Agenda and draft minutes

There were no declarations of personal interest.

RESOLVED that the decision record of the meeting of the Cabinet Member for Transport, Waste and Infrastructure Services held on the 8^th November, 2024 be signed as a correct record

The Cabinet Member considered a report detailing objections to the Council’s proposal to make an Order to amend The County of Carmarthenshire (Llanelli) (Waiting Restriction and Street Parking Places) Consolidation (Variation No.42) Order 2024. 

The purpose of which was fulfil to the authority’s statutory duty of securing the expeditious movement of traffic and to improve road safety.  The locations in Llanelli were indicated in the proposed schedule and plans appended to the report.

It was reported that during the consultation period the Council’s Head of Administration and Law received thirteen objections, one of which included a 5 no. signature petition and another with a 12 no. signature petition related to the streets advertised.

The Cabinet Member considered the proposals along with the associated objections received, officer comments and recommendations which were presented on as follows:-

• Bury Street, Llanelli
• Alban Road, Llanelli
• Courtenay Road, Llanelli
• Eastern Road, Llanelli
• Penallt Terrace, Llanelli

RESOLVED that:

3.1      the objections as detailed in the report be noted;

3.2      recommendations 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4 and 2.5 as detailed within the report be approved.

The Cabinet Member considered a report which outlined the charges and provided a proposal for the garden waste charges for the 2025/2026 garden waste collection season.</AI3>

The report stated that garden waste collection service was carried out between the months of March and November each year. In preparation for the next garden waste season i.e. March 2024 - November 2024 the price for the service was set in accordance with the financial process and in line with the yearly charging digest procedure which fed into the overall financial position of the local authority for the upcoming financial year, scrutinised through consultation and the political process.

The Cabinet Member noted that the timing of the garden waste service did not lend itself to the financial timeline for budget setting regarding the final sign off timeline. As the garden waste service opens to customers in January every year to prepare for service demand, delivery and collection of bins, invoice payments etc. and consequently the charge for the upcoming season needed to be sanctioned sooner and ahead of January 2025.

The report included information, data and trends in regard to the customer base data for 2024/2025 garden waste service.  

The report proposed to keep the current operational service charge the same as 2024/2025 and not apply the 3% validation to garden waste charges this year, similar to last year in order to keep the customer base consistent. 

The charges would be:

•       £58.83 if paid by Direct Debit (DD)

•       £53.00 if paid in full which includes a 10% full payment discount

The Cabinet Member noted that the service had encountered difficulties in retrieving bins from some of the 7% of customers who had cancelled the service, despite multiple attempts and communication with residents.  The expenses related to these attempted retrievals had amounted to approximately £10,000 this year, which was disproportionate to the unit price of the bins.  Therefore, as a result, it was proposed to charge for any new garden waste bin from 2025/2026 amending the terms and conditions of service to reflect this.  The charge of the bin would be £19 which was the unit price and manufacturer cost per bin to the authority.  This purchase would enable the customer to retain the bin and there would be no requirement for the service to retrieve the bin should the customer decide to cancel the service.

Furthermore, the Cabinet Member was informed that a 10% discount on service charge for any subsequent bin purchased above the initial bin was proposed.

RESOLVED that the following garden waste service charges for 2025/2026 season, be sanctioned and implemented ahead of the final budget consultation and full council meeting in early 2025 which would sanction the budget setting for the Authority for 2025/2026 fiscal year:-

• 2025/2026 service charges to remain at;

£58.83 if paid by Direct Debit

£53.00 if paid in full which includes a 10% full payment discount

• Charge £19 for any new bin issued in 2025/2026 season

• Subsequent bin charges of over one  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.