In accordance with the Council Procedure Rules, a total period of 30 minutes is allocated for members of the public to speak at Council meetings. Individual members of the public may speak for up to 2 minutes, but the Chair will have discretion to vary this requirement where they consider it appropriate.
Members of the public wishing to speak are required to provide notice of this at least three clear working days’ in advance of the meeting and should include the question with that notice.
Minutes:
Mr Andrew Wood stated that since the last meeting he had spoken with the Director ofGrowth & Enterprise and following this discussion he felt that if the Government wanted the economy to grow, it should be putting money into the Economy and Growth department as this was where people went for help. It could then employ more staff and help more people in the community.
Laura Turner asked why the Council had not, in her view, followed its objectives and had failed the town of Middlewich. She asked that members of the Council meet with Middlewich residents to listen to what they had to say. Councillor S Corcoran, Leader of the Council, responded by saying that ward councillors for Middlewich were working hard to support the residents and the Town and asked that she work with the ward councillors. The Deputy Leader, Councillor C Browne, drew attention to the previous week’s meeting of the Highways and Transport Committee which had approved legal orders to enable the Middlewich Bypass to go ahead. He offered to meet with ward councillors and Middlewich Town Council.
Congleton Town Councillor Robert Douglas urged all Councillors to support the Motion being proposed by Councillors Murphy and Buckley to authorise the Environment and Communities Committee to carry out a full investigation of the costs and feasibility of a replacement site for the residents of Congleton and surrounding areas.
Sue Helliwell asked if the Council could confirm what was the estimated number of premature deaths in Cheshire East due to poor air quality, specifically in Sandbach and Alsager, and asked if the Council could confirm that the air quality measurement had been abandoned on Middlewich Road, Sandbach. Councillor M Warren, Chair of the Environment and Communities Committee responded that the Council had a responsibility to review and assess air quality in its area against the national air quality objectives and must produce an Air Quality Annual Status Report that reviewed trends in local air quality data over the previous year and progress on the delivery of its air quality action plans. The 2021 Annual Status Report had recently been published on the Council’s website. The Report did not include a requirement to estimate the number of premature deaths within the local authority attributable to air pollution. Public Health England had published this data in the past, with the last set of data published in 2019. He confirmed that air quality monitoring continued to be undertaken at two locations on Middlewich Road in Sandbach and that the monthly data could be viewed on the Council’s website.
Macclesfield Town Councillor Fiona Wilson sought assistance in resolving issues following the removal of several roads in Macclesfield from the winter gritting routes and stated that the Council had agreed to pay for the gritting of these routes. She suggested that the Council had refused to grant permission for this to happen. Councillor C Browne, Chair of Highways and Transport Committee, undertook to provide a written response.
Nicholas Dinham had submitted a statement asking for the re-establishment the Pathfinder Service and asked what steps the Administration proposed to take to ensure that those unfortunate enough to need the help of Social Services were adequately supported. He indicated that this would maximise income for the Council via assessed charges and would not let down the most vulnerable in society who are unable to advocate for themselves. Councillor J Rhodes, Chair of Adult and Health Committee, responded by stating that the Pathfinder Service provided a much wider role than providing financial help, and filling in forms. It was commissioned for two years and extended for a short time whilst a strategic review took place and the contract ended in May 2021 and been replaced with other services including a contract with the Citizens Advice Bureau to provide financial advice. Councillor Rhodes stated that there would be an investigation into the matters raised and a written reply would be sent to Mr Dinham.
Stuart Redgard stated that since October he had identified failings in the Highways Department and had received Council correspondence which he stated contained incorrect information. He stated that he also felt that the Council was breaching the Equality Act and the Health and Safety Act by taking so long to update to update the street lighting inventory. Councillor C Browne, Chair of Highways and Transport Committee, undertook to provide a written response.