Decision details

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR ROBSON

Following the decision not to bid for the European Capital of Culture 2023, how is Cardiff going to stay on the cultural international stage?

 

REPLY  - COUNTY COUNCILLOR HUW THOMAS

The decision was taken not to bid for European Capital of Culture 2023 following extensive discussion and acquiescence with the Culture Secretary of Cardiff. However, notwithstanding that I have every confidence that Cardiff will continue to project itself as a cultural destination on the world stage. I’ve made it very clear that one of the priorities of my administration is to put in motion the delivery of an indoor arena which will attract some of the world’s biggest acts to perform in Cardiff.

 

I’ve opened discussions recently with the Cabinet Secretary for Economy on invest from the Arts Council into St David’s Hall which is already one of the top ten venues in terms of acoustic performances in the world.  We have a programme of cultural events lined up from now through until next summer and I look forward to continuing plans in attracting future major concerts and events for the city and finally I would just tease some interesting projects that are in the pipeline now arising from our discussions with the cultural sector in partnership with some national broadcasters, other projects in partnerships with Universities and other projects that will come through the City Deal so I’m very confident that Cardiff will continue as a major cultural destination.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION – COUNTY COUNCILLOR ROBSON

That’s sounds very mysterious answer and as to what is coming in the pipeline.  You know my view, I think it was a real missed opportunity that Cardiff did not bid for this European Capital of Culture.  Look at Swansea and what it’s doing at the moment in relation to the UK version.  I just think that Cardiff with all its culture and so much going on in this city, has lost out here. 

 

I understand you yourself have had a short time to consider the bid, but I think that as a city we should have had a bid going forward and to my mind there was no reason why not.

 

My question is really what’s next - you have given some feelers but is there another big award or something that puts Cardiff on an international stage like some sort of worldwide Capital City of Culture or something along those lines that Cardiff can get involved with because the smaller projects are great but it’s the big headlines that sell the City to the wider world.

 

REPLY – COUNTY COUNCILLOR HUW THOMAS

I share your frustration that we weren’t in a position to take the bid forward and the feedback was unanimous that we should have been making these preparations 18 months or 2 years ago.  The feeling was that given the scale of the preparations that we would have had to put in place it simply wasn’t viable at this point in time and that is a regret.  Nevertheless I’m confident that those series of interventions that I was slightly mysterious about because I don’t want to over promise and over commit, will continue to put the City on an international platform. 

 

You mentioned a worldwide city of culture well certainly a project involving UNESCO is one of the things that we are looking at.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR TAYLOR

Can Members receive information on the detail of Cardiff Council’s bid to the Welsh Government’s Infant Class Size Reduction Fund, including number of schools and classes, the projected number of pupils to benefit, and plans for the scrutiny of that bid, so that Cardiff can offer the least well off children in our schools the support they need to thrive, and our teachers the capacity to provide that necessary support?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MERRY

The deadline for submission of the grant pro-forma to the Welsh Government is 30^th September. I would be happy to arrange for a copy of the completed submission to be provided to all Members.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION – COUNTY COUNCILLOR TAYLOR

I’m happy to hear that the Council has made a submission to the bid; whilst on the understanding that there are over 7000 children in Cardiff in class sizes of 29 or more pupils in 2016, despite that there is a need for many different interventions to reduce that attainment gap between the least and most well off pupils in Cardiff. 

 

What other measures are the Council considering or working on at the moment, in order to reduce that attainment gap between Cardiff pupils?

 

REPLY – COUNTY COUNCILLOR MERRY

I’m not trying to duck the answer but it’s too long a question to answer in one minute but if you would like to come and meet I’m very happy to sit with you and go through it with you.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR McEVOY

Could the Leader give an update on the Council's position on the dumping of potentially radioactivity material in Cardiff's waters?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR HUW THOMAS

The Council is opposed categorically to the dumping of any hazardous radioactive material in Cardiff waters. To the wider point around the marine licensed disposal of dredged material associated with the construction of Hinckley Point C was issued by Natural Resources Wales in 2014 as part of determine the application a full radiological assessment was undertaken which concluded the proposal was acceptable and this was further reviewed by internal experts in NRW who agreed with that conclusion.

 

No material from Hinckley Point has yet been deposited at the Cardiff Grounds site and, due to the time that has elapsed since the licence was granted, a further assessment must be undertaken before this can happen.  This assessment will be based on a new set of sediment samples taken in line with a sampling programme agreed with NRW and will include all relevant radiological determinants.

 

Given the nature of this matter I will be in contact with the leaders of the Councils along the Severn Estuary to ensure that our concerns are raised robustly with NRW.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION – COUNTY COUNCILLOR MCEVOY

When they do the sampling they need to ensure it isn’t just up on the surface -  because the experts say that the most radioactive material will actually be underneath and not just on the top. 

 

Did you say there needs to be an Environmental Impact assessment because there hasn’t been one?  Up until now over 2122 people have signed the petition, which has barely been up for 48 hours, this is a matter of huge concern and I think it’s worth contacting all the Council’s around Wales because if you look at the tidal movements if the material is dumped there and I believe it will be difficult for it not to be radioactive, there have been tests carried out and there is a level there, there was initial transfer from sea to land. 

 

Will you write to every Council as well?

 

REPLY – COUNTY COUNCILLOR THOMAS

I’m not sure I followed the thread of the question Councillor McEvoy.  I will reflect on writing to all Councils in Wales but I’m not sure that is strictly necessary, but that commitment to contacting all Councils including ones in England, on the Severn Estuary is there.  What I do think is important to stress however and you rightly mentioned the need to consult with experts and I acknowledge and agree with that, this must be expert led in terms of how future sampling will take place.  I do think there is a case to be careful not to scaremonger unnecessarily about this because there is a significant amount of radiation that exists in nature and I would be very careful about scaremongering unnecessarily whilst of course recognising that this is a serious issue and will go through the fullest of checks.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION – COUNTY COUNCILLOR WILLIAMS

When this issue was reported firstly earlier in the week, the press noted that when the consultation to dump potentially hazardous radioactive waste, the Welsh Government remained neutral in their view. 

 

Does the Leader support Welsh Government’s stance in remaining neutral to dump waste in Cardiff Bay waters?

 

REPLY – COUNTY COUNCILLOR THOMAS

Regrettably Councillor Williams has misunderstood the proposal is not to dump hazardous radioactive waste, it’s to move mud from one part of the estuary to the other, this is not about dumping radioactive waste.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR GAVIN HILL-JOHN

What consultations have taken place with Cardiff Council and representatives of Hinckley Point and does this Council support the dumping of potentially hazardous material in the bay?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MICHAEL

I would refer you to answer that was provided by the Leader a few moments ago.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR GAVIN HILL-JOHN

Would it possible to perhaps issue a statement from the Council to all of us as Councillors so we can support any messages and communications going out to residents in our wards who raise concerns with us so we can avoid any scaremongering and ensure we have a consistent message from the council on this sensitive matter.

 

REPLY – COUNTY COUNCILLOR MICHAEL

I think we just did.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION – COUNTY COUNCILLOR MCEVOY

The questions was what consultations have taken place, a very simple question.  I do note the remark about scaremongering which I think is quite a ridiculous thing to say given that you are talking about moving mud from the front of a nuclear power station without an EIA, absolutely crazy. 

 

Will you be signing the petition to try to get the licence suspended?

 

REPLY – COUNTY COUNCILLOR MICHAEL

The answer is no, there is a legal process that this has to go through and that I think is the right way to do it, rather than sit there and ask people to sign petitions and make statements without any expert knowledge at all.  I think we should leave it to the experts and wait to see the legal process to go through.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR BERMAN

Following your election as council leader, you expressed support for increasing the use of sustainable forms of transport in the city. One part of that equation is to increase the proportion of cars being driven on Cardiff’s streets that use electric and hybrid engines, but Cardiff and Wales are lagging behind many other parts of the UK in the provision of the necessary infrastructure to support this. In large swathes of the city, including many of Cardiff’s inner city suburbs, an additional problem is that we have many thousands of properties without the necessary off-street parking provision that can provide car owners with the opportunity to easily recharge their vehicles at home. What action will you therefore initiate to address these challenges going forward, so that Cardiff can seek to become a leader in the adoption of electric and hybrid cars?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR HUW THOMAS

The question is timely given the debates we have had this evening. I attended and spoke at an event hosted by Cynnal Cymru in July, which debated the future of the car in Cardiff and had contributions from a number of experts from companies involved in the electric car industry.

 

As I emphasised at the event, we need to be prioritising work to achieve our target of a 50:50 modal split in all journeys made by sustainable travel and by car by 2021, rising to 60:40 by 2026. This would still mean that 40-50% of all journeys will be by car so the challenge, therefore, is to make the car as clean, green and sustainable as possible.

 

We are continuing to develop ways of managing car use more effectively in the city and are supporting efforts to reduce carbon consumption and air pollution in the city through the increased use of low carbon vehicles. Officers are currently developing a draft strategy on Renewable Fuels for Transportation, which is expected to form part of a wider Clean Air Strategy in line with our Capital Ambition commitments.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION – COUNTY COUNCILLOR BERMAN

There has been some publicity about the provision of infrastructure for electric vehicles this week since I tabled my question.  I’m aware that there was a report commissioned by Welsh Government published in 2015.  One of the recommendations was that Local Authorities in Wales should be encouraged to put in charging points in their own premises and I gather we haven’t done any. 

 

I’ve just had a look at a map online which shows me that there is only one charging point east of the city centre within Cardiff so if you live in an area like the network of terraced streets in Penylan you don’t have somewhere where you can park your car off street and therefore charge it yourself and there is no charging points then you are absolutely stuffed. 

 

Given that we are trying as a nation now to move to phasing out petrol and diesel vehicles and move to electric and hybrid vehicles, then we are going to need some leadership to deliver the infrastructure, if we are going to be able to achieve that.  What leadership will you show to get us to where we need to be?

 

REPLY – COUNTY COUNCILLOR THOMAS

There are a number of sites on Council properties that do have electric car charging points including at County Hall and Lamby Way for example.  Leadership across the area in terms of transportation is needed, as we heard so eloquently put by a number of members in this chamber on the debate. 

 

I would emphasise that electric cars will not solve the congestion issue that Cardiff faces and only a modal shift away from cars to cycling, walking and public transport provides that solution.  Councillor Howells very eloquently put it across that actually in some of the most deprived wards in particular you are looking at half the population there not owning a car, so we can show leadership we can also encourage partners in particular from the private sector to drive these solutions through ourselves recognising that the technology is growing and maturing still and what might look like the answer today might not be what turns out to be the answer in ten years’ time.  We all know the history of mini discs and how technology doesn’t lead in ways that we expect.  I expect to be working with the private sector in developing the infrastructure not solely resting on the Council’s shoulder.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION – COUNTY COUNCILLOR WALKER

As much as we welcome the increase in numbers of electric cars, and most of us will be driving one if we drive anything in a few years’ time, we heard earlier from the licensing committee reference from Councillor Hudson, that most of the pollution is caused by buses, so how do you place the solution in terms of excess pollution in terms of buses and their pollution/

 

REPLY – COUNTY COUNCILLOR THOMAS

When you look at the number of cars in the city versus the number of buses; I can accept that an individual bus would be more polluting than an individual car but I would seriously challenge that and I am happy to go away and look at the evidence as to whether that is actually the case.  Notwithstanding that, there are some discussion underway with Cardiff Bus about looking at investment in greener buses, potentially electrical powered but there needs to be recognition as well that those buses come with high costs and they must be considered in the round as part of the fully costed business case.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR McEVOY

How many school cleaning contracts were held by the Council on 01/05/2012 and are held now as of 25/09/2017?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MERRY

As of 1^st May 2012, Education Cleaning held 83 contracts for cleaning provision at schools.

 

As of 25^th September 2017, Facilities Management hold 75 contracts.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR WONG

Will the Cabinet Member make a statement on the recent successes at A-levels and GCSEs for students at Cathays High School?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MERRY

I would be delighted to make a statement on the recent successes at A-levels and GCSEs for students at Cathays High School, I was at their prize evening last night and I think there is something special about Cathays High School which I probably shouldn’t say as Cabinet Member for Education.

 

The attainment gap in the Level 2+ threshold is smaller in Cathays than the Local Authority and Central South Consortium as a whole by around 11 percentage points. I think that speaks volumes about the work that the school does sometimes with children who have been through very difficult personal circumstances, it’s a welcoming and inclusive school.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION – COUNTY COUNCILLOR WONG

Students at Cathays High have achieved 95% pass rate at A level this year and that is their best A level result ever with all the students going onto Higher Education including a pupil who was a war zone refugee from Eritrea who arrived here without a word of English and has now been supported by Cathays high staff to get to University.  Can the Cabinet Member join me as a proud Governor of Cathays High in congratulating all of the talented students and staff of one of the most diverse schools in Cardiff on their excellent performance?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MERRY

I’d be very happy to.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION – COUNTY COUNCILLOR MOLIK

I speak representing a Ward where Cardiff High is placed and being a previous Chair of Governors of Willows High School I saw both of these schools really try and perform to an outstanding level every year, trying to get there.  Obviously schools are facing difficulties in terms of what they have to cater for but isn’t it important that we praise all the teachers and staff that are involved in all our schools and help and support them all in reaching that standard and celebrate the success together.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MERRY

Yes I’m sorry I was overcome with excitement, of course I should congratulate all the schools in Cardiff and the staff but also the pupils, it’s a very difficult time for many of them the exam period, and I’m pleased that so many of them have been successful.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR OWEN

Can you please outline what plans you have to move from co-mingled recycling to kerbside sorting of recyclable waste in Cardiff?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MICHAEL

There are currently no plans to change from co-mingled green bag collections to kerbside sort collections.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION  - COUNTY COUNCILLOR OWEN

Can I say I’m glad to hear that.  Would you acknowledge that many people throughout Cardiff have concerns about a possible change to kerbside recycling on the grounds of an increased congestion especially on arterial routes as collections take longer, each time a collection vehicle is partly full in one sorting stream it would then have to return to the centre, there would be added difficulties for elderly and disabled people coping with the logistic changes and having to cope with more recycling receptacles, many in Cardiff do not have front gardens to store more recycling containers and space would be a problem for them; in addition added costs for extra staff which will be needed to deal with extra time it will take to complete collections, could actually  nullify any expected financial gains to council from expected improvements in recycling quality of waste and last but not least, I believe that in 2013/14, Cardiff county council carried out a consultation in which just 3% of people in Cardiff said they were in favour of kerbside sorting.

 

REPLY  - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MICHAEL

Notwithstanding everything just said, we are the best core city in the UK with recycling although we still do have a long way to go.  There are measures we need to take as I outlined when I attended scrutiny recently, starting with the glass trial; we are losing far too much money, earlier on I noticed the Conservatives were asking us to get our act together with income, well that’s one of the things we are trying to do, we really do need to stop losing half a million pound in glass and the damage its doing to the MRF and actually do the trials to see if we can actually collect the glass and make a profit on it.  There are things like that we have to do, the quality of recycling is another thing we need to tackle but our recycling works well, the people of Cardiff are coming with us and I think we should keep it that way.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR OWEN JONES

I also don’t want to see a situation where every type of item is in individual containers, I have seen this in Newport and I do not envy their Council on a very blustery day. I do however acknowledge that the council are under extreme pressure to meet the recycling targets and will ask the Cabinet Member to look for innovative ways to improve.  This is an important matter for the majority of residents and if there are genuine avenues that we can improve on in our services then I hope they can be trailed and if successful can be pursued.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MICHAEL

I agree with the sentiments of the question, what we are trying to do is look at everything in the recycling area, how much money we are losing, what the markets are like, it’s one of those problems where you have to decide what you are going to do, put a trial, go to procurement, these things aren’t quick they take time.  The onus is on us to meet the targets, we don’t really have a choice.  I am more than happy to meet any member from whatever party at any time to talk about improving the service to the people of this city, the door is always open.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MOLIK

In light of a recent study published by Cardiff University on the positive impact on visual function and thereby quality of life of a person with sight loss accessing low vision rehabilitation service, what would you say is the recommended length of time someone with sight loss should wait in order to receive the service and what is the current waiting time for the service?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR ELSMORE

This is an important issue so thank you for raising it Councillor Molik, I’ll get straight to the point, we have experienced delays of several months in the provision of low visual rehabilitation services, I was at a General Optical Council meeting yesterday in London, and this is UK wide.  It’s about a lack of access to qualified rehabilitation officers.

 

However I’m pleased to say that as a result of the research that we commissioned and bid for with Cardiff University we are developing new pathways that will enable all individuals diagnosed with sight loss to access support services within 4 weeks.

 

SUPPLEMENTRY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MOLIK

That’s very encouraging because as far as I’m aware it stands at 6 months roughly at the moment for urgent referrals and up to 12 months for non-urgent referrals for rehab.  What I would question you about is the low vision rehabilitation and not support services, there is a quality of difference between the 2 services we are talking about, a rehabilitation officer is a home based service that helps maintain and regain independence through providing mobility training through assessing light within the home and of course signposting them and aiding access to other services.  When you talk about support workers role are we talking about those mobility training and lighting assessment and linking into other services.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR ELSMORE

Yes.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR GORDON

Following the consultation on the Green Infrastructure Supplementary Planning Guidance carried out earlier this year, has the Council understood the importance of producing a strong SPG; to what extent have points raised by the consultees been considered, and can you give any examples of what has changed as a result of the consultation?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR WILD

The SPG are what strengthen our LDP and in terms of a green infrastructure SPG that is currently being worked on, the consultation information is in but it is still being prepared and it will come to full cabinet in November.  I will personally ensure that all the consultation stuff is taken on board when we come to bring that back.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR GORDON

The whole thrust of the green infrastructure SPG must be to enhance and improve biodiversity rather than simply maintaining what already exists so when will the actual feedback before it goes to Cabinet come to the public and to those people who made representations on the consultation.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR WILD

The feedback is currently being looked into so it’s been taken in, the consultation period has ended; what I have said is that I will ensure that the feedback is taken on board and the findings from that will be brought to Cabinet with a raft of other SPG’s.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR BOWDEN

In the United States the New York Parks department, and the Los Angeles Unified schools district among others, have instituted a moratorium on the introduction of rubber crumb artificial pitches because of concerns over the carcinogenicity of the material used in the manufacture of these pitches. A study* into the safety of the material is being conducted jointly by the US Environmental Protection Agency, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention Agency and the US Consumer Product Safety commission. This report is due to be published in mid-2018.

 

Will the Council institute a moratorium on the introduction of new rubber crumb artificial pitches in Cardiff until the results of this report are known, and if the report identifies a potential safety issue to review the current pitches in the city?

 

REPLY- COUNTY COUNCILLOR BRADBURY

I am aware of the media coverage and reports linked to the studies and subsequent theories linking artificial pitches to the disease that you are mentioning.

 

FIFA conducted an analysis of this matter back in 2006, which reached the clear conclusion – at the time – that the available body of scientific research did not substantiate the assumption that cancer could potentially occur as a resulting of exposure to granulate infill materials in artificial turf.

 

Since then, several independent research studies have also been conducted, but there still is, as yet, no conclusive evidence that supports the health concerns which have been raised.

 

My position is clear on this matter. The safety of the users of our sports facilities is of paramount importance, but until such time that there is actual scientific proof and evidence, which shows definitively that these artificial pitches are unsafe, the Council has no plans to introduce such a moratorium.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR BOWDEN

I have to say I’m quite staggered by your response on this, 2006 is a long time ago, in terms of that study by FIFA and I’ve got here studies that I have managed to obtain, don’t shake your head at me Councillor Bradbury. I’d like to know what steps the Council has taken to warn users of the 3G pitches and clubs who are using our pitches of the potential risk to health, especially where there is a prevalence for the development on non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma amongst goal keepers.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR BRADBURY

With respect to the Councillor, but I find this alarmist stuff that you are coming up with actually amazing when there is no scientific evidence been found to link what you are talking about with the cause of cancer at the moment.  The council are working with FAW just to reassure you, and with the relevant authorities on this and nothing has been found yet to link the 2 things.  What your advocating Councillor is actually closure of 3G’s at Heath Park, Trelai Park, Mall, Bishop of Llandaff School, Cardiff High school, Cardiff University, and on including private sector including Power League and House of Sport.  In order to advocate that, you are asking for a moratorium until we find out the pitches are safe or unsafe, if we are saying that we are pre judging something when we don’t have scientific evidence behind it, with respect until I have got scientific proof that there is a link I’m not willing to go down that path.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR WILLIAMS

I think it’s a very important question, and I don’t believe that Councillor Bradbury has comprehensively addressed the concerns raised.  The New York Parks Department and Los Angeles Unified Schools have commissioned studies because they believe they have genuine concerns about the health and safety of pitch users.  What Councillor Bowden is asking for is a temporary halt on any new pitches developed within the city until the findings are published in mid-2018.  Has the council sought legal advice on any potential claims that may be brought and secondly has the Council prepared a fund where members of the public can seek advice should they need to.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR BRADBURY

With all due respect, when there is no scientific proof of the link between cancer and this material as of yet, I am not going to alarm the public by saying we are not going to build any more 3G pitches particularly at a time where doctors are saying right around this city to us that in order to deal with chid obesity, and getting more people into sport we need to be building more sporting facilities in this city.  If there is a link proven by the studies that have been brought forward in this question, and is not due to be published until 2018, then we will look at it again.  At the moment there is no clear scientific proof that there is a link.  I tell you the sporting community have been well aware of these things and non-league clubs have been reporting about it in their papers, Cardiff Blues have also mentioned this in the past, there are studies online from people in Turf World which is reassuring their customers that this is safe.  My stance is until there is fundamental proof that this is dangerous and there isn’t, there will be no moratorium.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR COWAN

How much overtime has been paid to the waste management service area, on a month by month basis, over the last 12 months?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MICHAEL

In the last 12 months to the end of August, £519,027 has been spent on overtime in Waste Services, which includes all operations from commercial activities, collections, depots, household waste recycling centres, recycling processing and treatment. Almost half of this spend is to support commercial income activities.

 

I can provide you with a detailed breakdown by month following the meeting.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR COWAN

Thank you if you could provide me response straight after the meeting why haven’t you provided it during the meeting so that the public and Councillors can see it first hand, I think that’s slightly disingenuous of you.  I have to say as most people on a Friday night or Saturday would go out and enjoy a meal and talk to friends and things, in Rhiwbina a Friday night and Saturday is in with waste issues, either unemptied bins, missed green bag collections, bins half emptied. Just to give one example which is so frustrating, there was one green bin, it had one chocolate wrapper in it, the Council wouldn’t collect it so then the waste people had to go back again  the next day to collect it then they sent someone back the following day who hadn’t told the other person it hadn’t been collected.  It seems a minor issue but what are you doing to address these ongoing issues particularly in Rhiwbina which cause frustration and annoyance to everyone.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MICHAEL

I’m not being disingenuous I’m trying to spare you all listening to all of this itemised, I’m happy to give it to you, it’s not a problem and it’s on record so the public can get hold of it.  To put this in context, in your Ward you have 5147 houses that equates to 66911 lifts per month, in other words, 802,932 lifts per year.  In total for one year and I don’t want to see 1, there were 609 missed collections out of 802,932.  Just to help you further I’ve actually managed to get the statistics for reporting, in that year you reported 12 occasions.  You can argue all you like I’m just dealing with the statistics as I have them.  Get this in context, I don’t want to see 1 missed collection but there is a multitude of reasons why it happens, the recent storm, Champions’ league, roadworks are just some of the reasons.  There is a dedicated team that looks after missed collections, there isn’t any overtime paid for missed collections.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR WOOD

Despite residents taking care to present their waste, following collections wheelie bins and caddies are frequently not returned to the presentation point. Residents report that bins have been left in the middle of the pavement, blocking driveways or outside neighbouring properties. In particular those left in the middle of pavements can cause difficulty for elderly residents and wheelchair users trying to pass, whilst in windy conditions without shelter from walls or fences, the bins are more likely to blow over or into the road. Could the Cabinet member confirm whether waste collection teams are expected to return bins and caddies to the presentation point? If not, could an explanation be given?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MICHAEL

Operatives are instructed to return bins and caddies to a suitable position that does not cause an obstruction of the pavement. This is typically the place from which the bin or caddy was presented.

 

When a complaint is received, the collection crew is identified and retraining or action is taken as appropriate. The service area as a whole and remember we do 24 million lifts, has only received 24 complaints in relation to this issue.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR WOOD

There may be only 24 complaints but I’m aware of residents raising this issue to C2C and its passed on to the relevant department and that’s the response they get, yet this has been an issue which doesn’t affect every delivery but does reoccur, so can I have a commitment that you will look at what you can do to improve consistency of bin collections because when the bins are left out of place it does cause nuisance and it is something that residents comment back to me as causing difficulties for those who aren’t as able particularly where they have vision problems.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MICHAEL

I recognise the problem, same as not collecting bins, we constantly meet with crews, we constantly speak to them, we constantly retrain them and we will continue until we get no lifts left and hopefully bins placed in the right position.

 

QUESTION FROM COUNTY COUNCILLOR DE’ATH

Could the Cabinet Member set out the long-term vision for economic development in Cardiff and the wider region?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR GOODWAY

The County Councillor will be aware that the new Administration’s programme, set out in the Capital Ambition document, commits to the publication of a Green Paper designed to build a consensus across all sectors and stakeholders on the future economic vision for the city.

 

The Leader of the County Council has made it clear to me that he is eager to achieve the widest possible ownership of the County’s resulting economic development agenda.

 

I intend to issue the Green Paper, by way of a Written Statement, next month and I will seek the Lord Mayor’s permission to schedule an appropriate discussion on the Green Paper at a future meeting of the County Council to ensure that all elected members have an opportunity to influence the future policy direction.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR DE’ATH

Could you outline how you would like to see inclusive growth brought about in Cardiff and the wider region going forward, how would you define inclusive growth and measure it and would you and your officers give consideration to adopting a set of indicators similar to the inclusive growth monitor developed by Sheffield Harrow University with Joseph Roundtree Foundation.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR GOODWAY

Let’s see what the outcome of the Green Paper says and I will take a view then.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR BOYLE

To what extent do you think the long term vision for economic development in Cardiff is threatened by Brexit?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR GOODWAY

Nobody knows what the impact of Brexit will have either on the UK or Cardiff’s economy, only time will tell.  What we do have to understand though is that the people have spoken, the 2 largest parties in the House of Commons are committed to Brexit and that appears to be the direction of travel, my responsibility is to position Cardiff to take advantage of all the opportunities whatever shape post Brexit Britain takes, Cardiff must be at the forefront not only to be this nation’s Capital but to be an important British City in the new world.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR WILLIAMS

On the 25^th September detectives investigating the Parsons Green terrorist attack arrested a 20-year old man at an address in the Roath area of Cardiff, in connection with the attack. In recent times there have been a number of arrests in Cardiff related to Islamic extremism. Could you provide an update on the ‘Prevent’ Strategy in relation to Cardiff as a Local Authority and the steps being taken to prevent and tackle all forms of radicalisation which in turn could lead to terrorism?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR THORNE

The Council takes a lead role in relation to the UK Government’s CONTEST and PREVENT strategies, working with our communities and partners, including the Police and the Wales Extremism and Counter-Terrorism Unit (WECTU), to root out extremist activity and to minimise the chances of individuals becoming radicalised.

 

We work with our partners and communities to help them identify extremist ideology and to give them the knowledge and confidence to provide an appropriate counter narrative. This work includes workshops to raise awareness of Prevent and other targeted work with communities, which focuses on a range of ideologies including Far Right and Islamist-inspired extremism.

 

Cardiff’s approach has been recognised by the Home Office and Estyn as nationally significant good practice and I want to pay tribute to the efforts of those police and council officers working in this challenging and highly sensitive arena.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR WILLIAMS

I would join Councillor Thorne in praising the tireless work of the Council officers and Counter Terrorism Forces in keeping us safe and keeping Cardiff safe.  The first priority of this Council must the safety and security of Cardiff Citizens, as a council what are we doing to engage with young people in our schools and youth centres whatever are left to actually focus on preventing radicalisation because we know it can in turn lead to extremism and then to terrorism.  So what are we doing to engage with schools and other stakeholders?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR THORNE

I think the fact that our strategy is held up as excellent practice says that we are doing an awful lot, we do extensive work with institutions where there may be high risk of radicalisation such as schools, colleges, universities and there is an embedded process working with partners to identify individuals who may be at risk of radicalisation in order to provide appropriate interventions and the Cardiff Prevent Strategy focuses on the following 3 areas; ideology, institution and individuals.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MOLIK

My issue really is in recognition that extremism isn’t linked to any religion and so the phraseology in the question is wrong.  When we do link extremism to religious practices, which shouldn’t be happening, then we are in fact allowing that extremism action to grow.  We need to be very careful in terms of how we act and intervene with these.  Can I ask Councillor Thorne to agree with me that extremism is not linked to Islamic?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR THORNE

I do agree, we look at extremism from every area including the far right and it’s not just related to Islamic or any other religion.

 

COUNTY COUNCILLOR WILLIAMS

The question was phrased to tackle all forms of radicalisation and terrorism and I quoted South Wales Police and the Met Police which recognised that there were a number of arrests in Cardiff related to ‘Islamic Extremism’.  Thank you Lord Mayor.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR SANDREY

What has been the take up of the Additional Annual Leave policy amongst council employees?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR WEAVER

In 2015/16, 193 employees took up the policy, in 2016/17 it was 227 and so far this year it’s been 150 employees that have taken up the policy.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR SANDREY

Those figures sound quite low, so in your opinion why do you think they are that low and what more will be done to increase the uptake of that policy.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR WEAVER

They are relatively low in terms of our council employee size but it’s just one of the opportunities employees have to take one of the benefits they can take up.  From the figures I’ve seen that’s approximately saved us somewhere around £300,000 through this voluntary scheme which is clearly welcome to any budget contribution.  The council promotes all of our staff benefits and the options staff have through a number of methods including the staff app and a lot of digital things to promote things to staff.  I will check and make sure that the policy has been promoted as well but I understand that it has been, it is up to staff whether or not they take it, and it’s one of a range of things that we offer them.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR DE’ATH

It was very welcome to read in the Director of Social Services Annual Report 2016-17 that an information leaflet for taxi drivers covering Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) prevention has been developed by Children’s Services in conjunction with Cardiff’s Licensing Department and will be ready to distribute to the 2,200 licenced drivers in the city in the coming weeks. Could you please confirm what languages this leaflet will be in?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR HINCHEY

I can confirm that the leaflet will be available bilingually in English and Welsh. Translation into a limited number of other key languages will be considered as appropriate.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION – COUNTY COUNCILLOR DE’ATH

I really welcome this initiative of a really diverse workforce driving cabs out in the city from all over the world and if you could work with groups like the Taxi Drivers Forum, with the GMB Trade Union who represent lots of drivers to promote this information in lots of languages other than English that would be really welcome.  A few years ago officers were working with the Charity BAWSO to display human trafficking information in taxi cabs it hit a few barriers about what could be displayed under the regulations, would you look again at that with Councillor Elsmore, our human trafficking lead, and see if you can take that forward as part of this piece of work that our doing looking at the night time economy.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR HINCHEY

I’m more than happy to work with Councillor Elsmore and speak to you on that.  In terms of the language and printing obviously we need to comply with the law English and Welsh and I’m sure that you also know that those who have lived in Cardiff a long time there are many languages across Taxi Drivers spoken obviously within their guidance and the training they have to comply with a certain amount of Welsh and English in terms of routes and fares, destinations and safety so if there is a need then I’m sure we will look at it.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MOLIK

I welcome the information leaflet that’s been given in terms of Child sexual exploitation to taxi drivers, but I wanted to know what action is being taken to communicate with young children how to keep themselves safe from CSE crimes.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR HINCHEY

The CSE strategy is in place, we have just appointed a new operational manager, we are doing some briefings around that particular subject in the near future and I’m sure that you will have an invite to be part of that.  Her name is actually Jan Coles who is one of the Welsh experts in CSE and will be joining us in the next week or so.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR PHILIPPA HILL-JOHN

Will the Council be looking to adopt a social care charter such as UNISON’s ethical care charter adopted by other councils across the country?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR ELSMORE

The principles enshrined in UNISON’s ethical care charter are already enshrined in our values as a Council in general and in our approach to the delivery of good social care. Our Capital Ambition for Cardiff commits to providing the highest quality of social care possible, in practice and delivery. 

 

You will not be surprised to learn that the Council already has partnership and facilities agreements with the three main Trade Unions in the social care sector i.e. UNISON, GMB AND UNITE.

 

QUESTION FROM COUNTY COUNCILLOR GORDON

Following representations from taxi drivers about the unfairness of the way Uber taxis operate in Cardiff, where there are too many licenses – could Cardiff consider following Transport for London and end the Uber license?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR JACKIE PARRY

I can confirm that the Council is not considering revocation of the operator licence that was granted to Uber last year.

 

Any decision by the Public Protection Committee to revoke an operator or a driver licence must be evidence based and is accompanied by a right of appeal to the Magistrates Court where the basis of the decision would be tested.

 

I note your comment that there are too many licences issued in Cardiff, but the Council does not have the power to place a limit upon the number of drivers licensed. It can only ensure that licences are issued to fit and proper individuals.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR GORDON

Are you satisfied that the Uber drivers are following regulations particularly around criminal records checks?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR PARRY

I don’t know whether that’s appropriate but even so I am satisfied I do ask the officers we talk with the police etc. and if there is anything untoward at all it comes to us and we have disciplinary meetings fortnightly or monthly and sometimes we have quite a number of taxi drivers there and the cases are evidence based, each case is on its own merit.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR CARTER

I know each of us have our own favourite taxi companies, would you agree with me that its unhelpful that people are attacking this specific taxi company based on political motives as certainly seems to be the case in large parts of London and in one particular party, would you agree that it is unhelpful when people are attacking a company solely for political reasons rather than looking at the actual reality of the situation.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR PARRY

I don’t think I’ve heard all of your question but we are evidence based.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR PARKHILL

Does the council agree with the decision by another of the UK's capitals to ban Uber, a company that has disrupted monopolies and lowered prices for consumers through innovation, and do they have plans to follow their lead?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR JACKIE PARRY

The Council has not had access to all the information available to Transport for London and the reasons behind the decision not to renew the licence and, as such, it would be inappropriate for me to comment.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION – COUNTY COUNCILLOR PARKHILL

I think it’s worthwhile commenting on it, this is 44,000 people’s jobs and families in London that haven taken this stance and it’s really an example of how the Labour Party really isn’t for the many and millions of people in the company.  My question really is relating to the safety concerns of residents in Cardiff so I would like to know, relating back in 2015 when there was a spate of complaints regarding the Black Cabs, which drove the demand for Uber in this City, how many complaints have been raised since has been Uber compared to the previous time.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR JACKIE PARRY

I will get you a response in writing.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION – COUNTY COUNCILLOR EBRAHIM

Cardiff licence holders, whether they are Hackney or Private Hire, have to go through a number of rigorous applications and knowledge tests and disclosures etc. etc.  There’s been press over the past couple of years where they are facing many drivers coming in from neighbouring counties, nobody knows the number of tests or charges they have paid in neighbouring cities, what are we doing as a Council to stop this pressure coming into Cardiff, putting pressure on licence holders that have paid so much money to gain their licence and now they are competing with people who haven’t paid any fees.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR JACKIE PARRY

We do discuss these matters all the time and the various concerns.  I know exactly what you’re talking about but if a taxi is hired from outside of Cardiff or we are told they are and we can’t prove otherwise, what can we do?

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR OWEN JONES

Will the Cabinet Member make a statement on the decision to sell one of Adamsdown's few open spaces in Howard Garden's Bowling Green to a student accommodation developer?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR GOODWAY

The County Councillor will understand that the Administration publishes its Asset Management Plan annually which, with the exception of opportunistic acquisitions and disposals, sets out details of the properties it intends to acquire or dispose of in the year ahead. The disposal of the Howard Gardens site has been planned since October 2015 when the then Cabinet decided to include the site for disposal in the published Asset Management Plan.

 

The new Administration has been involved only to the extent that it has consented to the disposal for use as student accommodation, given that this will complement the development now under construction at the former Howard Gardens College site. Through the sale of the former bowling green, the Council will be leveraging significant investment into the adjacent Howard Gardens park area, which will be retained and enhanced as public open space. A new café will be provided as part of the development that will front onto the park and will be fully open to the public.

 

The Councillor will understand that the demand for student accommodation in this area is such that, potentially, it could deliver one of the highest value land receipts ever achieved in Wales. If that proves to be the case, I will be content to work with him to discuss how best the local community can benefit from this development.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION – COUNTY COUNCILLOR OWEN JONES

No Ward in Cardiff has less green spaces than Adamsdown, and yet as you say the decision was taken a few years ago to sell one of the rare open spaces we do actually have.  As you pointed out, it does seen that Adamsdown is currently at the epicentre of the new student development with over 2000 student apartments currently being built or planned, most of these are replacing older offices or buildings but this latest proposal is to be built on parkland that has been there since the late nineteenth century.  Having spoken to residents and as the petition I presented earlier shows, I know there is little appetite for yet another development in this already built up area.  I am aware there is S06 money that could be used to restore the Bowling Green land to a space that the community can enjoy, I would therefore ask the Cabinet Member and Council to look again at the sale of this Bowling Green and consider investing in it as an open space instead.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR GOODWAY

I understand the Councillors sentiments and I appreciate the way that he feels, but I’m afraid I’m in a position where the Council has previously declared that that is no longer public open space, it has been declared surplus to the requirements of the parks department and the decision was taken to close the Bowling Green, and the Council has previously decided to dispose of it, and that is what we are in the process of doing.  Ever since the Bowling Green ceased to be a Bowling Green, it has been fenced off in order to emphasise the fact that Council no longer considers it to be public open space.  If it was in ward I would be doing exactly the same as you, but I’m afraid we are where we are and I think we have to proceed.  I do understand your point, you will want to see beneficial investment as a result in your ward, and I will work with you to see what you we achieve in that direction.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR HOWELLS

I submitted this question a few weeks ago but I haven’t had a response yet so perhaps you can answer it for me; could you tell me the amount of the Capital Receipt which is expected to be received from this site and can you let me know what Capital Projects are earmarked to benefit from these proceeds.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR GOODWAY

I’m shocked Lord Mayor, the Councillor is a former Cabinet Member with responsibility for Finance, of course I can’t say in open Council what the Capital Receipt may be, the matter is still under negotiation and is commercially confidential.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR OWEN JONES

How does the Council plan to address the increase in visible drug use and drug dealing on the streets of Cardiff?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR THORNE

The Council is working closely with South Wales Police to address drug use and dealing in the city and I have held high level meetings on this issue with the Police & Crime Commissioner and senior police officers. A further multi-agency meeting is also due to take place next month to ensure the co-ordination of an effective partnership response to drug problems within the city centre and local communities.

 

As part of this approach, it is important that we work with partners and communities to gather intelligence and help ensure that communities feel confident to report these activities.

 

To this end, I am very pleased that both the Council’s Children & Young People and Community & Adult Services Scrutiny Committees will also be gathering evidence and information as part of a joint inquiry into issues relating specifically to young people and drug taking to help inform the response of the Council and its partners to drug related issues within our communities.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR OWEN JONES

Recent articles in the Western Mail have highlighted the growing problem of Spice in our City, however I know through talking to residents and having seen for myself that this a problem that isn’t limited to one drug.  Discarded needles are now common place in several wards including my own and blatant drug dealing takes place in broad daylight.  Some of these people maybe criminals but many are vulnerable Cardiff residents who are in need of our help.  I’m very pleased to hear that this growing problem is acknowledged by the Council, the Police but I also hope that the Local Health Board, all of whom are struggling following cuts.  Can the Council look at ways how we can further cooperate with these three bodies so that we can pool our diminishing resources together and find the best outcomes to address these growing problems?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR THORNE

Absolutely Councillor and I share your concerns.  Canvassing over the last couple of years has really raised my concerns because wherever you go the biggest issue are the drugs that are being dealt openly.  Residents have now stopped phoning the Police and I think my concern is that it seems to be accepted behaviour and I don’t find it acceptable for our community it is wrong that our young children are being encouraged to deal and take drugs.  I wrote to scrutiny to ask them to do this piece of work because it’s important that we look at the whole picture and obviously we are working with all partners including the Drug and Alcohol Unit who have been part of those conversations.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR HOWELLS

This was an issue that came up at our recent PACT meeting where residents reported incidents witnessed on Theodora Street for example where drug dealing was being done openly from a car in the middle of the street in broad daylight.  We have reported in the last few weeks’ drug dealing and paraphernalia left in cemetery’s and parks and I’m sure lots of people in other wards across the City have similar experiences.  The message the Police gave at the PACT was quite right, if you see any incidents report them to the Police via 101.  How best can we get that information out more widely because I’m sure there are people out there who see these things but don’t think about reporting them.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR THORNE

I think part of the problem with people reporting, there are a couple of issues; one when they report it they expect the police to turn up immediately and when they don’t, they don’t understand that by reporting it to 101 it’s an evidence gathering issue and that’s where the police put their resources, it depends on the number of reports that they get where they put their resources. We really do need to encourage residents to do that, the other issue is there has been a problem with the 101 reporting line where people have had to wait up to 15 minutes, if you’re at home enjoying family life and watching TV you don’t want to be sat waiting on the phone for 15 minutes.  I spoke about this with the Police and Crime Commissioner, they are looking at the numbers of people on the 101 line; they are also hoping to roll out in the next month or so where people can email with these issues which should make it much easier for people to report and I would urge all of us as Councillors, on social media wherever, to encourage members of the public to report as it really is unacceptable and I would just say I went to Butetown one Monday morning to meet with Councillor Ebrahim, we met at 9am in the morning with 3 officers and we were getting shouted at by a dealer because we were in their way and he couldn’t deal, that was 9am on a Monday morning, it really is unacceptable.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR BOWEN-THOMSON

The Director of Social Services Annual Report 2016/17 highlights the benefits of partnership working. How does the Council plan to continue improving early identification, intervention and prevention to ensure the safety of children in Cardiff?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR HINCHEY

Children’s Services lead the multi-agency Early Help Group, involving statutory and third-sector partners, as part of our partnership arrangements in Cardiff.

 

This group developed the Early Help Strategy and is now overseeing its implementation. The first priority is to develop more effective arrangements for early help.  I’m sure that the earlier question asked about the Social Services Report, those pages enhanced what we are trying to do with partners and you’ve heard that from both of us today.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR BOWEN THOMSON

Can you identify some areas of activities and progress with regards to this type of partnership working?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR HINCHEY

Establishing an early help front door is one of them, partnership with Tros Gynnal Plant obviously parents were involved in choosing the name Support for Cardiff which is due to go live in November, I’m sure you will welcome that, recommissioning Families First to help deliver support for families in Cardiff and arrangements with schools, supported by strategic use of the funding to deliver a range of parenting and youth support and disability focussed services involving partners.  I’ve got a list of other things, I’d like to go on but all of this really means that in all settings where children are growing up, in all local communities hubs, schools, playgroups and cultural sporting settings, we act in partnership to assist children to thrive and where possible to remove obstacles at the earliest stages, I’m sure you will be a keen watcher of this as it goes on.

 

QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR LISTER

As you are aware, the Welsh Government announced earlier this week that £1.4 million is being invested into schools across parts of Wales to strengthen Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) support to staff and pupils. Will you join me in recognising the impact that early intervention with mental health difficulties, such as anxiety, low mood and self-harm, can have?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MERRY

I very much welcome the Welsh Government’s announcement of strengthened Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services support to staff and pupils in parts of Wales.

 

The Council recognises the impact that early intervention has on ameliorating the effects of mental health difficulties, including anxiety, low mood and self-harm.

 

As the mother of a teenage girl, I was shocked recently to read a study that showed over the last ten years, a 68% rise in hospital admissions because of self-harm amongst girls aged 17 or under.  Depression doubled, incidents of self-poisoning, body dissatisfaction, the pressure on our young people is great and only partnership and early intervention can help to reduce the issues they face.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR LISTER

Action for Children are about to launch their Blues Programme, which is a cognitive behaviour therapy approach to working with young people between 15 and 18 who show early signs of anxiety and depression.  Cardiff has been selected as one of the areas to run this innovative project, can you foresee Cardiff school actively participating in the project?

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MERRY

I would be very surprised if Cardiff Schools were not keen to volunteer to be part of the scheme.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION - COUNTY COUNCILLOR HUDSON

I just wonder if Councillor Merry has any statistics on our young children since we are giving them an added burden of maybe lowering the voting age so they will vote earlier and I wondered if this would have an impact on our young children by giving them extra stress.

 

REPLY - COUNTY COUNCILLOR MERRY

I have to be honest I haven’t seen any suggestion that reduction of the voting age is contributing to the stress of the young people in schools.  I would suggest that the pressures of social media, our newspapers at times, hardship in families financially are more likely causes of the distress that our children seem to be suffering.