Items including pedestrian routes to schools, home care and the proposed new Mid-Cornwall Metro are on the agenda this morning when Cornwall Council’s cabinet committee meets in Truro.
Also on the agenda is the minerals safeguarding for Cornwall and public questions for cabinet members.
The meeting, the final time the committee will meet in 2023, will take place in the Trelawny Room at County Hall (Lys Kernow), starting at 10am.
It is open to members of the public, or you can watch via webcast.
Alternatively, you can keep up with proceedings by following the live blog below:
9.30am: Proceedings will begin at 10am
10am: Today’s meeting is now underway, starting with apologies and declarations of interest
10.01am: Cornwall Council deputy leader Cllr David Harris is chairing the meeting as the leader, Cllr Linda Taylor, is travelling and joining remotely.
10.02am: Cllr Harris is reading the leader’s announcements on behalf of Cllr Taylor. He reveals Cllr Taylor is travelling to London in order to formally sign the level two devolution deal which was approved by Cabinet a fortnight ago.
10.05am: Cllr Taylor’s announcements reflect on the authority’s work of the past 12 months, highlighting the devolution deal, hosting Armed Forces Day, and gaining Fertility Friendly Accreditation.
She concludes: “Yes, we do face challenges on a daily basis, but we should reflect on all we do and achieve as we strive to ensure Cornwall is a great place to start well, to live well and to age well.”
10.06am: Cllr Harris adds his personal thanks to the leader for her hard work in the past year.
10.06am: We now move onto public questions, and begin with a question on road safety in Bodmin.
10.13am: The final public question regards the agenda item on pedestrian routes to schools.. Cllr Barbara Ellenbroek says the Cabinet has listened to concerns, as will become clear when the item is debated.
10.14am: The next item on the agenda is the Mid Cornwall Metro scheme, which Cllr Richard William-Pears tells the cabinet is a once in a lifetime opportunity to invest in rail in mid Cornwall.
10.18am: Cllr Williams-Pears acknowledges there are risks with the scheme, but highlights a number of ‘stop-go’ points, where the project will be assessed before proceeding. He tells cabinet that risks do need to be weighed against the benefits, and asks them to support the proposals, which come with £49 million of funding from the Government’s Levelling Up Fund.
10.21am: Cllr Louis Gardner seconds the proposal, highlighting that the plan is not just a transport scheme, it will also provide a huge boost for the Cornish economy.
10.25am: Cllr Harris says he has been working on this scheme for a long time, and having weighed up the positives and the negatives, he believes it is a great proposal and is happy to support it.
10.29am: Questions from councillors are now being taken
10.46am: The item has been approved unanimously by the cabinet. We now move onto the Cornwall Mineral Safeguarding and Development document.
10.47am: Cllr Olly Monk is outlining the item to the Cabinet, explaining how Cornwall’s long history of mineral extraction looks set to continue into the future, but that we need to make sure the sector is supported, and that policies are kept up to date with all future developments.
10.49am: Cllr Monk explains that the plan was adopted in 2019, but needs to be reviewed every five years, and that the plan is still in line with national guidance.
10.50am: The item is being seconded by Cllr Martyn Alvey, who welcomes the impact the plan has on climate change policies.
10.51am: The plan is supported unanimously.
10.52am: We now move onto the Care at Home with Support report, which is introduced by Cllr Andrew Virr.
10.54am: Cllr Virr outlines how the council hopes to create a collaborative rather than a competitive market for providing home care in order to optimise the resources available.
10.57am: Questions are now being asked by councillors.
11.02am: The recommendations are carried unanimously.
11.03am: The final agenda item is the pedestrian routes to school, which could have seen free transport to school halted on some journeys which have been deemed as safe for walking. Cllr Barbara Ellenbroek tells the meeting that, given the current financial climate, no changes are made at present, and that a commitment is only made for a review at a more suitable time.
11.04am: Cllr Williams-Pears seconds her proposal, and thanks Cllr Ellenbroek for the way she has dealt with the pressure of this agenda item in recent months.
11.09am: The item is now open for questions from councillors.
11.29am: Cllr Williams-Pears reveals he has just received an email telling him that anyone approving this item is ‘allowing paedophiles to attack children and should be thrown out of office’. He suggests people should try and approach the matter with more civility.
11.31am: The proposal is approved unanimously. That concludes today’s proceedings.
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