Minutes:
· The Chair reminded Members that donations were still welcome for the walking challenge he was currently undertaking to raise funds for his two chosen charities namely Prostate Cancer UK and St. Peters Church, Llanybydder. To date he had walked 44 miles and a few donations had already been received with the promise of further donations from Councillors and some town councils. He added that he had also placed items for sale in aid of the charities on the buy and sell forum on the Council’s intranet and thanked everyone for their support;
· Councillor Gary Jones referred to the recent re-opening of the Llangennech railway line and paid tribute to all who had been involved in the initial response to the accident and the subsequent reconstruction of the line. In particular he thanked the two train drivers whose quick action in uncoupling the wagons had saved the village and surrounding area from a greater disaster adding that possibly this could be recognised in some way by the Council;
· Councillor Tyssul Evans paid tribute to the actions of the local fire service following a recent house fire in Ffoslas. He also thanked Jonathan Willis and Jonathan Morgan of the Council’s Communities Department for ensuring that the family were given temporary accommodation and Cllrs Linda Evans and Kim Broom for their assistance;
· The Leader referred to the fact that it would shortly be a year since the country entered its first lock-down due to the Covid 19 pandemic and he reflected on the excellent response by staff, council partners, and the public over that period to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all. He added that in due course there would be a review of the way the pandemic had, and was being, dealt with and that evidence would be presented along with assessments of decisions taken. An assurance was given that the Council was working as hard as ever to ensure the safety of communities in Carmarthenshire. In terms of the reopening of schools he emphasised that whilst this would be an important step in the recovery process everyone should adhere to guidance issued. He also spoke of the successful roll-out of the vaccination programme in Wales and thanked everyone involved in ensuring it remained on track including staff on the front-line, the teams who ensured that the mass vaccination centres were ready and operational in a very short time. He also thanked the GP practices who had paid a key part in the roll-out of the programme;
· The Leader referred to the fact that businesses in Llanelli had voted overwhelmingly to continue the Ymlaen Llanelli Business Improvement District [BID] for a further 5 years and the Council looked forward to continuing to work with the BID team in arranging events as successful as those held over the previous 5 years which contributed to a vibrant town centre;
· The Leader endorsed the sentiments expressed earlier by Cllr. Gary Jones in regard to the reopening of the railway at Llangennech.