There were none.

There were none.

RESOLVED:  That the Minutes of the meeting held on 30 June 2011 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman, subject to the resolution contained in the exempt part of the Minutes being included in the open part of the Minutes as follows:

“RESOLVED

That    (a)        the outcome of the feasibility study conducted by Ernst and                            Young was noted; and

(b)       the Chief Executive be authorised, in consultation with the three partner owning authorities, to effect the sale of West Mercia Supplies.”

The Leader of the Council introduced the report.  Proposed amendments to the recommendations published in the agenda papers had been circulated at the meeting.

The Leader commented that the proposed amendments provided for wider consultation on matters related to the Local Development Framework.  He noted that the proposals now envisaged 16,500 new homes being provided in a revised Plan covering the period 2011 to 2031, rather than the 18,000 required under the Regional Spatial Strategy (RSS) by 2026.

Economic Development Strategy

The Cabinet Member (Enterprise and Culture) presented the Economic Development Strategy, highlighting the infrastructure and development initiatives set out at page 17 of the agenda papers.

He noted the enormous pressures that would be placed on the County’s economy by the projected 30% growth in the number of people aged over 65 living within it.

The following principal points were made:

·         The Cabinet Member confirmed that the Strategy recognised the importance to the County’s economy of Tourism, food and drink production and businesses related to defence and security.

·         The Cabinet Member advised that the Council’s grant to Halo Ltd had been reduced by 5% for 2011/12 and would be subject to a 10% reduction in 2012/13.

·         The Leader of the It’s Our County Group complimented the Strategy’s focus on small and medium sized businesses and social enterprise but expressed regret that this focus was not reflected in the proposed Local Development Framework.

Local Development Framework

The Cabinet Member (Environment, Highways and Planning) presented the report.  He made the following principal points:

·         Provision of a minimum of 14,400 dwellings over the proposed revised life of the Plan 2011 to 2031 would imply zero employment growth.  However, the projected growth of 18,000 in the RSS was not considered appropriate.  It was now proposed to provide 16,500 new homes over the Plan’s life.

·         Hereford City remained the principal focus for development in the County but with a reduced level and a different pattern of employment.

·         A more dispersed pattern of development was proposed on smaller brownfield and greenfield sites in and around the City.  The Whitecross strategic housing site was to be deleted and that at Holmer West was to be reduced in scale.

·         The annual average completion for Hereford City would reduce from some 425 dwellings per annum to 325.  This was an achievable rate in line with previous rates of development.

·      The rate of growth year on year represented by the proposed provision of 16,500 dwellings in the County as a whole over the Plan’s life was not in excess of the growth rates experienced in recent years. 

He highlighted the programme for consultation as set out at paragraph 36 of the report; the proposals to adopt a cross-party approach; and the intention to hold a community poll on the proposal to construct a relief road to the west of Hereford, linked to the wider development proposals, as part of the overall consultation process.  He confirmed that the key points made during the consultation process would be documented.

The Cabinet  ...  view the full minutes text for item 112.

The Cabinet Member (Highways, Transportation and Waste) presented the report.  He highlighted the following points:

·         the reduction in funding to local government and the loss of specific grants allied to contract price inflation in 2010/11 meant an overall budgetary pressure of £264k for 2011/12, a savings requirement of 15% compared with expenditure in 2010/11.

·         the proposed reduction was lower than that being made in neighbouring authorities.  It represented a reduction of 3.2% of bus journeys.

·         the extent of the consultation that had been undertaken and the responses, as described in the report.

·         the proposed changes to services to generate the required savings as set out in Table 1 to the report.

The Cabinet Member (Corporate Services and Education) commented on the importance of bus services to local communities and proposed that the proposals should be subject to further consultation with relevant Ward Members regarding the detail of implementation.

It was noted that discussions were continuing on the potential to increase community transport provision.  The possibility of financial contributions from Parish Councils towards service provision was also being discussed but this was a complex issue.

RESOLVED:

That: (a)    the outcome of the public consultation on the bus network review be noted;

                (b) the recommendations for achieving the required savings for supported bus services set out at table 1 in the Report be agreed subject to further consultation with relevant Ward Members regarding the detail of implementation; and

                (c)  the ongoing review of community transport services and proposals to commence a strategic review of all commissioned passenger transport services in the autumn be noted.

The Cabinet Member (Corporate Services and Education) presented the report. 

The following principal points were made in discussion:

·         The Cabinet Member (Enterprise and Culture) emphasised the importance of the shared services project in protecting services and retaining jobs in the County and securing the future of the County hospital.

·         Some Members in attendance commented on the need to ensure that the projected savings were achieved.  The Interim Transformation Manager (Shared Services) commented that measures were in place to monitor savings.  Each service had a benefits realisation plan setting out a savings target and a plan for achieving that target.  The plans included potential for additional savings in some areas.  This would assist in ensuring the overall savings target was met.  Savings achieved to date resulted principally from a reduction in the overall number of staff employed by The Shared Services Partnership (TSSP) and the staff employed directly by the Partners, and savings in management costs.  Measures were in place to ensure that staffing levels in the Partner organisations were monitored.

·         The Chief Executive commented that the savings were assured by the fact that those responsible for commissioning services had set their budgets and the TSSP had to work within those budgets.

RESOLVED:

That    (a)        progress to date be noted;

            (b)        the necessary authority be delegated to the Chief Executive of Herefordshire Council, who are the sole owners and shareholder in The Shared Services Partnership Ltd, to make a gift of shares in The Shared Services Partnership to NHS Herefordshire and Wye Valley NHS Trust; and

            (c)        the necessary authority be delegated to the Chief Executive of Herefordshire Council to exercise the voting rights in respect of Council’s shareholding in The Shared Services Partnership Limited.

The Cabinet Member (Corporate Services and Education) presented the report.

RESOLVED:  That performance to the end of June 2011 and the measures being taken to address areas of under-performance be noted.

The Cabinet Member (Corporate Services and Education) presented the report. He noted that there was a projected overspend of £2.67m with the bulk of this attributable to expenditure on commissioning adult services.  Plans were in place to mitigate the projected overspend.

The Chief Finance Officer- Finance and Commercial Services commented that the pressure on the adult services budget was a key risk.  There was a clear understanding of the need to bring budgets under control. This was particularly important given the overall funding pressures.  The Council had recently been successful in receiving authority to capitalise expenditure on redundancy costs.  The revenue budget had not yet been adjusted to reflect this decision.

The Cabinet Member (Health and Wellbeing) commented on the pressure on the adult services budget and the need for the Council to be realistic about what reductions in expenditure could be achieved.

RESOLVED:

That:   (a)       the report and the forecast deficit position of £2.67 million be noted; and

            (b)        the Chief Executive’s requirement that Directors deliver recovery plans to ensure a balanced revenue budget be noted.

The Cabinet Member (Corporate Services and Education) presented the report.

RESOLVED:

That:   (a)   the overall timetable for budget setting be noted;

            (b)   the proposed approach for budget planning be endorsed;

            (c)   the Leader be authorised to determine the detailed programme of budget participation, following appropriate consultation with health partners; and

                 (d) the Chief Officer Finance & Commercial Services be instructed following completion of recommendation (c) above to arrange publication of the consultation arrangements.

The Leader presented the report.

RESOLVED: That the Overview and Scrutiny Committee be invited to determine whether it wished to incorporate any of the items in the current Forward Plan in its work programme.