TheChairwelcomedeveryoneto the meeting, including the Executive Member for Public Health, Prevention & Support Housing Caroline Dickinson. It was confirmed that MP Kevin Hollinrake, would be joining the meeting at 3pm and therefore the Chair agreed to bring forward other items of business on the agenda, ahead of his attendance.

Recommendation:

Having considered the draftMinutes ofthe formal Thirsk & Malton Area Constituency Committee meeting heldon 26 March 2021, and subject to any amendments identified, members of the Committee are asked to recommend to the Chief Executive that he confirm them as a correct record using his emergency delegated powers.

Members ofthe Thirskand MaltonAreaConstituency Committeeconsidered the draft Minutesof theirprevious formal meeting heldon 26 March 2021, and having agreed they were a correct record of the meeting:

Resolved –

To recommend to the Chief Executive that he confirm them as a correct record using his emergency delegated powers.

Apologies were received from County Councillor Caroline Patmore, and there were no declarations of interest made, at the meeting.

Members of the public may ask questions or make statements at this meeting if they have given notice and provided the text to Melanie Carr of Democratic Services (contact details below) no later than midday on Tuesday 22 June 2021. Each speaker should limit themselves to 3 minutes on any item.  Members of the public who have given notice will be invited to speak:

·           at this point in the meeting if their questions/statements relate to matters which are not otherwise on the Agenda (subject to an overall time limit of 30 minutes);

·           when the relevant Agenda item is being considered if they wish to speak on a matter which is on the Agenda for this meeting.

If you are exercising your right to speak at this meeting, but do not wish to be recorded, please inform the Chairman who will instruct those taking a recording to cease whilst you speak.

A registration to speak at the meeting was received from Mr Ian Conlon.  Mr Conlon attended the meeting to read out the following statement/question:

"I welcome our new Police Fire and Crime Commissioner Philip Allott's support for default 20mph speed limits in our towns and villages. This is also government policy, and I have had support from our MP for local implementation of this. Surveys repeatedly show that such Area wide default 20mph speed limits become more popular once implemented, with support rising from 70% to 90% once implemented. The evidence is clear from both rural and urban counties that this does lead to reductions of accidents, and that the costs of implementing area wide speed limit changes without any new speed bumps, i.e. changing and adding the speed limit signs, pay back in 8 months in costs saved from the reductions in accidents, according to 20s plenty cost calculator based on Department for Transport figures. There is no evidence of increased aggressive behaviour as a result of the changes elsewhere, certainly not that leads to any increase in accidents or decrease in feelings in safety: quite the opposite in fact: children are more likely to be allowed to play outside in the street unsupervised, children walk and cycle to school more, cycling in the upper primary age in particular shows a huge increase, and this neatly ties in with LEP ambition to increase cycling rates by 9-fold. Combine this with a higher priority and support for dedicated cycle routes, and selective closure of routes, part-time or full time,  to through motor traffic such as Castlegate in the AQMA in Malton, and the health and quality of life benefits, in a district that has disgraceful obesity levels, are obvious. Average journey times in areas that have implemented area wide 20mph are 1 minute longer. I must remind members that, rural though our constituency is, most people live in a town or village that would welcome traffic travelling at speeds that are not as likely as not lethal on impact. 30mph is NOT a safe speed to be hit at, and has a high fatality rate, pedestrians are rarely killed at 20mph. And its not just children: the more frail elderly and other vulnerable people are disproportionately excluded from our public space and healthy exercise by lethal speeds in their own communities. I am please to be part of a new Community Speedwatch group, but I would much rather all our locations in Malton and Norton were 20mph, so all communities benefit from traffic travelling at safer speeds. My question is simple: Will each councillor here pledge to support a 20mph default speed area limit in North Yorkshire's towns and villages as a matter of urgency?"

In response, Andrew Santon – NYCC Highways Customer Communications Officer confirmed a relatively recent review of the existing 20mph speed limit policy had been carried out by the County Council’s Transport, Economy and Environment Overview and Scrutiny Committee, with input from NYCC Traffic Engineering,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 98.

Opportunity for the MP to share his views on issues affecting the constituency.

The Chair welcomed MP Kevin Hollinrake to the meeting.  The MP provided an overview of how things were at Westminster and his views on issues affecting his constituency.  This included:

·          The management of the new Covid-19 variant, the pandemic’s effect on the economy, and the steps to be taken to get life back to normal.  He also confirmed there was no parliamentary appetite to extend the lockdown beyond the 19^th July;

·          Levelling up – the increased investment in many different areas, including highways which boded well for the A64.  He noted that work was ongoing on the plans for dualing the A64 from the Hopgrove to Barton Hill, with an expected decision in 2023.

·          Future job opportunities as a result of treasury jobs moving to across the region;

·          The awaited decision on the unitary bid, which if successful would open the door to devolution;

·          The UK & Australia trade deal, and the associated concerns of the farming community;

·          The future of Social Care – he noted a plan was due later in the year and confirmed his preference for the introduction of a national social care insurance, payable by all.

In response to questions from members of the Committee, the MP confirmed:

·          Levelling up was not just good for people living in the north but for the whole country, as it would raise prosperity and tax intake which would benefit everyone;

·          The current planning system was a barrier to increasing home building and needed to be reformed, together with improving access to financing for SMEs;

·          The Local Needs Occupancy clause in the Ryedale Plan and land banking by big developers was not helpful;

County Councillor Greg White thanked the MP for his intervention at Westminster regarding Black Grouse and other such birds, and it was agreed that an holistic view with a balanced policy was the best way forward for the protection of any endangered species;

The Chair thanked the MP for his attendance.

Purpose of Presentation – To provide an overview of the types of crime taking place across the constituency.

Considered - The presentation produced by North Yorkshire Police (NYP) providing data on the levels of crime and incidences committed in 2020/21 in the Thirsk and Malton Constituency Committee area.

In the absence of a representative of NYP at the meeting, Daniel Harry, NYCC Democratic Services & Scrutiny Manager, gave an overview of the presentation.  He confirmed that prior to the pandemic, work was initiated to identify some appropriate data sets that would assist Members from a policing perspective, to better understand what was happening in their local communities, so that they could understand why crime was being committed and start to look at possible prevention measures. It was noted that work had been put on hold due to the pandemic and other pressures on the NYP Intelligence team.

Daniel Harry highlighted the following:

·          The data provided for the period April 2020 – March 2021 covered the pandemic period and therefore it would not provide a true comparison with previous years;

·          The peaks and troughs in the graphs provided, married up with periods of lockdown;

·          Anti-social behaviour went up, which appeared to be because Covid 19 related incidents of crime were recorded under that category;

·          The number of personal safety and welfare incidents went down (previously increasing year on year);

·          There had been a rise in domestic incidences;

·          The number of road traffic collisions reduced;

County Councillor Caroline Goodrick drew attention to the percentage increase in drug offences in the Scarborough/Ryedale area and queried why was it was so much higher in that area compared to others; what was behind the 20.71% increase; what actions were being taken to address it; and what could County Councillors do to help.

Members agreed it was a key issue of concern and agreed to ask NYP to provide a more detailed response on that particular issue.

It was suggested that in future, an NYP update be received annually, and that ahead of the relevant meeting based on the information in the update, a decision be taken whether a representative of NYP is required to attend.

Resolved – That:

i.      The presentation be noted;

ii.     A request for a more detailed response on the increase in drug offences in the Scarborough/Ryedale area, be submitted to NYP;

Purpose - To enable appointments to Local Bodies in the Thirsk & Malton Area Constituency Committee (ACC) area, in light of the deferment of the planned County Council elections to May 2022

Considered – A report of the Assistant Chief Executive (Legal & Democratic Services) presenting  the appointments to Local Bodies in the Thirsk & Malton Area Constituency Committee (ACC) area, previously made by the Hambleton and Ryedale Area Committees, which were to be extended in light of the deferment of the planned County Council elections to May 2022.

Members considered the list of relevant Category 2 appointments shown in the report and noted there were no vacancies to fill.

In regard to the vacancy on the John Stockton Education Foundation, County Councillor Val Arnold confirmed she was in discussions with a nominee and would be in a position to confirm the nomination in the next few days.  The Committee agreed to delegate to County Councillor Val the nomination on that basis and thanked County Councillor Val Arnold for her efforts. 

The Committee also noted the vacancies listed on the Thirsk and Sowerby Swimming Baths Charity Management Committee and the Poad’s Educational Foundation (Newton upon Rawcliffe), and agreed to nominate Cllr Robert Baker and Cllr Greg White respectively to those vacancies.

The Committee agreed that all nominees should be forwarded on to the Chief Executive Officer for his approval.

Resolved:

To recommend to the Chief Executive that using his emergency delegated powers he:

·          Extend the current appointments to the Category 2 & 3 outside bodies that fall within the remit of this committee to the end of the current Council in May 2022.

·          Appoint to the John Stockton Education Foundation, the nominee to be confirmed by Cllr Val Arnold following the meeting, to the end of the current Council in May 2022

·          Appoint County Councillor Greg White to the Poad’s Educational Foundation (Newton upon Rawcliffe) to the end of the current Council in May 2022

·          Appoint County Councillor Robert Baker to the Thirsk and Sowerby Swimming Baths Charity Management Committee to the end of the current Council in May 2022

Purpose: To consider, amend and agree a Work Programme for 2020/21 for the Area Constituency Committee.

Members considered areportby theAssistantChiefExecutive(LegalandDemocraticServices)whichcontained the Committee’scurrent workprogramme for the remainder of the municipal year (2020/21). 

It was noted that at the last meeting County Councillor Janet Sanderson had requested Yorkshire Water be invited to a future meeting of the Committee to provide an overview of the issues around the increasing levels of pollution in the water courses/streams running through various villages.  It was confirmed an invitation had been issued and that a representative from Yorkshire Water had subsequently confirmed their availability to attend the Committee’s meeting in December 2021.  County Councillor Janet Sanderson confirmed she had been in correspondence with the Environment Agency who had recently confirmed a feasibility study on the siltation of Thornton Beck, which included some of the issues she had raised would be going out to public consultation in early July. She confirmed she was due to have a pre-meeting with them and suggested Committee members may also want to look at the Study.  It was agreed that the Environment Agency also be invited to attend the December Committee meeting.

County Councillor Caroline Dickinson provided a brief overview on COVID, which included an update on reported cases, with a focus on those in education settings and care homes, and the number of vaccinations across the constituency areas, including the number of young people being vaccinated.  She also provided a brief update on a number of Health Services, which were trying to get back to business as usual.  It was noted that £2.4m had recently been secured to support those households across Hambleton, Richmondshire, Ryedale and Scarborough living in fuel poverty.

Finally, it was noted that at a meeting of the ACC Chairs and Vice-Chairs in early August, the awaited decision on local government review would be discussed and a plan formulated for how the individual ACCs participate in and contribute going forward.  It was agreed that at that stage, an associated item could be added to the work programme for the October meeting if required.

Resolved – That the work programme for the remainder of 2020/21 be updated as discussed.