Agenda and draft minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Liam Billington and Councillor Martin Hayes.

RESOLVED/-

To note there were no announcements.

To receive declarations of interest in any item for discussion at the meeting. A blank form for declaring interests has been circulated with the agenda; please ensure that this is returned to the Governance & Scrutiny Officer at the start of the meeting.

RESOLVED/-

To note there were no declarations received.

To consider the approval of the minute of the meetings held on 11 July 2019

Following the Local Concessionary Travel Charge item (M167/HPE) being discussed at this Committee in July where Member’s did not support the current proposal, a Member requested an update following its approval at the Combined Authority meeting in July 2019.

The Mayor clarified to Members that the concerns raised at this Committee had been considered and noted prior to the decision being taken to adopt the proposal at the Combined Authority meeting.   The rationale for signing off the proposal was given that a £10 administration charge was in place for all of the other concessionary schemes in GM for other age generations such as Our Pass, IGO and Women’s Concessionary Travel Pass, and that to not incorporate it would create an equality/equal treatment issue.  It was also felt that the charge was proportionate, and that to delay the decision would impact upon its implementation.

It was reaffirmed that the concessionary charge only relates to the Metrolink and train travel, with bus unaffected and free for all older people of state pension age and over. 

It was clarified that in terms of comparison of this pass to the other concessionary travel offers, whilst the older persons pass does have a time restriction (not valid before 09:30), it encompasses more options such as tram and train, whilst the other options were only bus. 

It was clarified to Members that using the Concessionary pass to tap in and out will not result in a charge, but doing so will assist TfGM to monitor footfall and for planning purposes.

RESOLVED/-

That the Minutes of 11^th July be agreed as an accurate record.

A report providing the latest six monthly update of the Greater Manchester Strategy (GMS) implementation plan and performance dashboards.

Andy Burnham provided Members with the latest six monthly update of the Greater Manchester Strategy (GMS) implementation plan and performance dashboards. 

The Mayor thanked Members of the committee for their continued engagement with the scrutiny process with this level of debate valued as being an essential component in developing the right policy in GM.

The presentation delivered to Members was noted as having previously been delivered to the GM Reform Board, and had a focus on providing an update on delivery, specifically change delivered to the residents of the 10 GM boroughs. 

The update detailed improvement in School readiness, with positive improvements in outcomes for disadvantaged children and for pupils eligible for Free School Meals having improved consistently since 2015.

In terms of Mental Health in Children and Young People, rates of patients with a diagnosable mental health condition receiving treatment were noted as being ahead of national targets and ambitions.  It was highlighted that in December 2018, Greater Manchester became the first area in the country to start collating and publicly publishing waiting time data for children and young people’s mental health services.  It was also fed back that in terms of general population health, levels of exercise in GM were increasing with 73.3% adults being active for at least 30 minutes a week.

The Mayoral Development Corporation was highlighted as showing the potential to deliver sustainable development and regeneration and represents a piece of genuine progress. The Our Pass initiative was noted as being taken up by 35,000 young people making 2 million journeys, both being examples of how devolution was delivering change. 

In terms of providing an update on the GMSF, officers clarified that due to not having regulations in place as a result of them not being agreed by Central Government, the next round of statutory consultation will not be until summer 2020. It was intended that there will be an informal response to the consultation in early 2020 to show ongoing process.

Members requested an update in relation to Clean Air targets in the 5 year strategy, particularly in the wake of the climate emergency being declared and numbers of car users stated as not reducing significantly.

The Mayor highlighted the legal obligation to tackle clean air with local councils liable to achieve air quality targets.  It was noted that TfGM conducted air quality analysis in all 10 GM boroughs which revealed a number of pockets across the City Region which fell short of legal limits.  Tackling this problem GM wide was thought to be the right approach to avoid displacing the problem and successfully managing levels of traffic across GM.

It was stated that that the Mayor and TfGM were conscious of the potential impact of managing the costs of transition on commercial taxis and van drivers and also HGV and bus operators, which may require financial assistance to upgrade.   The Mayor stated that there should be no impact to jobs and businesses as GM seeks to improve clean air.  It was highlighted that  ...  view the full minutes text for item 175.

The Mayor provided an update to Members on the Town Centre Challenge initiative.

Members were updated that the Stockport MDC had now been formally constituted with the Mayor acting as Chair for the initial meetings. It was noted that he will eventually pass this role on to an independent Chair. A masterplan for development of Town Centre West was noted as being completed and it was felt that this had already had a significant impact in gathering national attention.  It was highlighted that Stockport was the first MDC focused on a town centre regeneration area.  Members were informed that there was a healthy pipeline of support for Stockport to achieve its goal of 3500 new homes which will largely be high-density and affordable.  The town Centre will be massively remodelled to accommodate age friendly properties, and will also be zero carbon with a redesigned transport interchange and integrated walking and cycling infrastructure.   The Mayor highlighted that other districts care very welcome to adopt the MDC.

Members enquired how funding streams and regeneration were envisaged to work for

smaller boroughs in Greater Manchester. It was updated that town centre challenge progress reports were available for all towns, with all moving forward.  The Mayor was confident this was the right approach and that demonstrating delivery in town centres can relieve pressure on greenbelt.

Members wanted to ensure that any quantum growth in Town Centres was able to offset greenbelt risks through the GMSF. The importance of having a secure robust 5 year delivery plan for housing was highlighted. The Stockport pipeline plan was noted as being helpful and adding credibility to the 5 year delivery plan.    

Member were updated that Government have today published 2019/20 housing build figures with GM having a net of 11,500 which was the highest second highest ever trend in the City Region.

In terms of monitoring land supply at a GM level, Members were reassured that a group of the 10 Districts were coming together to monitor this information.  This keeps visibility of available land, what was imminently coming forward, planning permission status and also incorporates the Town Centre Challenge.

Members highlighted the importance of engaging with a cross section of stakeholders over the changes implemented as part of the MDC, such as SMEs to make sure they were not displaced and were supported through change. The Mayor highlighted that if used correctly, the MDC can be a great vehicle for redevelopment.  It was stated that the cross party representation and remediation mechanisms and public engagement mechanisms need to function correctly so that all small businesses and stakeholders can have a voice to feedback issues.  The intention by Stockport was to build an all generation neighbourhood with infrastructure to benefit all.   

In terms of land supply, the Mayor felt that there needs to be a shift in thinking to accept that town centres need to be fundamentally different from the last century with a move away from focusing solely on employment and retail developments.

ACTION: Members  ...  view the full minutes text for item 176.

A report providing Overview & Scrutiny Members with an update to the GMCA on the current work and progress made on ending the need for rough sleeping in Greater Manchester.

The Mayor provided Members with an update on the current work and progress made on ending the need for rough sleeping in Greater Manchester.

It was feedback to Members that official figures of rough sleepers in GM for November 2018 were 241. Official figures were due out later this month, however counts carried out by the GM Districts for September gave a figure of 195. It was noted that confirmation of these figures by Government counts will represent a second consecutive year of numbers falling following a period of significant rise. Bed Every Night was credited with this change in trend, with 358 individuals currently using this facility. It was also stated that around one third of those using the facility move on to a better more permanent accommodation.

Members were updated that following additional support from NHS funding and from the Ministry of Justice and Community Rehabilitation Company, Bed Every Night will move up to phase 2, increasing capacity to 401 spaces. This represents GM being much better prepared for this winter. It was highlighted that the NHS were working to provide more support within shelters such as mental health provision. For phase 2 of Bed Every Night, there was an aspiration to also improve the quality of support provided with more provisions such as for women only, couples and dogs.

The Mayor reiterated his stance that it shouldn’t be allowed that people can be left to sleep on the streets with no provision available to them.  The Bed Every Night scheme was stated as being a proven better use of public money rather than seeing consequence overtake planning in GM. It was highlighted that CRISIS had estimated The cost of providing 1 bed for a year to be £11,000, compared to the cost on public resources of not providing a bed given as £20,000 per year in terms of health/police resources. 

It was noted that Housing First which was noted as a Government pilot with 3 years funding providing accommodation and offers a range of additional support, was fully rolling out across districts. Members were updated that 89 individuals have been assessed as eligible, (mainly rough sleepers with a range of complex needs) with 34 now accommodated . It was noted that Housing First and Bed Every Night together demonstrating a more coherent response to this crisis.

Following Member comments that there was a lack of Member representation over homelessness, the Mayor highlighted that councillor involvement would always be greatly appreciated. The ongoing work tackling rough sleeping of Salford City Mayor Paul Dennett was highlighted, and the Committee heard that there were periodic meetings with homeless needs, and the homelessness programme board which Councillors attend. 

The challenges to acceptance of support by rough sleepers was discussed by the Committee with personal safety fears and in some cases, acceptance of life choices being highlighted as barriers.  It was stated that accommodation provision had been designed to be physically safe with through-the-night supervision, and where possible, the provision of single  ...  view the full minutes text for item 177.

A report updating Members on the proposal to introduce a tariff on the Greater Manchester Electric Vehicle (GMEV) charging network from early 2020.

Simon Warburton, Transport Strategy Director for TfGM introduced a report updating Members on the proposal to introduce a tariff on the Greater Manchester Electric Vehicle (GMEV) charging network from early 2020.

The Greater Manchester Taxi Trade Coalition circulated a letter to members of the Committee that set out their concerns on proposals to introduce a tariff on the Greater Manchester Electric Vehicle (GMEV) network from early 2020.  

Representatives from the sector were present at the meeting to listen to discussions around issues raised. 

GMEV was established in 2012 and was grant funded by Central Government.  The scheme was managed by Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) and subsequently rolled out and managed through a contract with a provider.  Current arrangements required customers to either register for a membership card for an annual fee of £20 that was payable to a third party who operated the network, or free use of a mobile app.   Since the installation of the network, TfGM had not charged customers to charge their vehicles. 

High growth in GMEV usage had continued since 2016 and it was anticipated that this would continue to grow over the next few years.   The wider pressures on Levy funded transport budget and the increased use of the infrastructure meant that it was financially unsustainable to continue to provide this service free of charge.

The introduction of an Electric Vehicle charging tariff would assist with securing a long- term revenue stream to assist in funding the costs associated with a publically owned EV charging infrastructure in GM.  Over the past year, an extensive consultation exercise had been undertaken on the re-let of the contract and the expansion of the existing GMEV network.

With reference to the concerns set out by representatives from the Greater Manchester Taxi Trade Coalition, it was stressed that it remained TfGM’s intention to put in place a membership model for the GMEV system that would be attractive to commercial users.  This model had not yet been designed but it was envisaged that this would allow regular commercial users to benefit from a degree of tariff relief.   It was hoped that by November 2019, GMCA would have been closer to a finalised position on the GM Clean Air Plan.   As of today, no confirmation on funding had been received, however, it was envisaged that grant funding would be available to support the shift towards broader vehicle change. 

Members expressed a variety of concerns regarding the introduction of a tariff on the Greater Manchester Electric Vehicle (GMEV) charging network from early 2020.

Members queried the market research undertaken to develop the tariff structure, which they felt only incorporated consultation with a very small percentage of electric vehicle owners.  It was clarified that market research for both tariffing and service had included a cross section of the public.  This had deliberately included non- EV owners as they were the future target market for the GM Clean Air plan.    In addition, other supporting information from existing user data had been included. 

Members  ...  view the full minutes text for item 178.

Due to the cancellation of the Combined Authority meeting on 13^th December, Members of this Committee agreed for the meeting scheduled for 5^th December to be cancelled.

An amended work programme will be circulated to Members.

RESOLVED/-

1. That the work programme be agreed with the addition of an item being added in relation to proposals for an energy company.
2. That in view of insufficient business for the 5^th December, agreed that the meeting should be cancelled and the business held over to the January meeting.

Available online at the GMCA Site:

https://democracy.greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=386&MId=2762&Ver=4

RESOLVED/-

That the register be noted.

Thursday 5^th December 2019 10.30am, Boardroom, Churchgate House (Please note this building is being renamed The Tootal Buildings)

Thursday 16th January 2020                    10:30 – 11:30

Thursday 13th February 2020                   14:00 – 16:00

Thursday 19th March 2020                      18:00 – 20:00