The following Members declared an interest in accordance with Standing Order 16.5:-

Resolved – That the minutes of the meeting of the County Council held on 13 October 2022 be confirmed and signed by the Chairman.

There were no items of Chairman’s Correspondence on this occasion.

The Leader of the Council presented a Statement outlining his recent work since the previous meeting of the Council.

Staffordshire Means Back to Business

(Paragraph 1 of the Statement)

Councillor Philip White referred to the Council’s submission to central government, putting forward the A50-A500 Hydrogen Technologies Corridor in Staffordshire as a potential Investment Zone and the West Midlands Interchange (WMI) project in South Staffordshire; both of which would have an impact on de-carbonising the County.

Councillor Flunder indicated his support for the Council’s various initiatives to support the Staffordshire economy.  He also referred to the recent announcement that the Staffordshire Moorlands was to benefit from £3.4m in government funding to support projects to help local businesses and improve infrastructure.

Councillor Hussain referred to the reference in the Statement that the youth claimant count in Staffordshire had seen an increase of 80 to a total of 2,635 young people and enquired as to the reasons behind this increase.  In response, Councillor Alan White indicated that young people tended to work in occupations where there were higher levels of “churn” such as hospitality.  He also added that the number of young people who were not in Education, Employment or Training (NEETs) in the county was very low.

Councillor Tagg enquired of the Leader of the Council as to whether he would commit to working closely with Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council on the regeneration of the Ryecroft site.

Councillor Hudson indicated that he welcomed the Statement and he spoke about the positive impact on his division which would accrue from the proposals for the A50-A500 Hydrogen Technologies Corridor.  He also spoke about the forthcoming proposals for the regeneration of the Maltings in Uttoxeter and hoped that they would be supported by the County Council.

Councillor Deaville spoke about small businesses being the lifeblood of the Staffordshire economy along with the large employers such as JCB who had recently opened a new cab manufacturing plant near Uttoxeter.

Councillor Smith referred to the need for the District and Borough Councils to commit to working with the County Council to embrace opportunities for development.

Councillor Alan White expressed his thanks to Members for their comments and also praised the work of the Council’s Economic Development Team and the partner agencies they worked with.  He confirmed that the Council would continue to work with partners, including the District and Borough Councils, to improve the outlook for town centres across the county.

Integrated Performance Report - Quarter 2, 2022/23

(Paragraph 2 of the Statement)

Councillor Charlotte Atkins referred to the announcement in the Government’s Autumn Statement in respect of the delay in the bringing forward reforms to Social Care and enquired as to whether this would have an impact on the Council’s recruitment of social care staff.  She also spoke about the financial issues being encountered by some sponsors who were providing accommodation for those fleeing the conflict in Ukraine and enquired whether the Council had considered the provision of additional financial support to those individuals.  In response, Councillor  ...  view the full minutes text for item 37.

In response to a question from Councillor Pardesi concerning investment in human resources and the possible need for efficiency savings, Councillor Peters indicated that the Commissioner was recruiting additional officers and that there was no indication that “efficiency savings” would affect the availability of police officers and that any proposals brought forward by the Commissioner would be scrutinised by the Panel.

Resolved – That the report be received.

Questions to be asked by Members of the County Council of the Leader of the Council, a Cabinet Member, or a Chairman of a Committee.  The question will be answered by the relevant Member and the Member asking the question may then ask a follow up question which will also be answered

Councillor Pritchard asked the following question of the Cabinet Member for Environment, Infrastructure and Climate Change whose reply is set out below the question:-

Question

According to the most recent Air Quality Annual Status Report, at 5.3% Tamworth has the highest percentage of deaths attributable to airborne particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter of 2.5µm or less (PM2.5) within Staffordshire for adults over 30.

Obviously, a transition to EV vehicles would greatly benefit residents living next to busy roads. Could the Leader of the Council outline to me what the authority is doing to reduce PM2.5 rates in the air, as well as drive the rollout of on-street EV charging points in Tamworth?

Reply

Promotion of active travel and undertaking work to tackle air pollution are fundamental roles of the Council’s Connectivity Team. I am aware that a third bid for Air Aware funding to the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs has been submitted. If successful, the Council will continue the fantastic work of this initiative and collaboratively work with colleagues at Tamworth BC to promote campaigns to reduce the number of single person journeys and to support people to walk and cycle more.

I am also pleased to hear that through an Active Travel Fund, £343,000 has been allocated this financial year to deliver improvements for walking and cycling in Amington. In line with Staffordshire's Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan, proposals to deliver a School Street, wider footways and traffic management measures are proposed.

A public EV charging infrastructure strategy for Staffordshire is due to be presented to Cabinet in January for adoption. The Strategy offers a great opportunity to develop a network of charge points and encourage the uptake of EVs across the county. I recognise that for residents without the ability to charge EVs off-street, a number of alternative options to home charging will be important in enabling a transition to EV use. The Council has a key role to play, and through working together with Tamworth BC and local businesses, facilities at the rate and scale of delivery that the market requires will be rolled out. All these measures will contribute to the Council achieving carbon net zero by 2050 and improving the quality of life for residents through a reduction of noise and air quality impacts.

Councillor Northcott asked the following question of the Cabinet Member for Communities and Culture whose reply is set out below the question:-

Question

Could the Cabinet Member for Communities and Culture update this council please. What are Staffordshire County Council doing to support our Ukrainian sponsors and is there any direct funding available now or in the near future to assist them?

Reply

Hosts receive a nationally agreed thank you payment of £350 per host sponsor per month for the first year.

Further support is also provided to the Ukrainian guests for access to English, health support, enabling access to employment, ensuring that those needed help from Children’s and Adults Social Care receive this.

A cabinet  ...  view the full minutes text for item 39.

There were no petitions on this occasion.