LOCAL GOVERNMENT BOUNDARY COMMISSION FOR WALES
6 DECEMBER 2004 AT CARADOG HOUSE, ST ANDREW'S PLACE, CARDIFF
Present:
Commission
Mrs Susan Smith (Chairman), Mr John Davies (Deputy Chairman), Mr Dennis Roberts (Member)
Secretariat
Mr Edward Lewis (Secretary), Mr Steve Halsall, Mr Clive Chapman
1. MINUTES OF COMMISSION MEETING HELD ON 9TH NOVEMBER 2004
1.1 These were agreed.
2. MATTERS ARISING
2.1 MERLIN ISSUES
2.1.1 It was noted that a Merlin representative was to meet with officials shortly to discuss outstanding connectivity issues.
2.1.2. It was also noted that information in respect of previous invoices was still awaited from MERLIN.
2.2 FINAL REVIEW ORDERS
2.2.1 It was agreed that in future, notification of orders made in respect of Commission reviews be forwarded to Commissioners prior to meetings, as and when the Secretariat became aware of them.
2.3 MEETING WITH MINISTER
2.3.1 The Commissioners had met this morning with the Assembly Minister for Finance, Local Government and Public Services.
2.3.2 It was reported that there were currently no plans to review the number of Principal Authorities in Wales.
2.3.3. It was reported that prior to the next round of reviews of electoral arrangements of Principal Authorities, the Minister would be consulting with the Welsh Local Government Association and One Voice Wales on the content of any new directions that she may wish to issue in respect of those reviews.
2.3.4. It was noted that efforts would be made to reply to the Commission's request for directions to Review the Community Boundary in Blaenhonddan, Neath Port Talbot by the first Anniversary of the initial request.
2.3.5 It was indicated by the Minister that funding would most probably be available to complete the Commission's Community Ward Boundary Mapping project.
2.3.6 It was noted that the Minister would be seeking advice on streamlining the procedure for processing requests from the Commission for directions in respect of Community Reviews.
2.3.7 It was noted that the Minister would be pressing for more cross border co-operation between authorities in respect of provision of services.
3. BRACKLA COMMUNITY REVIEW
3.1 Representations
3.1.1 It was noted that a request had been received from Bridgend County Borough Council to include the impending "Parc Derwen" development near Litchard in the Commissions review of part of the boundary between the communities of Brackla and Coity Higher.
3.1.2. It was noted that received legal advice stated that the "Parc Derwen" development fell outside the area indicated by the Directions given by the Assembly, and as such could not be considered as part of this review.
3.1.3 It was noted that it was unfortunate that Bridgend County Borough Council had raised the "Parc Derwen" development after the Council had been consulted on the Directions by the Minister.
3.2 Draft Report
3.2.1 Whilst generally happy with the report it was noted that no electorate figures were included for the areas for consideration under the Community review.
3.2.2. It was noted that requests had been made to Bridgend County Borough Council for the figures, but no reply had been received to date.
3.2.3 It was agreed that Bridgend County Borough Council be approached again requesting the figures.
3.2.4 If figures were received, it was agreed that a revised paragraph be circulated via e-mail for clearance, and once approved the Commission would proceed to publish draft proposals.
4. ANNUAL GENERAL OPEN MEETING 2005 - VENUE
4.1 It was agreed that a venue be sought for the 2005 Annual General Open Meeting in the Aberystwyth/Machynlleth area.
4.2 It was agreed that a venue in the area of the City of Swansea be sought for the 2006 Annual General Open Meeting.
5. WALES PUBLIC SECTOR WASTE MINIMISATION CAMPAIGN
5.1 The current Assembly scheme on waste minimisation was noted.
5.2 It was noted that the Commission already met several of the campaign's aspirations.
6. REVIEW OF BANKING ARRANGEMENTS
6.1 It was noted that a tender board had been held in respect of the Commission's banking arrangements.
6.2 It was noted that the findings of the board were to recommend that the Commission retain the services of its current banking services provider.
6.3 It was agreed to accept the recommendation of the tender board.
7. WEB SITE
7.1 The Commissioners were given a demonstration by Steve Halsall of work currently being undertaken to update the look and accessibility of the Commission's website.
7.2 It was agreed that the work on the site should continue in the direction demonstrated by Mr Halsall who was thanked for his work on this project.
8. OPERATIONAL PLAN - 2005/06
8.1 It was agreed that following minor amendment, the Commission's Operational plan should be submitted to the Welsh Assembly Government as requested.
9. INTER COMMISSION MEETING
9.1 It was noted that there had been a change in dates for the up coming inter-commission meeting, which would now be held on 17th & 18th January 2005 in Belfast.
10. FREEDOM OF INFORMATION UPDATE
10.1 A paper on the latest position on Freedom of Information requirements was noted, as were the implications for the Commission.
11. ANY OTHER BUSINESS
11.1 WAG Location Strategy
11.1.1 The current position of the Welsh Assembly Government's location strategy was noted
11.1.2 It was noted that the strategy appeared to have no direct implications for the Commission at this time.
11.2 Changes to Secretariat
11.2.1 It was noted that Mr Clive Chapman would be leaving the Commission secretariat to return to the Assembly after Christmas 2004.
11.2.2. The Commissioners wished to record their thanks to Mr Chapman for his support and assistance provided to them during his time at the Commission.
11.2.3 It was noted that whilst a replacement was being sought for Mr Chapman, there were likely to be implications for the separation of duties in respect of purchasing and receipt of goods and services.
11.2.4. It was agreed that the assistance of LGM2 Division, the Commission sponsor Division, be sought during this hopefully short period of transition.
11.2.5 It was noted that an advert in respect of Mr Chapman's post had been placed as a secondment opportunity within the Assembly.
11.3 Local Government and Public Services Committee
11.3.1 It was noted that at a recent meeting of the Local Government and Public Services Committee, the Minister had reported that she had attended and addressed the Commission's Annual General Open Meeting, and wished to take the opportunity to thank the Commission for its work.
11.4 Governing Wales Conference
11.4.1 Commissioner Dennis Roberts attended the Conference "Governing Wales : Understanding Key relationships" held on 18th November 2004 Cardiff, and provided the following report: "It was an interesting conference and quite instructive. The main disappointment was that two of the speakers did not turn up. They were Elizabeth Raikes of ELWa and Lyn Llewelyn of One Voice Wales. The disappointment for me was that the discussion on ASPBs was not as comprehensive as it could have been.
The other speakers were first class and included:- John Osmond Director Institute of Welsh Affairs Chris Freeguard Managing Director Newport City Council Laura McAllister Member Richard Commission Below are some items from the presentations which I found interesting. John Osmond A comprehensive review of the work of the [Richard] Commission and its conclusions was given. The response of the Labour Party was explained, including defining Henry VIII and Section 13.2+ powers. He also commented that under the most favourable conditions, the present settlement, Labour were only able to obtain half the seats in the Assembly at their last election. It was likely therefore at the next election the possibility was of Labour being the major party but with the minority of seats, and there was possibility of the other parties setting up a coalition to keep Labour from power. Chris Freeguard Having had experience of Local Government in both England and Wales he stated that the relationship was completely different in the two countries, and that the cooperative partnership approach in Wales was much better for the development of local services. He discussed the viability of the present 22 Authorities, and stressed the need in the immediate future of making the most of resources by streamlining support services and working closer with other local services.
He also saw the following as developments in the near future
- setting out basic level of services for authorities,
- local leadership role,
- and how Local Authorities could reinvigorate local democracy.
Laura McAllister She described the background to the Richard Commission, how it worked and its main conclusions. As many constitutional changes are made on the hoof it was refreshing to have the opportunity to gather evidence as to the present situation and to map a possible way ahead. It was a unanimous report (the view of one member qualified in an attached report) and she was of the opinion that it was a step change and not a radical new approach. The vision was that if you have an assembly give it the tools, then the move from an assembly to a parliament and the importance of scrutiny in the process was explained. She stressed that there was a need for the extra members if the functions especially scrutiny, were to be carried out properly. The report as such was not dated and if there are problems currently with its implementation she was confident that its recommendations would be revisited over the years to come."
12. DATE OF NEXT MEETING
12.1 The date of the next meeting would be notified at a later time.
23/8/2005