Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor S.E. Thomas. 

There were no declarations of personal interest.

There were no declarations of party whips.

No public questions were received.

The Committee considered the final report of the Task & Finish Group it had established on 15th May 2015, to research different approaches to car parking charges that could be applied in the county. The recommendations contained within the report had been formulated by the Group following the consideration of a range of evidence over a series of meetings held between September 2015 and April 2016.

The Chair advised that he had received requests from Councillors A. Lenny and J. Thomas to ask questions in relation to this agenda item and that these would be presented at the commencement of this item. 

Councillor J. Thomas asked the following question:

I understand that part of the brief was to ensure consistency throughout the County. I do not believe this has been achieved. For example there is free parking on a Sunday on the Eastern end of Carmarthen to serve three places of religion, yet on the western end of town another small car park is not free at any time on Sundays despite there being five places of religion in the area. I ask, how was the consistency aspect of the task and finish review approached?

The Chair thanked Councillor Thomas for his question and stated that the review had been about the whole of Carmarthenshire, rather than parking issues in a specific town. Consistency of charges had not been part of the review’s scope and objectives, which had been endorsed by the Committee at a previous meeting. The Head of Transport & Engineering reminded the Committee that the Sunday exemptions in Carmarthen had originated as a result of consultation relating to an Off-Street Parking Places Consolidation Order in 2014 and that these had been agreed following a meeting between the then Executive Board Member and church representatives. There were 54 on-street free car park spaces on the western end of town.

Councillor A. Lenny asked the following questions:

My question regards the nature and scope of the research undertaken by the group. Why didn’t they invite individuals or bodies (e.g. Chambers of Trade) to present evidence in person and visit other towns or counties as part of the research, rather than base their recommendations mainly on figures and reports (internal and external) presented by Carmarthenshire County Council's own officers without apparent challenge? 

If the Task and Finish Group recommendations are based on little more than reports and figures presented by county council officers, would the Environmental and Public Protection Scrutiny Committee consider rejecting the report as it has failed to comply both with its remit and declared intention due to its limited research base, which has resulted in little more than recommendation of approval of the status quo?

The Chair thanked Councillor Lenny for his questions but rejected the suggestion that information presented by officers had been accepted unchallenged by the Group members. He informed the Committee that the Group had received submissions from the Carmarthen Town Forum as part of the review and that any information or data requested by the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

The Committee considered its Forward Work Programme for 2016/17 which had been developed following the Committee’s informal planning session held in April 2015. The following issues were discussed during consideration of the report:

In response to a comment regarding the suspension of staff in the Environment Department, the Executive Board Member for Technical Services informed the Committee that disciplinary proceedings were still on-going and that as promised in previous meetings, an update on the situation would be provided by the Director as and when these were completed. 

It was suggested that the new Police & Crime Commissioner be invited to attend a future meeting of the Committee. The Chair suggested that it might be more appropriate that he meet with all members, rather than just the Committee itself but agreed to action this in due course.

It was requested that the latest information on the future of the waste disposal and recycling service, be included in the Waste Strategy update. The Executive Board Member for Technical Services informed the Committee that work was on-going and that progress was being made in relation to the procurement of a new contract.  

The Committee RESOLVED that its Forward Work Programme for 2016/17 be endorsed.