Agenda item

To consider a report by Councillor Hugh Evans, Leader and Lead Member for the Economy and Corporate Governance (copy enclosed) regarding the Governance Agreement required to formalise the constitutional arrangements of, and confer decision making powers to, the North Wales Economic Ambition Board within prescribed limits.

RESOLVED that –

(a)       progress on the development of a Growth Deal Bid is noted and welcomed;

(b)       the first stage Governance Agreement is approved subject to Council’s approval of the non-executive arrangements i.e. the arrangements for Scrutiny;

(c)        the Council be presented with the final draft Growth Deal Bid for review and consent in September/October prior to the stage of reaching Heads of Terms with both Governments;

(d)       delegated authority be given to the Chief Executive, Corporate Director: Economy and Public Realm and Head of Legal, HR and Democratic Services, in consultation with the Leader to finalise the terms of the Governance Agreement substantially in accordance with the draft attached to this report, and

(e)       that Cabinet approve the executive arrangements contained within the Governance Agreement and recommend that Council approve their inclusion in the Constitution along with the non-executive arrangements relating to Scrutiny.

Councillor Hugh Evans introduced the report regarding the Governance Agreement required to formalise the constitutional arrangements of, and confer decision making powers to, the North Wales Economic Ambition Board within prescribed limits.

Some background information was provided regarding previous collaborative approvals to adopt the Growth Vision and develop a Growth Deal Bid.  The next step required approval of the first stage Governance Agreement from all six North Wales local authorities – Cabinet approval was sought in so far as it related to executive arrangements subject to Full Council’s approval of non-executive arrangements.  The first Governance Agreement covered the preparatory and development stage up to mid-July 2019 after which a second stage more in-depth Governance Agreement would need to be approved to cover the implementation phase and project delivery.

Cabinet welcomed the progress in developing the Growth Bid and reiterated the need for robust governance arrangements, particularly when progressing to the second stage of prioritising projects in the region and financial contributions.  In response to questions the Leader and Head of Legal, HR & Democratic Services –

·         detailed membership of the Board which included representatives from each of the six local authorities, two universities, two further education colleges and the North Wales Mersey Dee Business Council and confirmed provisions in place for nominated substitute and replacement representatives to ensure continuity

·         confirmed the joint committee model as the most appropriate means of governance currently available but there had been calls on the Welsh Government to create a more appropriate model given that only local authorities had voting rights with no such provision for partners

·         elaborated upon the governance map which included a stakeholder forum with representatives from relevant sectors and monitoring of the Board and advised that the second stage would involve the creation of various sub groups

·         clarified provisions in Schedule 1 (Delegations Policy), point 21 which related to incidental matters with any major matters being reserved as set out in the table

·         advised that each local authority was represented on the Board by their Leader and decisions would be made in accordance with agreed governance arrangements with clear accountability

·         explained that funding of £50k had been committed to progress initial work but far greater investment would need to be considered as matters progressed and the costs of potential projects and financial contributions became clearer

·         clarified scrutiny arrangements which would be local scrutiny in the first stage Governance Agreement with potential for regional scrutiny in the second stage

·         explained the context of the Local Development Plan in terms of potential future projects with Bodelwyddan identified as a priority for the area – there was no impact on current arrangements as a result of the Governance Agreement.

RESOLVED that –

(a)       progress on the development of a Growth Deal Bid is noted and welcomed;

(b)       the first stage Governance Agreement is approved subject to Council’s approval of the non-executive arrangements i.e. the arrangements for Scrutiny;

(c)        the Council be presented with the final draft Growth Deal Bid for review and consent in September/October prior to the stage of reaching Heads of Terms with both Governments;

(d)       delegated authority be given to the Chief Executive, Corporate Director: Economy and Public Realm and Head of Legal, HR and Democratic Services, in consultation with the Leader to finalise the terms of the Governance Agreement substantially in accordance with the draft attached to this report, and

(e)       that Cabinet approve the executive arrangements contained within the Governance Agreement and recommend that Council approve their inclusion in the Constitution along with the non-executive arrangements relating to Scrutiny.