Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors D.B. Davies, J.A. Davies, J.P. Jenkins and K.P. Thomas, as well as Councillor P.A. Palmer (Executive Board Member for Communities).

There were no declarations of interest.

There were no declarations of party whips.

No public questions were received.

Reference was made to discussions at the previous meeting during which a request for a development session on corporate manslaughter was made. It was asked whether a report on the matter could be included on the forthcoming agenda and it was proposed that a date for a development session or report be confirmed by the next meeting. It was also suggested that if a development session were arranged, it be open to all elected members and not just members of this Committee. The Committee endorsed the proposals.

The Committee:

5.1       RESOLVED that the items to be considered at the next scheduled meeting on Friday 26th February 2016, be noted.

5.2       UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that a date for the submission of a report to the Committee or a development session for elected members in relation to corporate manslaughter, be confirmed by the date of the next meeting. 

The Committee received an annual report on the work of the Rural Conservation Business Unit during 2015. Members were reminded of the Unit’s services, including the provision advice to other Council departments as well as the general public on matters relating to landscape, trees, woodlands, hedgerows, biodiversity and common land. Key highlights from the previous year were also noted and these included the Coed Cymru partnership, the implementation of the Tree Safety Strategy, the Caeau Mynydd Mawr Special Area of Conversation (SAC) Project and the Carmarthenshire Bogs Project which involved a high level of quality research input from Swansea University. 

The following issues were discussed during consideration of the report:

It was asked where the Coed Cymru officers were based and how much the Local Authority contributed to the funding of their posts. The Rural Conservation Manager informed the Committee that the officers were based in Llandeilo, one officer being full-time and the other part-time. Funding for the posts came from a variety of sources including Natural Resources Wales and the Welsh Government (60% combined) and whilst she was unable to confirm the Authority’s exact contribution, this information could be circulated to members. The Rural Conservation Manager also informed the Committee that these officers generated income for the Authority through the administration of the tree planting grant fee. 

The implementation of the Tree Safety Strategy was welcomed and it was asked how safety work on trees deemed to be posing a risk, were prioritised. The Rural Conservation Manager and Head of Planning informed the Committee that the strategy had been developed over the past year as previously, there had been no central repository holding such information. The new arrangements were reliant on other departments providing the necessary details of trees located on Local Authority land and bringing trees posing concern, to the Unit’s attention. Schools had also been contacted in order to ascertain which sites had trees that would require to be inspected. Schools with trees on site would be prioritised due to the possible danger posed to pupils whilst in country parks, priority was given to those trees within falling distance of paths. 

In response to a question about who had responsibility for undertaking site visits to deal with high-hedge cases, the Head of Planning stated that there had been an anomaly with such cases in the past where the Head of Service had been directly involved. New processes were now in place and the responsibility delegated to the Development Management Manager to work with the Tree Officer. 

Reference was made to the removal of hedgerows and clarification sought as to how the Unit responded to incidents such as the case highlighted in the report where a 1,300m section was removed by a landowner. The Rural Conservation Manager informed the Committee that under the Hedgerow Regulations 1997, the Unit could take enforcement action and in this particular case, issued a re-planting notice. Officers sought to work with landowners and instigate dialogue to ensure re-planting rather than issuing fines which  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

The Committee received for consideration, an update on the Highways Service. The report included the services provided, details of the review to date and future service proposals. The following issues were discussed during consideration of the report:

Concern was expressed at the reduction in gully emptying frequency proposed in the report, especially if road sweeping frequencies were also reduced. The Director of Environment welcomed the comments but reminded the Committee that it would be for County Council to decide on this as part of the budget proposals to be debated during the next few months.

It was suggested that highways should be given a higher priority as without adequate and safe access to facilities of all kinds, residents would not be able to travel around the county and reassurance was sought that the Executive Board would reconsider its proposals for the service. The Executive Board Member for Technical Services acknowledged the comments and reassured the Committee that in light of the less severe settlement received from the Welsh Government, she would be fighting for further investment in the Department’s services.  

It was suggested that the Authority could no longer continue to operate with such severe cuts to services proposed within the report and that the Council was in a crisis situation. The Executive Board Member for Technical Services reminded the Committee that the current administration were seeking to work within the constraints of the previous administration’s budget, agreed by the County Council in March 2015.  

Reference was made to the length of highway network maintained by Carmarthenshire and it was suggested that the amount of funding received from the Welsh Government should reflect this. Concern was also expressed that it would be the rural roads which would be affected most. The Executive Board Member for Technical Services and the Director of Environment reminded the Committee that the development of the new network hierarchy would benefit rural areas as it would be based on a prioritised network according to use as well as strategic importance, unlike the current system based on road classification (e.g. A, B, C and Unclassified).

In response to a comment welcoming the purchase of multi-role vehicles, the Director of Environment informed the Committee that the new ‘swap-body’ type vehicles could be used all year round thus increasing vehicle utilisation and efficiencies within the service. The tipper bodies would enable vehicles to undertake construction work during the day and gritter bodies would enable gritting operations to be carried out during the evening and night.

Reference was made to staffing levels and that previous reports to the Committee had referred to only forty members of staff being lost to frontline services during the past eight years. The Director of Environment reminded the Committee that efficiencies were sought in all areas such as plant, materials, procurement processes and that the aim was to keep as many frontline staff as possible. However, staff had been lost to the service in recent years due to ill-health, retirement and through the severance scheme.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

The Chair presented the planning and scoping document for the scrutiny task and finish review of car parking charges to the Committee. To date, the Group had met on three occasions with a further two meetings scheduled to be held in January and February. The following issues were discussed during consideration of the report:

It was suggested that the list of stakeholders to be involved in the review should include chambers of trade. The Head of Transport & Engineering reassured the Committee that the Group would be presented with a summary of consultation undertaken in recent years in relation to car parking charges. He reminded the Committee that for any proposals relating to parking charge changes, the Authority always undertook consultation and these exercises drew responses from a whole range of stakeholders, including chambers of trade and town forums, as well as from members of the public.

In response to a question relating to the Llanelli free parking pilot, the Executive Board Member for Technical Services reminded the Committee that this had been undertaken to try and bring new footfall into the town centre at a traditionally quieter period of the day, with a particular emphasis on attracting parents who might need to visit the town after school.

Further reference was made to the free parking initiative in Llanelli and it was suggested that the Group consider similar initiatives for Carmarthen and the county’s other towns. The Chair acknowledged the concerns of members from other parts of the county and reassured the Committee that the Group would be considering the county as a whole and not focussing on initiatives for individual towns.  

UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that the update be received. 

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on Thursday 12th November 2015 be signed as a correct record.

It was stated that a question relating to suspension of staff in the Environment Department had not been recorded in the minutes of the December meeting. The Executive Board Member for Technical Services acknowledged that she had responded to a query at this meeting and at that time, had confirmed that the Committee would be informed of the outcome of any disciplinary action relating to the suspensions.

RESOLVED that subject to the amendment above, the minutes of the meeting held on Monday 11th December 2015, be signed as a correct record.