Convener Peter Black provided an update report on the Adult Services Performance Panel.

 

He referred in particular to concerns around Long Term Domiciliary Care, Western Bay Health & Social Care Programme, and Delayed Transfers of Care.  He stated that a meeting with the ABMU Health Board would be taking place on 26 March, re-arranged from January, to discuss changes to the health board regional footprint and vision for the future.

 

Resolved that the update be noted.

115.

Membership of Scrutiny Panels and Working Groups. pdf icon PDF 111 KB

Minutes:

The Chair presented a report on the Membership of Scrutiny Panels and Working Groups.

 

Resolved that:

 

1)              Equalities Inquiry Panel – remove Councillor L V Walton;

2)              Tourism Working Group – add Councillors C Anderson & R D Lewis;

3)              Anti-Social Behaviour Working Group – add Councillor C Anderson, remove Councillor E W Fitzgerald;

4)              Development & Regeneration Performance Panel – remove Councillor G J Tanner.

116.

Scrutiny Dispatches - Quarterly Impact Report. pdf icon PDF 117 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chair presented a report on ‘Scrutiny Dispatches – Quarterly Impact Report’.

 

Resolved that the content of the draft Scrutiny Dispatches be agreed and presented to Council.

117.

Scrutiny Work Programme 2018/19. pdf icon PDF 139 KB

Discussion on:

a)         Committee Work Plan.

b)         Opportunities for Pre-Decision Scrutiny.

c)         Progress with Scrutiny Panels and Working Groups.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chair presented the Scrutiny Work Programme for 2018/19.

 

The Cabinet Member Question Session for the next Scrutiny Programme Committee would be with the Cabinet Member for Investment, Regeneration & Tourism, , and the Chair asked Committee Members to give thought to questions.

 

The Chair also informed the Committee that the annual Crime & Disorder scrutiny session was likely to be added to the already scheduled 8 April Committee meeting. She added that the work of the Safer Swansea Partnership was relevant to the Cabinet Member Q & A session planned for that meeting.

118.

Scrutiny Letters. pdf icon PDF 18 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chair presented the Scrutiny Letters Log.  The correspondence related to the attendance of the Cabinet Members for Children Services at the November 2018 meeting.

 

The log and letters were noted.

119.

Audit Committee Work Plan (For Information). pdf icon PDF 80 KB

Minutes:

The Work Plan for the Audit Committee was provided for information.

120.

Date and Time of Upcoming Panel / Working Group Meetings. pdf icon PDF 50 KB

Minutes:

The dates and times of upcoming Panel / Working Group meetings were provided for information.

Letter to Cabinet Member - Q & A Session pdf icon PDF 184 KB

Cabinet Member Response - Q & A Session pdf icon PDF 482 KB