Agenda item

To question the Leader and/or Executive Members in respect of any matter within their portfolio responsibility, in accordance with Standing Order B11.

Members were invited to question the Leader or Executive Members. Questions were received from the floor from the following Members, and replied to as indicated:

Question to Cllr Ravilious, Executive Member for Transport

From Cllr Nicholls: As the Executive Member will be aware, there has been a weight limit on Appleton Road Bridge in Bishopthorpe since October, and hopefully it will be fixed by the end of the year. Whether the bridge is open or closed the location of Celkom and a number of haulage companies in the Acaster area means an ever increasing number of lorries going through Bishopthorpe, Copmanthorpe and Appleton Roebuck, and they are a real threat to road safety to the youngest and the oldest, to pedestrians and cyclists. Does the Executive Member agree with me that this is an entirely unacceptable situation and that such companies should be located at the side of motorways or main A-roads, and where land is cheap? If she does agree will she join myself and Cllr Steward in working towards stopping such companies operating where always driving through villages is unavoidable, and what action would she like to see the Council taking?

Response: I think this is a case of a company that’s outgrown its location, it’s become very successful, and obviously when we’re looking at our transport strategy and the movement and place plan we’re really focusing on what kind of places do we want to create, what sort of traffic and environment are we trying to create. With all of area you mention, having such huge HGVs going through the villages is not appropriate, and we need to look at ways to discourage that kind of traffic through small villages. Fixing the bridge is in progress and will help to relieve some of the pressure as we won’t have all the HGVs going along the same road. We will need to start looking at measures we can introduce in the villages to make them feel safer places for people to walk and cycle safely, and to get to school and to the doctor safely. I would be very happy to come to visit you in your villages to look, with officers, at what measures we can introduce in the short term as part of our movmenet and place plan to make them a safe environment for people. We’re committed to our vision zero policy to eliminate road deaths and serious injuries by 2040; making sure that heavy vehicles like HGVs are travelling slowly enough and ideally not going through small villages is something we will be looking to do. It's not something we can do overnight, we will have to work progressively on the kind of measures we can use in the coming years.

Question to Cllr Douglas, Executive Leader

From Cllr Hollyer: In terms of the motion just passed in relation to postal votes, in York there were issues with the timely dispatch of postal ballots and incorrect polling cards being issued which led to residents having to come into West Offices to collect their postal ballots and some residents being disenfranchised altogether. Could the Leader please tell us what discussions she has had with officers to date to understand these issues and how they arose, and what resources will be put in place to avoid a repeat in the future?

Response: There is no way that we can understate the challenges that bothofficers and residents felt over the general election period concerning the receipt of postal votes and re-issuing for those whose postal vote hadn’t arrived. That’s why we actually put together the motion we’ve seen today so that we can look at that process. There is no getting away from the fact that the administrative burden on staff around registration of postal voters and reissuing was a problem, but the team responded really well. There were long waits at certain points, particularly the Friday before the election but the team responded to that and by the Monday wait times were much reduced. The conversations over that period were ongoing, and I think the team coped remarkably well given the situation; they were as distressed about the wait for residents as many of the residents were. This is a bigger system issue, it’s not just about what we deliver locally; we need to work together to ensure the voting system works for people nationally, and hopefully we will benefit locally from that as well.

Question to Cllr Webb, Executive Member for Children, Young People and Education

From Cllr B Burton: The Council’s Public Health team commissioned the Healthy Schools programme from Healthy Schools North Yorkshire from March 2023 up until March 2025. Could the Executive Member outline the benefits to schools and young people in York from that programme?

Response: We’ve introduced this award alongside North Yorkshire.Huntington School first achieved a bronze and has now achieved a silver award, and I have been to speak to some of the young people there. Something that is really positive is that it is not just about physical health but mental health as well. Huntington School, for example, introduced mental health champions and a mental health policy; in order to get the silver and gold level awards schools have to show that staff wellbeing is part of this, something very dear to my heart. Finally I think the really key point around this are that it is supporting active lives, emotional health and wellbeing, healthy food in schools, and PSHE education. We are starting to encourage schools to do what they can to support their young people and their staff to be healthy in all aspects of their life. I’m really glad that a quarter of York’s schools have already started on this programme. I’d love to see more and we’re hoping that will grow over time.

Questions to Cllr Kent, Executive Member forEnvironment and Climate Emergency

From Cllr Fenton: An issue that residents have raised with me is whether volunteers who help manage Council land, whether that’s weeding kerbsides or gathering fallen leaves, will be charged by the Council for disposing of the green waste they collect on the Council’s behalf? My understanding is that they will be charged in the same way as everybody else who wishes to sign up to that service, and I wonder whether the Executive Member shares my concern about the message that this could be perceived as sending out to volunteers in the city about how we appreciate their work if we don’t seem willing to recognise that work through the system that’s being implemented at the moment?

Response: You’ll know from my report that I do value very highly the work that all our volunteers across the city do. how much value. This might be better for me to follow up with you afterwards about the particular volunteers and where they are doing the work, but the short answer is that if it’s true voluntary work then there are arrangements with the Eco team for them to put the weeds or leaves they’re picking up into green bags and have it collected by the Public Realm team. If they are currently putting it into green bins which are residential and will need to switch I can help you to put them in touch with the right people to do that. There could be some issue around where they are collecting green waste on Council land or their own land but if its genuine volunteer work there is a system in place and the Eco team are the ones to talk to; I can get in touch with you afterwards to discuss further.

Supplementary from Cllr Orrell: It’s not just volunteers who work for organisations; there are many residents across the city who look after the areas in front of their houses as a part of civic pride to keep their neighbourhood looking in good condition. If they didn’t do it, the Council would have to spend more money maintaining those areas.Are they are now going to be charged for the privilege of helping the Council by doing that?

Supplementary response: Obviously people are free to cut the verge in front of their homes, it’s a matter of personal choice; you might prefer that the Council cut it more often than it does or is able to, and we’ve talked all evening about the difficult financial circumstances that local authorities find themselves in. We’ve made a commitment to cut them six times a year this year, that’s level of standard we can afford to keep at this stage; that’s under review and we are checking on it. If people want to cut the verge more than that, that is a preference and a matter of choice; it is hard to balance because I also have an inbox full of people who are irate when the Council cuts the verge in front of their house because they were valuing the short flowering plants that were there. It’s a choice. I value volunteer work and we all appreciate the civic pride that the residents of York show in the city and all the work that goes into that. Some people like very short grass, some people would like it much longer, and that’s their choice; if they want to take that additional work on as many parish councils do that’s great, and if it is truly volunteering work there is a system to help them remove green waste.

From Cllr Vassie: Your report refers to steps to improve biodiversity, for example changes in mowing regimes to support wildflowers. Councillors of all parties and none are reporting that wildflowers continue to be destroyed this year in wards across the city including on wildflower verges in Wheldrake, Westfield and elsewhere. Given that a Liberal Democrat motion aimed at enabling councillors of all parties to repeat our joint commitment for action on biodiversity was ruled out of order, how do you see elected members helping you to ensure that officers listen to the political will of York and deliver the protection and enhancement of biodiversity that we all wish to see? Your report also refers to the investment that Innovate UK is making in York; are you aware that Innovate UK helps local authorities extend EV charging to terraced properties. Will the administration seek to ensure that York’s 15,000 homes in terraced streets can take advantage of Innovate UK funding and participate in the switch to electric vehicles?

Response: I am not sure as to what happened with the overruled motion, I think it was before my time on the Council. I think the gist of your question was how we can all ensure that biodiversity is protected and that officers enact that desire. I mentioned the mapping that has been going on over the last twelve months; I think everybody here knows that there wasn’t a very good system, or no system of mapping properly what should be cut and what shouldn’t. It is difficult and I’m not underestimating it – where we have this patchwork it is hard for operatives who are just sitting cutting to know about. If there are areas that have been cut and shouldn’t have or vice versa, please get in touch with me and the Head of Environmental Services jointly so we can enable that mapping to be done. It takes all of us – you know your local areas better than anybody. Keep informing us so that mapping becomes complete, and report immediately if it’s gone wrong. I don’t think there is a desire by officers to destroy biodiversity, they understand the importance of it. I think it’s an operational management problem. You’ll know that we deeply regret what happened in Wheldrake, and I hope the conclusion we’ve reached in terms of taking the management off the landowner in question will help, and I look forward to next year’s crop there. There are further steps that we are taking in terms of biodiversity – I mentioned the local mapping that we are doing. If you ask me again about Innovate UK in the next item I can answer that then.