Hampshire County Council Universal Services Select Committee Meeting

Apologies were received from Councillor Kim Taylor and Councillor Rupert Kyrle. Councillors Alex Crawford and Martin Tod attended as deputies.

Members were mindful that where they believed they had a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest in any matter considered at the meeting they must declare that interest at the time of the relevant debate and, having regard to the circumstances described in Part 3, Paragraph 1.5 of the County Council's Members' Code of Conduct, leave the meeting while the matter was discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with Paragraph 1.6 of the Code. Furthermore Members were mindful that where they believed they had a Non-Pecuniary interest in a matter being considered at the meeting they considered whether such interest should be declared, and having regard to Part 5, Paragraph 5 of the Code, considered whether it was appropriate to leave the meeting whilst the matter was discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with the Code.

The minutes of the last meeting were reviewed and agreed.

The Select Committee received seven deputations at the meeting, all speaking with regards to item 8 on the agenda.

Dr Hannah Greenberg spoke about the health risks associated with pollution and confirmed that a Motion had been passed in some areas of Hampshire for a default of 20mph. It was felt that safety should be prioritised and it was important to consider vulnerable people that were travelling on foot and by bicycle.

Emma Street spoke on behalf of Cycle Winchester and asked the Select Committee to reject the report, feeling that it focused on reasons not to implement a 20mph speed limit and didn’t focus on people.

Helena Dale and Tony Higginson addressed the Select Committee as local residents about the Twyford area and the dangers of walking alongside the roads. Mr Higginson spoke of the cycle bus arranged for the local school accepted that transformational change was difficult but essential in a climate emergency to achieve results.

Anne Sayer spoke as a local resident and cycling instructor and emphasised the importance of lowering speeds to get more people, and in particular, women cycling as the amount of traffic and speed was deterring a lot of people from trying. Ms Sayer also felt that a lot of supporting evidence for introducing a 20mph policy had been missed from the report.

Mark King spoke as a local resident from the New Milton area, where walking was dangerous due to the speed of traffic and lack of pavements alongside long stretches of road

Caroline Tomlinson and Andrew Smith spoke on behalf of residents from Appleshaw and Redenham and the concern over lack of pavements in the local area, making walking anywhere very dangerous. An action group had been formed by the local Parish Council, which had been very well attended by residents.

Wilf Forrow addressed the Select Committee on behalf of Green Travel Hampshire, sharing that he felt the findings in the report were incompatible with the LTP4 document released for consultation. It was accepted that 20mph speed limits would not be enough on their own, but would be a good first step whilst other elements were implemented.

County Councillor Mark Cooper thanked officers and Members for their work looking at the 20mph policy as part of the working group and hoped that the County Council would work closely with Parishes and Districts going forward in implementing pilots. Councillor Cooper also requested that target dates were shared to show that the matter was being taken forward and looked at seriously.

There were no formal announcements.

Members looked at the Work Programme (item 7 in the minute book), and it was agreed that an item would added to look at utility companies and highway works and how the relationship could be strengthened for efficiency on work taking place.

Councillor Crawford proposed looking at the bus station closure in Aldershot, but it was confirmed that Hampshire County Council had little input and influence over what was happening at the present time and it was not something the Select Committee could scrutinise.

RESOLVED

The Universal Services Select Committee discussed and agreed potential items for the work programme to be prioritised and allocated by the Chairman of the Universal Services Select Committee in consultation with the Director of Universal Services.

The Committee considered a report from the Director of Universal Services and Director of Corporate Operations (item 6 in the minute book), which detailed the £19,279 million of savings across 16 proposals for SP25.

The officers summarised the report confirming that £105 million had been saved since 2010, with the majority being saved through the highways, engineering and transport areas of the Directorate. It was also highlighted that the consultation undertaken earlier in the year had been widely promoted to residents and stakeholders, who had provided views on a range of high-level options that could help to address the shortfall, so that the County Council could take residents’ needs in to account when considering the way forward.

During questions on the report, Members learned the following:

·         HWRC’s were currently separate from the budget proposals, but this would be looked at again going forward. Savings around the new Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) had been included in the previous savings programmes.

·         The Council would continue to wait for further funding from central government towards highways maintenance.

·         Paragraph 31 in the report discussed the School Crossing Patrols (SCPs) and officers confirmed that the £1.1 million savings was a maximum, and would enable there to be a full review of where these services were still needed. The County Council would always look to provide a safe provision for school travel, but this could include various options as well as SCPs.

·         Energy contracts were being looked at, but energy had always been sourced in an economic way. Energy use was being looked at in terms of reduction and utilising solar panels and grants.

·         The highway network would be reassessed to help prioritise roads for winter maintenance, as an assessment hadn’t been done since 1999 and there were a lot of legacy roads from old bus routes and previously heavily used roads that were no longer considered a priority.

·         A pilot would take place looking at enforcement and patrol of highway signs in 2024, the results of which would likely go to a Member Briefing.

During debate, Councillor Stephen Reid proposed recommending that the allocated maximum of £1.1 million savings from the review of the SCP service be removed from the Executive Member report. It was felt that the amount quoted would cause residents to fear losing a significant number of SCP’s across the County and this proposal was seconded by Councillor Alex Crawford. Officers reassured Members that the amount stated was a maximum and meant that the service could be reviewed to see whether better alternatives (like automated pedestrian crossings or built-out kerbs) would be more suited in some areas. Other Members on the Committee acknowledged the concerns around the public perception of the proposed savings, but agreed that overall a review would be beneficial and the £1.1 million was a maximum saving subject to further review. The Committee voted on Councillor Reid’s proposal to remove the stated £1.1 million, but this was not supported.

Councillor Nick Adams-King thanked the Committee for looking at the proposals, accepting that no-one wanted to have to reduce services, but it was an opportunity to look at how some services were provided and see whether there was a better alternative.

RESOLVED

The Universal Services Select Committee supported the recommendations being proposed to the Executive Lead Member for Universal Services in paragraph 2 of the main report.