Agenda item

Questions from the Public

To receive questions from the public in accordance with the Constitution.

 

Questions, of no longer than 50 words, can be submitted to the Democratic Support Unit, Plymouth City Council, Ballard House, Plymouth, PL1 3BJ, or email to democraticsupport@plymouth.gov.uk. Any questions must be received at least five clear working days before the date of the meeting.

 

Minutes:

The following question was submitted by Mr Andrew Hill which was answered by Councillor Chris Penberthy (Cabinet Member for Housing and Co-operative Development).

 

Question: During 2020 how many travellers have signed Code of Conduct Agreements and how many £20/other payments have been received from travellers for supplying welfare/other facilities. If no/negligible payments/agreements have been received why has the new policy you heralded in January 2019 not achieved its aims?

 

Answer: During 2020 all Travelling families staying within Plymouth – either as Unauthorised Encampments or as part of the Temporary Site available as part of the national Covid response have had discussions with Officers about acceptable standards of behaviour and have verbally agreed these.

 

In terms of payments, the Council implemented a Temporary Site during May – August 2020 as part of our emergency response to the Covid crisis in line with Government Guidance. No charge was made for staying on this site. Due to the current legal framework Plymouth City Council are unable to charge for Unauthorised Encampments.

As with any policy, this is planned delivery and requires a number of preliminary actions to enable this. Work on delivering the policy has been on going throughout the year despite COVID.

 

The following question was submitted by Mr James Knight which was answered by Councillor Mark Coker (Cabinet Member for for Strategic Planning and Infrastructure).

 

Question: The Antony Gormley statute has been installed for several months now on the seafront.  The access to view the statue for wheelchair users is via the road towards the Waterfront pub.  These gates are often locked.  Why wasn't disabled wheelchair access considered in the citing of this statue to allow full access that is afforded to able-bodied persons?

 

Answer: Access to the pier, including for wheelchair users, is via the road in front of the Waterfront public house. The planning application for the statue and its accompanying Design and Access statement demonstrated that this access to the statue would be retained, and improved by surface improvements. It also explained that the site on the pier had been selected to maximise the number of people who would be able to visit the statue. The determination of the planning application also had due regard to Section 149 of the Equality Act 2010 with regard to the Public Sector Equality Duty. The assessment of the planning application concluded that the positioning of the statue would not cause discrimination on the grounds of disability access.

It appears that the Waterfront publican has closed the gates at the head of this access route, and as a result, access has been denied to the statue. These gates should not be locked to deny such access. Accordingly, the St Austell Brewery (and their licensee) have been reminded of their obligation to keep the gates open under the terms of their lease.

 

The following question was submitted by Mr Richard Worrall to Councillor Mark Coker (Cabinet Member for for Strategic Planning and Infrastructure).

 

Question: Plymouth was awarded £51.2m from the Transforming Cities Fund, £35m of which was to fund a bridge linking Plymouth Railway Station to Central Park. Now, plans for the bridge have been shelved in favour of other projects. How was it determined that this award be spent contrary to intended purposes?

Answer: In November 2019, Plymouth City Council submitted its Transforming Cities Fund 2 bid, seeking £116m for 20 schemes that formed the proposed “core package” of sustainable transport initiatives. In March 2020, the Government announced the City Council’s award of £51m.

 

The Central Park Bridge scheme represented 30% of the original £116 Million bid, and would have represented 70% of the final £51m that had been awarded. The Department of Transport worked with Plymouth City Council to finalise the package of schemes through detailed dialogue, which continued through to June 2020, when the final funding award and programme was confirmed. The final Transforming Cities Fund Programme agreed by the Department of Transport did not include the Central Park bridge. Given concerns associated with the complexities of delivering a bridge across the main railway line by March 2023, which had already been affected by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was agreed with the Department of Transport that a greater variety of other sustainable transport schemes and initiatives would bring greater benefits for Plymouth. The Transforming Cities Fund is therefore supporting 12 projects, more in accordance with the Transforming Cities Fund strategic objectives, that aim to help the city shift up a gear in tackling climate change and making sustainable transport more attractive and convenient.

 

Therefore, whilst at the moment, there is no funding available; the City Council will continue to consider how it can improve connectivity between Central Park and the city centre.