Agenda item

Up to 30 minutes is allowed for this item.

To answer any written public questions about matters which are within the powers and duties of the County Council.

The closing date for receipt of question is 10am on Wednesday, 8 February 2017.  Please send questions to the Chief Executive marked for the attention of Stephen Bace (email stephen.bace@gloucestershire.gov.uk).

To answer any oral questions put by members of the public with the consent of the Chairman.  Depending on the nature of the questions asked it may not be possible to provide a comprehensive answer at the meeting, in which case a written answer will be supplied as soon as reasonably possible after the meeting.

Questions received and proposed responses do not accompany this agenda but will be circulated prior to the meeting.

Thirty three public questions had been received. The following supplementary questions were asked:

Question 1 -Anna Mozol asked what the member was doing to protect the Clearwater open space site and asked whether he was ‘giving up’ on the residents of Quedgeley by not protecting the site.

Cllr Mark Hawthorne explained that he felt strongly about Clearwater Drive and that he had been campaigning for a number of years to keep this vital open space open to residents. He had written to residents in the area and many people had signed a petition and questioned what had happened. He had  received written confirmation from the parish council that the bid for a Village Green application was never submitted to the county council and therefore was never considered.

Question 2 - Anna Mozol – asked what was really happening with the space.  She explained that the planning application for the school had been delayed until after May 2017. She asked whether the delay was due to the County Council elections and asked whether the member would be supporting the application after the election.

Cllr Mark Hawthorne explained that he had written to over 300 residents on a regular basis about the issue. The decision regarding when the application would be put forward was down to the diocese. He had asked them to state their plans for the site and his understanding was that it had been delayed until the completion of their consultation. 

Question 6 - Gerald Hartley asked whether a one tonne increase in waste collection authority recycling cost Gloucestershire County Council more in credits than it would to have UBB  burn that tonne?   

Cllr Ray Theodoulou stated that it would not cost more and he assured members that there was a commitment from Gloucestershire County Council to recycling.

Question 7 - Gerald Hartley asked whether the Councillor would commit to fully supporting the waste collection authorities to convert residual waste to recyclate. He also asked whether the member would list the initiatives being taken by the Council to improve the range and quantity of materials collected as recyclate rather than black bag waste.

Cllr Ray Theodoulou stated that the Council was dedicated to reducing waste that could not be composted. He stated there were many opportunities to recycle and that the County Council encouraged collection agencies to do more through discussions within the Joint Waste Committee.

Question 8 - Dennis Parsons emphasised that, given the September intake of nearly 800 students, the work on a TRO for Albert Drive, Pitville  was time critical. He asked if the member would give priority to the proposal.

Cllr Vernon Smith thanked Mr Parsons for coming to the meeting. He replied that once the consultation was completed and the responses worked through, this work would be progressed appropriately.

Question 9 – Dennis Parsons asked what the Cabinet Member’s ‘Plan B’ was with regards to the Road Safety Partnership given the withdrawal of funding from the Police and Crime Commissioner.

Cllr Vernon Smith explained that the County Council saw Road Safety as being paramount and that the Council would take this forward itself.

Question 21 – Kate Haigh asked whether the cabinet member believed that reducing spending on CAB and the Law Centre would cause long term harm to vulnerable people. She asked what work he would do to save those vital services.

In response, Cllr Ray Theodoulou stated that the County Council does calibrate to the CAB but that this was primarily a City Council matter and that the question would be better directed there.

Question 22 - Nigel Wise stated his concerns about being instructed to only correspond with the Commissioning Director and that he had not received a response as promised. He asked whether this was because the Parking Team were unable to respond to straightforward day to day requests regarding parking matters.

Cllr Vernon Smith stated that the letter had been written and would be with him in the coming days.

Question 23 – Nigel Wise stated that he wanted to receive a publicly published answer to his question and asked why he should receive a private response to his question from officers.

Cllr Vernon Smith replied that TROs and parking were complex and detailed areas and that in these instances he referred the matter to senior officers, who were experts in these fields, to respond.

Question 24 – Nigel Wise stated that he had held a meeting with APCOA who had agreed that the Municipal Offices road in Cheltenham  was unenforceable. He asked if the member would meet with himself and the APCOA supervisor and an officer of the Council at the site.

Cllr Vernon Smith reiterated that parking was a complex area and that officers were confident that the Council was working within the regulation. If Mr Wise felt this was incorrect then there was a full complaints procedure which could be followed via the Local Government Ombudsman.

Question 26 – Nigel Wise asked whether the Council would employ someone, even on a temporary basis, with the necessary competence with regards to parking?

Cllr Vernon Smith replied that the Council did employ experts on parking and that he had confidence in the team.

Question 28 – Mr Dragojlovic expressed his concern that petitions from Park Street with regards to the Cheltenham West Parking Review had not been considered. He requested numbers for those ‘for’ the scheme and those ‘against’.

Cllr Vernon Smith stated that the numbers would be provided and advised him to speak to Cllr Harman and the MP Alex Chalk regarding this complex matter.