To receive the written reports of the Leader, Cabinet Members and Chairs of the Policy and Performance Committees and receive questions and answers on any of those reports in accordance with Standing Orders 10(2)(a) and 11

The Mayor referred to the reports of the Leader, Cabinet Members and Chairs of Policy and Performance Committees. The Council was invited to receive and note the reports and he commented that they would not be presented, being taken as read. The Mayor requested that questions be confined to the content of the reports.

The Leader of the Council responded to questions in relation to his portfolio report from Councillors Jeff Green, Stuart Kelly and Janette Williamson and made a number of comments including:

·  Contrary to recent reports, Shared Services had not been abandoned, but had been put on hold until October 2014, when proposals with regard to the Future Council project would be published. .This would allow further analysis of the Business Case to be undertaken and he commented that it was appropriate for matters to be put on hold to assess the costs/savings, prior to any binding agreement being signed. Nevertheless, considerable savings were still required as a result of Government cuts and he expressed disappointment that the Conservative Group had not wished to be involved in recent events to discuss the future shape of Council services in Wirral.

·  He indicated that there was an appetite in Schools to work with the Council to share costs associated with School Crossing Patrols and the Primary Heads Group had indicated their willingness to work with the Council. He re-affirmed that the safety of young people was paramount and that where a school was unwilling or unable to commit to share costs, funding would be made available.

·  He was pleased that Wirral was now a Living Wage Council and commented that this also included a commitment to ensuring that new contracts for social care providers would demonstrate that they would follow the Council’s ethical care charter. This asked providers, amongst other requirements, not to employ staff on zero hour contracts. He had attended on 7 March 2014 a meeting with other North West Council’s who were committed to paying the Living Wage, with a view to sharing best practice and he hoped that work being undertaken with major employers would lead to Wirral becoming a Living Wage Borough.

Resolved – That the report of the Leader of the Council be noted.

Questions were then invited for Councillor Ann McLachlan on her Governance and Improvement Portfolio Report and responses to a question from Councillor Tony Norbury included the following comments:

·  That the Cultural Change Programme was of significant value to the Council and all Members and officers had a duty to engage with it. Its importance had been identified by the Wirral/LGA Improvement Board and a recent Members’ Survey had highlighted the key role to be played by Group Leaders to promote good standards of conduct. With the support of the Members’ Training Steering Group, training would continue to be offered to develop the Cultural Change agenda. However, courses were more cost effective when fully attended and she hoped that all Members would engage with the training programme.

Resolved – That the Governance and Improvement Portfolio report be noted.

Questions were then invited for Councillor George Davies on the Neighbourhoods, Housing and Engagement Portfolio Report and his responses to questions from Councillors Mike Hornby and Andrew Hodson included the following comments:

·  Sunderland City Council had started a process of devolved funding and services to local areas four years ago and now allocated significant resources to five Area Committees. This had led to decision making being more responsive to local needs and a recent visit to Sunderland had assisted in the development of Wirral’s Constituency Committee model. He anticipated that the devolvement of services and increased funding to Constituency Committees would continue.

·  He assured the Council that comments from Constituency Committee Chairs would be included in future reports and that he would provide an explanation to all Members of the Council as to why they had not been included in the current update report.

In response to a question from Councillor Stuart Kelly, Councillor Davies proposed to provide a written response with regard to the number of Wirral residents employed in the new affordable housing schemes.

Resolved – That the Neighbourhoods, Housing and Engagement Portfolio report be noted.

Questions were invited for Councillor Adrian Jones on the Central and Support Services Portfolio Report and his responses to questions from Councillors Les Rowlands, Geoffrey Watt and Jim Crabtree included the following comments:

·  With regard to recent IT outages, he highlighted a failure of the previous administration to invest funding to upgrade IT systems, which had been allocated in January 2010. A number of key officers had also left the employment of the Authority, including the Head of IT Services, which had resulted in external expertise having to be brought in. He commented that meetings were due to take place in the next few days with the highest level of external expertise and that the outcome of that meeting would be communicated to all Members.

·  With regard to the severe weather event in December 2013, he referred to the thorough and accurate reporting in the Liverpool Echo, which highlighted the huge gulf in the treatment of Wirral by the Government compared to other parts of the country, in the light of comments made by the Prime Minister that ‘money would be no object’. He expected that the Chief Executive would write to the Prime Minister to highlight the neglect of Wirral.

Resolved – That the Central and Support Services Portfolio report be noted

Questions were invited for Councillor Pat Hackett on his Economy Portfolio Report and responses to questions from Councillors Stuart Kelly and Rob Gregson included the following comments:

·  The master plan for Birkenhead Town Centre had been commenced by Neptune Development, which was expected to be completed within the next 12 months. He referred to the success of previous schemes, which had been achieved following extensive consultation and he assured the Council that there would be consultation as the plan was developed.

·  He commented upon the excellent record of the Council and its partners in the development of the Reachout Programme, which sought to get people into employment and was pleased to highlight the funding allocation agreed by Budget Council to extend the Programme.

Resolved – That the Economy Portfolio report be noted.

Questions were invited for Councillor Brian Kenny on the Environment and Sustainability Portfolio Report and his responses to questions from Councillors Bill Davies, Walter Smith, Mike Sullivan and Geoffrey Watt included the following comments:

·  He was disappointed with recent suggestions that the Council had not responded effectively to repair damages to assets caused by the severe weather event in December 2013. He highlighted that the Cabinet had committed £250,000 from reserves to allow a programme of repairs, whilst receiving a grant of only £20,000 from central Government. However, although the repairs programme had commenced, to avoid wasting resources, a number of repairs had been delayed to allow for the passing of the high Spring tides that were forecast to occur until the end of March. Works would be undertaken during April and he thanked all of the volunteers who had been involved in the cleanup programme. He referred also to a visit to the affected Wirral areas by the Chair of the NW Regional Flood and Coastal Committee and confirmed that pressure would be maintained for funding to undertake improvements to the West Kirby coastal area.

·  He referred to the success of the Garden Waste Scheme and indicated that the take up by households had exceeded expectations.

·  There remained a problem of fly-tipping in certain areas and he referred to the establishment of a Waste Investigation Unit that had been set up to help tackle alleyway dumping, with a particular focus on targeting landlords and contractors who illegally fly-tipped to avoid waste disposal costs. A communications/enforcement campaign was soon to be undertaken and he indicated his determination to pursue prosecutions.

·  He was happy to investigate suggestions to limit and prevent damage caused by storms and high tides and looked forward to a report from Esther McVey MP who had been given Special Responsibility for North West Floods.

Resolved – That the Environment and Sustainability Portfolio report be noted.

Questions were then invited for Councillor Harry Smith on the Highways and Transportation Portfolio Report and his responses to questions from Councillors Phil Gilchrist, Kathy Hodson and Tony Cox included the following comments:

·  He provided an update with regard to the Delivery of the Highway Services Contract 2014-2018 and commented that work was progressing with the new and the existing provider and Council officers, to ensure as smooth a transition as possible. In particular, meetings were also taking place in respect of TUPE with the employees’ union representatives to facilitate transfer to the new employer.

·  Until details of allocations were received, it was not possible to comment at this stage upon reports that the Government was to make additional funding of £103.5m available to local authorities to address potholes in their area. At the present time, pot holes would be dealt with as far as the budget would allow.

In response to a question from Councillor Jeff Green, he proposed to provide a written response to all Members of the Council with regard to the date the Highway Services Contract was awarded to BAM Nuttall Limited.

Resolved – That the Highways and Transportation Portfolio report be noted.

Moving on to the Health and Wellbeing Portfolio Report, questions were invited for Councillor Chris Meaden. Her responses to questions from Councillors Ian Lewis, Wendy Clements and Alan Brighouse included the following comments:

·  That public consultation on the draft Wirral Green and Open Space Strategy 2014-2024 was due to end on 14 March 2014 and it was hoped that funding would be available for allocation to Friends Groups to support local projects.

·  A Strategic Plan had been put forward by the Williamson Art Gallery Action Group, which would form the basis of continuing discussions and the exploration of options for an alternative way of managing the asset.

Resolved – That the Health and Wellbeing Portfolio report be noted.

At this point, Standing Order 9 came into effect, in accordance with minute 85 ante.

Resolved – That the Adult Social Care and Children and Family Services Portfolio reports and the report of the Policy and Performance Committee Chairs be noted.