Agenda, decisions and minutes

This item is to receive any Public Questions: two were received by the deadline.

The Chair reported that two questions had been received and invited Mr Colin Randerson to present his question to Council.    Mr Randerson thanked the Chair and Council for the opportunity to attending the meeting and read out his question.

“Given that the Council proposed changes to policies relating to affordable housing numbers on the basis of pressure from a small number of private developers, but has made no meaningful changes to the LDP as a result of the public consultation, where some sites received over 200 individual objections, do you believe this demonstrates a process which values the concerns of its residents and represents them accordingly?”

            Councillor Bithell responded by saying that at the outset, it was important to stress that the changes that had been made to the Plan following the Examination hearing sessions known as Matters Arising Changes (MACs) had not been made by the Council but were proposed by the Inspector and had been agreed to by the Council in July of this year, in order to facilitate a public consultation on them. No changes had been proposed to original percentages for the delivery of affordable housing, and the only change to the affordable housing policy wording was to reflect a change requested by the Inspector to clarify that the percentages sought were a target, rather than a starting point.

            The central purpose of the Examination was for the Inspector to consider the soundness of the Plan as submitted and it was not the remit of the Inspector to improve the Plan, or to change it simply based on the volume of objections to it or a particular site or policy. Part of the Inspector’s assessment would be with reference to the Council’s evidence base to support the Plan policies and proposals. This applied equally to representations made by objectors where the responsibility on objectors was to submit objections supported by evidence which questioned the plan or a site’s soundness. It was for the Inspector to judge and the rationale for how she had considered these soundness issues would be contained in her report, which had yet to be received.

            Both the Council and the Inspector were required to consider what objectors had said when representations were made, but they were not required to simply accept what was said. This was a matter of planning judgement which had been applied both by the Council and then separately and independently by the Inspectors. That was the present Development Plan process as prescribed by Welsh Government’s Development Plans Manual. In part the question posed invited the Council to comment on aspects of this process that were not in its control, and it was not appropriate therefore to expect the Council to comment on how the Inspector had conducted the examination.

            The questioner submitted written representations at the Deposit consultation stage which were considered by officers and where the Council agreed to recommended responses which did not alter or change the plan. As with the response to question 2  ...  view the full minutes text for item 28.

To receive any Declarations and advise Members accordingly.

No Declarations of Interest were received.

No Declarations of Interest were received.

To confirm as a correct record the minutes of the meetings held on 24 May and 26 July 2022.

That the minutes of 24 May 2022 and 26 July 2022 be approved as a correct record.

The minutes of the meetings held on 24 May 2022 and 26 July 2022 were received.

Minutes of 24 May 2022 - Accuracy

On page 18 and 19 Councillor Antony Wren asked that the misspelling of his Christian name be amended.  This was agreed.

Minutes of 26 July 2022 - Accuracy

Councillor Richard Jones referred to page 28 and the debate around the national definition of fuel poverty and the re-defining of the wording to be used locally and asked if there was any information on this.    In response the Deputy Monitoring Officer said a response would be provided following the meeting.

The minutes of the meetings held on the 24 May 2022 and 26 July 2022 were moved and seconded as correct records.

RESOLVED:

That the minutes of 24 May 2022 and 26 July 2022 be approved as a correct record.

This is an opportunity for Members of Council to submit petitions on behalf of people in their ward. Once received, petitions are passed to the appropriate Chief Officer for action and response.

Councillor Hilary McGuill presented a Petition, containing 300 signatures, on behalf of residents of the Heol Fammau and Moel Gron areas of Mynydd Isa.  The residents had requested that urgent repairs be carried out because of the poor condition of the roads.  This had been requested for quite some time and Councillor McGuill said that during a 60-year period the roads had only been patched and were now desperately in need of a proper resurfacing.

            Councillor David Coggins Cogan presented a Petition, containing the signatures of 315 residents in his ward for the Council to urgently review the safety of the roads in his ward.  An overview was given on the dangerous conditions encountered on these roads which had resulted in several deaths. There was also a lack of pavements and warning signs.  In addition, the speed limit on that road was 60-mph.  The Council was aware of the problems, and he pleaded for urgent action be taken.

Councillor Hilary McGuill presented a Petition, containing 300 signatures, on behalf of residents of the Heol Fammau and Moel Gron areas of Mynydd Isa.  The residents had requested that urgent repairs be carried out because of the poor condition of the roads.  This had been requested for quite some time and Councillor McGuill said that during a 60-year period the roads had only been patched and were now desperately in need of a proper resurfacing.

            Councillor David Coggins Cogan presented a Petition, containing the signatures of 315 residents in his ward for the Council to urgently review the safety of the roads in his ward.  An overview was given on the dangerous conditions encountered on these roads which had resulted in several deaths. There was also a lack of pavements and warning signs.  In addition, the speed limit on that road was 60-mph.  The Council was aware of the problems, and he pleaded for urgent action be taken.

(a)      That the Terms of Reference of the Climate Change Committee be approved;

(b)      That the Chair of the Climate Change  Committee be remunerated; and

(c)       That Councillor Alasdair Ibbotson be appointed as Chair of the Climate Change Committee.

The Deputy Monitoring Officer referred to the Annual Meeting of the Council, when it was agreed to establish a Climate Change Committee and said the Terms of Reference for this Committee were located at Appendix 1 of the report.  Clarification on a slight amendment to the Terms of Reference was provided together with confirmation that it was a non-statutory committee, but that Council had agreed that it would be politically balanced.  The first meeting was scheduled for the 22 November and Council was required to appoint a Chair for the committee, to agree if the Chair should receive a remuneration for the role and to agree the Terms of Reference. 

The Chief Officer (Planning Environment & Economy) provided an overview of the commitment made by Cabinet in 2019 that the County Council would be carbon neutral by 2030 following Welsh Government (WG) advice.    He provided information on the appointment of the Climate Change Co-ordinator, Alex Ellis, and outlined the work undertaken by the Climate Change Programme Board.   He said the Committee would be an advisory committee to inform Cabinet on the actions required to reach that target of carbon neutrality by 2030.   The Action Plan and Strategy were agreed in February 2022, and he explained how this committee would work collaboratively across the council and with other business partners to achieve that aim of carbon neutrality by 2030. 

The Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Education, Welsh Language, Culture and Leisure moved the Terms of Reference recommendation, as amended.  He also moved that the Chair of the Climate Change Committee was remunerated.  He nominated Councillor Alasdair Ibbotson as Chair the Climate Change Committee.   He felt confident that with Councillor Ibbotson as Chair, together with the Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Economy, that they would be able to drive forward the important work that was required to be done.   The was seconded by the Cabinet Member for Governance and Corporate Services (including Health and Safety and Human Resources).

            Councillor Andrew Parkhurst asked for an amendment to the terms of reference recommendation.    He read out a statement from the Liberal Democrat Group.  His proposed amendment to recommendation 1 was “to approve the Terms of Reference of the Climate Change Committee subject to a review during the next municipal year”.   This amendment was proposed in the spirit of supporting the aims of Flintshire County Council to seriously address climate change.

            The Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Education, Welsh Language, Culture and Leisure accepted the amendment.  The Cabinet Member for Governance and Corporate Services (including Health and Safety and Human Resources) as seconder also accepted the amendment.

The Chair then referred to the third recommendation to appoint the Chair of the Committee saying that one nomination of Councillor Alistair Ibbotson had been received.   The Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Economy fully supported the nomination of Councillor Ibbotson. 

Councillor Helen Brown nominated Councillor Allan Marshall for the Chair of the Committee.   This was seconded by Councillor Richard Jones

Upon  ...  view the full minutes text for item 32.

That Council approved the North Wales Market Stability Report 2022.

The Deputy Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Social Services and Wellbeing presented the North Wales Market Stability Report.  

Welsh Government (WG) had asked that local authorities and local health boards work in collaboration to produce a Market Stability Report alongside the Population Needs Assessment.  The Market Stability Report would provide an assessment of the sufficiency of care and support required when meeting the needs and demand for social care as set out in the Population Needs Assessment and the stability of the market for regulated services providing that care and support. 

A single Market Stability Report must be produced for the North Wales region and approved by Full Council for each of the Local Authority areas and the local Health Board as a requirement of the Social Services and Well Being Wales Act 2014.  The final Market Stability Report must be published on all Local Authority websites, the Health Board websites and the Regional Partnerships Board’s website in both English and Welsh with a copy of the report submitted to Welsh Ministers.   Both the Population Needs Assessment and the Market Stability Report documents would be used to inform local and regional delivery plans and service development going forward.  Therefore, she asked that Council approve the North Wales Market Stability Report for 2022.

The Chief Officer (Social Services) thanked the Contract and Commissioning Manager and her team for their work in completing the report.   The report had been presented to the Social & Health Care Overview & Scrutiny Committee and Cabinet and he was proud of the work undertaken in the development of services, such as the Children’s Homes in Mold and the expansion of the facility at Marleyfield in Buckley.  The latest Market Stability Report outlined the partnership working with partners in North Wales within the Regional Partnership Board and included the regional footprint and he highlighted the Flintshire themes.  

An overview of the elderly population in the county was provided with the over 65 predictions during the next 20 years higher in Flintshire than the regional average.  The Authority had to plan to ensure all services were resilient to provide the best quality services with the report providing excellent information not just for Health and Social Care but other services too.

In response to a question on the closure of care homes from Councillor Peers, the Chief Officer (Social Services) outlined the close working relationship with the care home partners but said that because of the pressures they had experienced some had stopped operating but this did not happen often.  The sensitivities of working with care homes, families and residents was understood to ensure that all were supported and settled in other homes.  Referring to the overall capacity he confirmed that this had reduced and highlighted that the Authority needed to provide its own good quality care provision, which was why Marleyfield had been completed and plans were ongoing to extend Croes Atti in Flint and for options to be considered for  Llys Gwenffrwd in Holywell.

In response  ...  view the full minutes text for item 33.

That Julia Hughes be reappointed to the Standards Committee for five years.

The Deputy Monitoring Officer introduced the report and explained that Council must appoint people who were not Councillors to the Standards Committee so that it was seen to be more independent and apart from the internal politics of the Council. 

The term of office for one of the co-opted members would come to an end in December.  That member was eligible to be reappointed for a further term. 

The co-optee was  the current Chair of the Committee and she had worked hard in the role and had made a beneficial contribution to the governance of the Council.  She was willing to serve a further term if re-appointed. 

On being put to the vote the recommendation was carried.

RESOLVED:

That Julia Hughes be reappointed to the Standards Committee for five years.

(a)          That the briefing report be received, and Council be assured;

(b)          That the constitutional and other implications of the Act be noted;

(c)          That the Officer Working Group be stood down until and unless any powers not yet exercised required implementation; and

(d)          That the Constitutional and Democratic Services Committee, supported by the Chief Officer (Governance) see the final aspects of the implementation of the Act to conclusion.

The Democratic Services Manager introduced the report and explained that the Local Government and Election (Wales) Bill became an Act in January 2021.  This was a large wide-ranging Act, and a Working Group was established to ensure all aspects which related to the Council were implemented.  

He referred Members to the Appendix which highlighted how the Council had responded to the key parts of the Act.  Outlining some of the key changes he confirmed that the largest change was holding meetings remotely, which had been in response to the Pandemic but was now law.  On the Appendix, he clarified that the areas shown in green had been fully implemented with the areas shown in grey not currently enacted and the 5 areas shown in amber being work in progress. 

The recommendations were moved and seconded.

RESOLVED:

(a)          That the briefing report be received, and Council be assured;

(b)          That the constitutional and other implications of the Act be noted;

(c)          That the Officer Working Group be stood down until and unless any powers not yet exercised required implementation; and

(d)          That the Constitutional and Democratic Services Committee, supported by the Chief Officer (Governance) see the final aspects of the implementation of the Act to conclusion.

This item is to receive any Notices of Motion: one has been received and is attached.

That the Notice of Motion be received and supported.

The following Notice of Motion had been submitted by the Liberal Democrat Group.

“This Council recognises the extreme hardship residents are suffering under the Cost-of-Living Crises.  Growing numbers of residents, especially those using domestic heating oil (not protected by the domestic energy price cap) are entering a period of fuel poverty and will not be able to afford to heat their homes this winter.  Even now, before winter, many residents are already in fuel poverty.

“Warm Hubs” are warm and friendly environments in which to enjoy refreshments, social activity, information and advice and respite from social isolation.  Warm hubs can be based in civic and public buildings, which are already heated and open to the public such as libraries, in community asset buildings, church and village hall and other businesses such as cafes that may be happy to sign up to be scheme.

This Council acknowledges the Warm Hubs are unlikely to generate revenue and will not expect visitors to buy teas, coffees or otherwise spend money to stay in the warmth.  Warm Hubs are community resource, recognising that if someone is in fuel poverty, they should be helped to conserve their financial resources and not feel pressured into spending money in order to stay in a warm, public environment

Therefore this Council resolves:

1. To liaise with partner organisation and provide Warm Hubs throughout the County of Flintshire
2. To work with Members and Town & Community Councils to identify suitable premises in each ward; and
3. To provide advertising materials for Members and Town & Community Councils to raise awareness of Warm Hubs within their communities.”

In speaking to the Notice of Motion, Councillor Coggins Cogan  said that it was horrifying that, as one of the wealthiest countries in the world, the Council was having to consider ”Warm Hubs”.  

He felt the assistance from the UK Government would not make a difference as further increases in energy bills were predicted.  He expressed disbelief at the tax breaks given to high earners but the vulnerable were being left to fend for themselves. Because of this his group was proposing the establishment of Warm Hubs utilising premises which were available in the county with the support of third sector organisations.

            The Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Education, Welsh Language, Culture and Leisure accepted the Notice of Motion on behalf of Cabinet.  At a meeting held the previous day, Cabinet actioned most of what was contained in the Notice of Motion, and he echoed the sentiments of Councillor Coggins Cogan that the sixth largest economy in the world had to provide Warm Hubs for its citizens.  He also wished to be associated with the comments made regarding the tax breaks for high earners.

            Councillor Richard Jones felt confident that all Members would support the principle and intent of the Notice of Motion.  He queried the words “Warm Hubs” and asked if an alternative name could be used.

            Councillor Ibbotson expressed his concern on what was facing residents this winter.  He confirmed that during  ...  view the full minutes text for item 36.

To note the answers to any questions submitted in accordance with County Council Standing Order No. 9.4(A): three were received by the deadline.

Councillor Bernie Attridge - (1) Member Services (2) County Hall; and (3) Council leaseholds.

That the questions and written responses be received and noted.  

The Chair advised that three questions had been received and responded to. These had been circulated to Members.

That the questions and written responses be received and noted. 

The Minute Book, Edition 1 2022/23 has been circulated to Members.  Members are now entitled to ask questions on these minutes, subject to certain limitations, and answers will be provided at the meeting.  Any questions must have been received by the Democratic Services Manager prior to the close of business on Wednesday 21 September, 2022.

None were received.

None were received.

There were no members of the press in attendance.

There were no members of the press and no members of the public in attendance.