Agenda item
RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE STRATEGIC INVESTMENT GROUP
To consider a report by Councillor Julian Thompson-Hill, Lead Member for Finance, Performance and Strategic Assets (copy enclosed) seeking Cabinet’s support of projects identified for inclusion in the 2020/21 Capital Plan.
Decision:
RESOLVED that –
(a) the projects detailed in Appendix 1 to
the report for inclusion in the 2020/21 Capital Plan be supported and
recommended to full Council, and
(b) Cabinet requests that officers in the
Highways Service carry out an assessment of damage caused to the network by the
recent storms in order that the extent of further funding can be identified.
Minutes:
Councillor
Julian Thompson-Hill presented the report seeking Cabinet’s support of projects
identified for inclusion in the 2020/21 Capital Plan as recommended by the
Strategic Investment Group (SIG) and detailed in Appendix 1 to the report.
Councillor Thompson-Hill guided members through
the report and explained the funding available for block allocations for
on-going programmes of work. Reference
was made to the work of the SIG in reviewing the bids for allocations and a
summary of their recommendations had been provided and elaborated upon further
at the meeting which included the recommended funding source for each project
together with the reasoning for supporting those specific projects and
allocations.
Cabinet considered the recommendations detailed
within the report.
Councillor Huw Hilditch-Roberts referred to the
recent adverse weather conditions and thanked staff for their hard work in that
regard. Given the storm damage to the
highway infrastructure he queried whether there was a need to revisit the
investment in that area to take account of remedial work required and ensure
highway works were financed appropriately and due diligence observed. The Leader advised that the First Minister
had called an emergency flood summit with local authorities (to be attended by
Lead Member Councillor Brian Jones) and other agencies and it was expected that
funding would be forthcoming to help deal with the aftermath. Councillor Julian Thompson-Hill also provided
assurances that emergency remedial works would be funded as appropriate and
explained the funding streams available, including the severe weather reserve,
but confirmed there was likely to be a national grant scheme which could be
accessed if a particular threshold was met.
With regard to SIG’s recommended allocation for highways, £1.750m had
been allocated for capital expenditure to be prioritised as appropriate by the
Highways Service and there may also be further opportunities to submit bids for
remedial works pending the allocation of additional funding in year. Officers added that following the clean-up
operations an assessment of the damage would be carried out – whilst it was
recognised that damage would have been caused to the highway infrastructure it
was too early to confirm the extent of the damage and adjust the capital
allocations in that regard. Councillor
Brian Jones advised that an assessment of the damage would be undertaken as
soon as possible and work was ongoing in terms of planning and focusing
resources. In light of the recent storm
damage to the highway infrastructure and subsequent funding pressures to be met
it was agreed to include in the resolution reference to the assessment of
damage and identification of savings required.
Councillor Bobby Feeley referred to the Queens
Market Development and queried the confirmation of external funding. It was explained that the buildings had been
purchased with the assistance of Welsh Government (£2.5m) and European (£2.5m)
funding. Whilst the Welsh Government
funding had been received, the European funding had been confirmed subject to
the Council achieving key stages of development and timescales had been set for
that purpose. A detailed report on the
development would be submitted to a future Cabinet meeting.
Councillor Huw Hilditch-Roberts welcomed the
additional funding recommended for school capital maintenance which was an
increase on the previous year.
Lead Members responded to issues raised by
non-Cabinet members as follows –
·
Councillor
Martyn Holland was pleased to note the funding allocated for bridge repairs
given their importance, particularly for rural communities, and asked that the
issue be raised in the forthcoming meeting with Welsh Government. In response to his concerns regarding
potholes, Councillor Brian Jones advised that work was ongoing to find a more
permanent solution and in addition to the forthcoming annual visits to Member
Area Groups to discuss road maintenance, a members’ workshop was also being
arranged on highway matters
·
Councillor
Huw Hilditch-Roberts advised Ysgol Llanfair DC (new
school) would open shortly and would be able to accept more pupils – it was not
full to capacity
·
Councillor
Julian Thompson-Hill explained the terms of prudential borrowing referred to in
the report advising that £100k for highways had been set aside as part of the
2020/21 Corporate Plan allocation which would allow £1.750m of capital
expenditure, and the programme of replacement of LED lanterns would involve
taking out a Salix loan for up to £200k over six years which would be
self-funding with savings from the energy costs accrued over the term.
RESOLVED that –
(a) the projects detailed in Appendix 1 to
the report for inclusion in the 2020/21 Capital Plan be supported and
recommended to full Council, and
(b) Cabinet requests that officers in the
Highways Service carry out an assessment of damage caused to the network by the
recent storms in order that the extent of further funding can be identified.
Supporting documents:
-
SIG RECOMMENDATIONS, item 6.
PDF 231 KB
-
SIG RECOMMENDATIONS - APP 1, item 6.
PDF 83 KB
-
SIG RECOMMENDATIONS - APP 2, item 6.
PDF 101 KB