Agenda item

The Joint Committee RESOLVED:

1. To commission the Monitoring Officers of the Unitary Authorities which constitute the Joint Committee to review the Joint Committee’s current constitutional arrangements and to make recommendations which will be considered by the Joint Committee by March 2022.

2. To implement a review into the governance and administration of the Joint Committee’s funding streams and to commission the Chief Executives and Monitoring Officers of the four Unitary Authorities to work with the LEP Board and CEO to review the administrative arrangements for Joint Committee’s investment sources including the Local Growth Fund (LGF), Economic Development Fund (EDF), Revolving Infrastructure Fund (RIF), having regard to the advantages of the single pot approach and flexibility across funding programmes. Recommendations from the review to be formally reported to the LEP Board and then to Joint Committee.

3. To requisition a meeting of the Joint Committee by March 2022 at Weston-super-Mare’s Town Hall to consider the next steps.

The Joint Committee considered a report which proposed a review of the Joint Committee’s current constitutional arrangements and a review into the governance and administration of the Joint Committee’s funding streams (agenda item 10).

The Chair commented that this report had been produced through the West of England unitary authorities.  In his view, given the context of the expected announcement of the government’s levelling-up white paper due early in the new year, this was the wrong report at the wrong time.  He was also concerned that the Local Enterprise Partnership Board had not been consulted and about the issue of retaining the current flexibility as a region in managing funding pots, as highlighted earlier at the meeting by the Chairs of the Local Enterprise Partnership Board and the Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

Councillor Savage moved the report recommendations.

This motion was seconded by Councillor Guy.

The Chair then moved the following amendment to the report:

Amend recommendation 2 to read:

‘To implement a review into the governance and administration of the Joint Committee’s funding streams and to commission the Chief Executives and Monitoring Officers of the four Unitary Authorities to work with the LEP Board and CEO to review the administrative arrangements for Joint Committee’s investment sources including the Local Growth Fund (LGF), Economic Development Fund (EDF), Revolving Infrastructure Fund (RIF), having regard to the advantages of the single pot approach and flexibility across funding programmes. Recommendations from the review to be formally reported to the LEP Board and then to Joint Committee.’

The amendment was seconded by Councillor Davies.

Councillor Guy, Councillor Savage and Councillor Cheney all indicated that they were supportive of the amendment.

Councillor Savage added that he welcomed the review and the opportunity to take forward collaborative working to clarify and improve on the Joint Committee’s current constitutional arrangements.  In relation to the specific point raised about consultation with the Local Enterprise Partnership Board, he pointed out that a discussion had taken place in December with the Board’s business sector representatives.

Voting then took place on the amendment.  All 5 members present voted unanimously in favour of the amendment.

The amendment having been carried, the Joint Committee then voted on the substantive motion (including the amendment to recommendation 2 as carried) and

RESOLVED:

1. To commission the Monitoring Officers of the Unitary Authorities which constitute the Joint Committee to review the Joint Committee’s current constitutional arrangements and to make recommendations which will be considered by the Joint Committee by March 2022.

2. To implement a review into the governance and administration of the Joint Committee’s funding streams and to commission the Chief Executives and Monitoring Officers of the four Unitary Authorities to work with the LEP Board and CEO to review the administrative arrangements for Joint Committee’s investment sources including the Local Growth Fund (LGF), Economic Development Fund (EDF), Revolving Infrastructure Fund (RIF), having regard to the advantages of the single pot approach and flexibility across funding programmes. Recommendations from the review to be formally reported to the LEP Board and then to Joint Committee.

3. To requisition a meeting of the Joint Committee by March 2022 at Weston-Super-Mare’s Town Hall to consider the next steps.