Reporting Back Greater Manchester CA Scrutiny

Last month saw the second meeting of the new Greater Manchester Combined Authority Scrutiny Committees.

A scrutiny process is established in the laws which establish the city region Mayor (Andy Burnham), and in Greater Manchester these are just now taking shape. Three Scrutiny Committees have been established, each is made up of 15 councillors from across Greater Manchester (11 Labour, 3 Conservative and 1 Lib Dem). Under the legislation the Chair has to be from a political party that is different from the elected Mayor, so that is two conservatives and one Lib Dem.

Councillor Tim Pickstone is the Liberal Democrat on the Corporate Issues and Reform Scrutiny Committee, and one of two Bury councillors on that Committee (the other being East Ward Labour Councillor Stella Smith).

The first meet was mostly training, so this second October meeting was the first meeting getting down to business. The main issues considered were:

Greater Manchester Living Wage
The Mayor was there to discuss the proposal for Greater Manchester Combined Authority to sign up to the Living Wage Foundation’s ‘real’ living wage as an Employer.

Outside of London, the Living Wage Foundation’s ‘real’ Living Wage is set at £8.45 per hour and is reviewed and changed annually. By contrast, the National Living Wage is the legal minimum payable to those over the age of 25 and is set by Government. The National Living Wage is currently £7.50 per hour.

The idea is that the Combined Authority should ‘lead by example’ and become Living Wage accredited in order to encourage other employers to adopt this standard themselves.

The Accreditation would only apply to the staff currently directly employed by the Combined Authority (which is not that many at present), and also Greater Manchester Fire (and Waste from next year). At present there are hard any directly affected staff that are not already paid the ‘real’ living wage level, but the accreditation also applies to sub-contractors, so the CA would need to work with some contractors (e.g. secturity or cleaning companies which it contracts with) so they can comply as appropriate.

For me one issue which we do need to address is the significantly lower minimum wages which are currently allowed for people under 25 (e.g. £5.60/hour for 18-20 year olds or £3.10/hour for apprentices) which will be making it very difficult for young people to access bigger items like housing.

The proposal has since been agreed by the GMCA Executive. More information on the Living Wage Foundation here.

Future Work Programme
Much of the rest of the meeting was to determine which issues the Committee is going to Scrutinise at it’s monthly meetings going forwards.

The main role of this committees is to look at some of what are called ‘cross-cutting’ themes that the Combined Authority is dealing with.

The biggest one of these is around ‘School Readiness’. This is a particular issue for Greater Manchester because we are as a region significantly behind the national average – the percentage of children age 5 achieving a Good Level of Development (GLD) in 2015 at 62.4% compared to 66% nationally. Almost two in every five children in GM do not reach a GLD this increases to one in every two children in receipt of free school meals and one in five children with Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND). This is going to be a significant agenda item for the Committee in future months.

The second issue which we need to focus on is around budget and money, and the Committee received a briefing on GMCA budgets across the different GM authorities (Fire, Police, Waste, Transport etc) and agreed a plan to provide proper scrutiny at meetings running up to the 2018-19 budgets.

The papers for the meeting are here.
More information please ask – tim@burylibdems.net

UK – Firefighters cut by 1,146

Firefighters cut by 1,346 while fire safety audits down 14% – figures published last week have revealed. The number of firefighters (FTE) fell by 1,346, from 34,395 to 33,049, in the year to March 2017 a reduction of 4%.
The number of fire and rescue support staff saw a 10% decrease, from 7,952 to 7,132

The number of fire safety audits of buildings is down by 14% compared to the previous year.

Wera Hobhouse MP, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Communities and Local Government, commented:
“These figures show fire services across the country are being cut to the bone. Firefighters do an incredible job, but are increasingly finding themselves overstretched and under-resourced. The government must reverse these cuts and give fire services the resources to keep our communities safe.

As the Grenfell Tower tragedy showed, we urgently need to invest more in fire prevention. Fire services need more staff so they can carry out vital safety checks and ensure buildings are safe.”

More information
In total 40,180 staff (FTE) were employed by Fire and Rescue Services on 31 March 2017. This was a 5% decrease compared with the previous year (42,347 in 2016).

33,049 staff (FTE) were employed as firefighters on 31 March 2017. This was a 4% decrease compared with the previous year.

7,131 (FTE) were employed fire control or support staff, a 10% decrease compared with the previous year
See figures on fire prevention and fire safety audits here

Fire safety audits are carried out by Fire And Rescue Authorities to check that premises are being properly managed regarding fire safety.

Fire and Rescue Authorities carried out 54,247 fire safety audits in 2016/17, 14% fewer than in 2015/16 (63,201)

In 2015/16 the highest proportion of fire safety audits were carried out on shop premises (20% or 10,880), followed by care homes (14% or 7,391) and licensed premises (13% or 6,867).

17,000 (32%) of fire safety audits were deemed unsatisfactory. This led to 369 enforcement notices, 527 prohibition notices, 61 alteration notices and 68 prosecutions

UK facing “fly-tipping epidemic” with 1 million incidents in a year

The Liberal Democrats have called on the government to act to tackle Britain’s “fly-tipping epidemic,” as figures revealed fly-tipping incidents topped a million this year for the first time since 2008.

• Local authorities in England recorded 1,002,154 cases of fly-tipping in 2016-17, up 7% on the previous year. This is equivalent to 114 every hour.

• The estimated cost to the taxpayer for clearing up fly-tipping was £58 million, up 16% on the previous year

• The number of prosecutions for fly-tipping fell by a quarter to 1,602, compared to 2,135 the previous year

Wera Hobhouse MP, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Communities and Local Government, herself a former Councillor for Norden in Rochdale. commented:

“Britain’s fly-tipping epidemic is spiralling out of control.

“Our roads and countryside are being turned into rubbish dumps, costing the taxpayer millions, but too many fly-tippers are being let off the hook.

“The government needs to do more to ensure those responsible are brought to justice.

“Cash-strapped councils need more funding so they can increase bin collections and stop charging people to get rid of large household goods.”

Changes to Parliamentary Constituencies Proposed

The Boundary Commission for England has today published its revised proposals for new Parliamentary constituencies. This is part of a review to reduce the number of MPs from 650 to 600 and to ensure all constituencies are the same size.

Under the revised plans Bury borough is split three ways: a ‘Bury’ constituency consitsing of the town of Bury, Tottington and Ramsbottom; a Kearsley and Radcliffe seat, and a Prestwich and Middleton constituency (which includes most of Whitefield). For Bury the proposals are slightly more sensible as both Radcliffe and Whitefield avoid being ‘split down the middle’ between two constituencies. The proposals don’t change local government boundaries – so everywhere which is part of Bury Council now, stays the same.

But this could just be a complete waste of public money. Obviously the Conservatives do not have a majority in Parliament, and their DUP allies have been opposed to the changes in Northern Ireland. Vince Cable and the Liberal Democrats have called on the Government to stop wasting public money on this review if it has no intention of finishing the job.

More information and to respond the the consultation at the Boundary Commission for England consultation website.

Anything you want us to ask Andy Burnham?

Bury’s Lib Dem Group Leader, Cllr Tim Pickstone is meeting ‘Metro Mayor’ Andy Burnham this week as a delegation of Lib Dem Group Leaders in Greater Manchester.

Anything you want us to ask him?

This is a summary of the GM Metro Mayor powers produced by the Centre for Cities.
In Greater Manchester the Mayor also has responsibilities as Police and Crime Commissioner for police and crime.

Let us know anything you would like us to raise: email tim@burylibdems.net

 

Metrolink 6% Fare Hike Condemned

Metrolink Fares are to to rise by around 6% a year until 2020, the ten Greater Manchester Council Leaders have agreed. The decision was to rise fairs by ‘inflation + 2.33%’ on 1 January 2018, 2019 and 2020 respectively. At todays inflation level that is an increase of 5.93% on 1 January 2018, and over the three years a fare rise of around 19% over three years.

The Liberal Democrat group leader on the Transport for Greater Manchester Committee, Oldham councillor Howard Sykes MBE, has condemned the decision by the Labour-controlled Greater Manchester Combined Authority to increase Metrolink fares by almost 6% from January of next year, well above inflation, as “another blow for hard-up passengers”.

“This decision made by the Labour Leaders of nine of the Greater Manchester local authorities, with the support of the Greater Manchester Mayor and the Conservative leader of Trafford Council, shows how out of touch they are with the financial situation of many tram passengers.

“This is the first of three years of pain as Metrolink fares will be steadily increased year on year, but the pain will not end there as from January 2021, fares will increase annually by 1% above inflation.”

“Labour complains constantly about the Conservative’s austerity and wage freezes in the public sector and then hits passengers who are feeling the pinch with unremitting fare increases. This is simply not fair – Metrolink is in profit. We should be encouraging more passengers to use the service and cracking down on fare evasion to increase revenue not hammering the fare-paying passengers who already use it.”

Councillor Sykes is also concerned about the impact this increase may have on our environment: “I repeat the comments that I made in advance of the rise in rail fares in July. Price hikes discourage tram use and encourage passengers to get back in their cars increasing air pollution and traffic congestion – this is not good for us or for our planet or Greater Manchester.”

Full Report here.

Call for Safer Building Standards

The Liberal Democrats, at their annual conference held this year in Bournemouth called for significantly safer building standard in the light of the terrible Grenfell Tower tragedy.

In a motion overwhelmingly agreed, the Party expressed its deep regret at the appalling Grenfell Tower fire.

It called for the public inquiry to be full and as swift as possible, and commits Lib Dems to implementing quickly any recommendations it makes. It then went on to call for a number of fire safety measures to be implemented immediately in all social or privately rented homes, including annual fire checks for all tall buildings, and having fire drill evacuation practices for very tall buildings.

Specifically it said:

-Residents in social or private rented homes to be comprehensively listened to when there are issues of concern over the quality of their housing, through clear channels of accountability and a means of redress when action is not taken.
– Sufficient funding from central Government to ensure all homes are brought up to safe standards.
– All blocks over four stories to have annual fire checks by persons on a professional register who meet the competency criteria established by the Fire Risk Assessment Competency Council with mandatory actions on private and public landlords, owners, freehold owners and managing agents stemming from such checks.
– Central government to now comply with the recommendations of the Coroner who investigated the Lakanal tower block fire in 2013, and provide clearer guidance on the extent to which fire safety regulations apply to residential blocks.
– All blocks over ten stories to have a fire evacuation drill practices at a time of peak occupancy by the end of June 2018.
– Compulsory electrical safety tests in all rented homes in both the social rented and private rented sectors.
– A review of the emergency planning procedures for all councils to ensure there is clarity over how incidents will be dealt with and where responsibility lies.
– A complete review of the content and implementation of building regulations, including provisions for:
The use of sprinklers and cladding in tower blocks.
The ability of local councils to check details of development prior to building and during building or renovation.
— The ability to update building regulations as new products, processes and techniques become available.
— The ability of building regulations to be used to enforce changes where necessary in buildings based on updated knowledge of new products, processes and techniques.

Time to Talk – Suicide Prevention Day

Last Sunday, 10 September 2017 was the 15th Worldwide Suicide Prevention Day. The day was launched to raise awareness of, and take action on the 800,000 people who die each year globally as a result of suicide.

Councillor Mary D’Albert represented us at an event in Bury hosted by Samirtans Bury to raise awareness on the theme ‘Its Okay To Talk’. A memory tree marked the number of people lost to suicide in Bury in the last three years.

In the UK suicide rates amongst men are around three times higher than with women. It is the leading cause of death for men aged 20-34, though the highest rate are in men between 40-44.

There are many services, nationally and locally, that provide information and help in the links below.

https://www.iasp.info/wspd/

https://www.mind.org.uk/news-campaigns/campaigns/bluelight/world-suicide-prevention-day/?ctaId=/news-campaigns/campaigns/bluelight/blue-light-programme-events/slices/world-suicide-prevention-day/

http://www.samaritans.org/media-centre/our-campaigns/world-suicide-prevention-day

37% of Bury’s Home Care Visits just 15 minutes long

At the last Full Council meeting of Bury Council the Lib Dem team of Councillors asked questions on the
length of home care visits provided by Bury Council.

These investigations have shown that a shocking 37% of Home Care visits is Bury are 15 minutes or less.

Bury Council commissions care at Home services for Adults to deliver the care and support required to enable the customer to remain as independent as possible. Currently, the Council commissions external providers to deliver care at home services in 15 minute blocks.

The typical number and duration of weekly visits to customers is as follows:-
Total Number of Visits per week – 12782 (100%)
Number of 15 minute visits – 4790 (37.47%)
Number of 30 minute visits – 5796 (45.35%)
Number of 45 minute visits – 1433 (11.21%)
Number of 60 minute visits – 578 (4.52%)
Number of visits over 60 minutes 185 (1.45%)

A growing number of voices are speaking out against 15 minute care visits:

Statutory Care Act guidance, states, ‘short home-care visits of 15-minutes or less are not appropriate for people who need support with intimate care needs.’

The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) also advises that carers must spend a minimum of 30 minutes during visits to help keep people well.

The disability charity Leonard Cheshire has campaigned for a number of years to end flying care visits through its Make Care Fair campaign since 2013.

Out of the 152 councils surveyed in its survey this year, 16 councils have changed their policy in the last year and no longer commission 15-minute visits for personal care.

The local government Trades Union UNISON is a strong campaigner against 15 minute care visits. It’s Ethical Care Charter is a set of commitments that councils make which fix minimum standards that will protect the dignity and quality of life for those people and the workers who care for them.

Greater Manchester Spatial Framework – Dates for Next Proposals

Greater Manchester ‘Combined Authority’ has announced the ‘next steps’ in the Greater Manchester Spatial Framework announced. This has been agreed by the Mayor of Greater Manchester, and the ten council leaders, including Bury’s.

Residents will recall that the first proposals set out plans build significant numbers of houses across Greater Manchester – this was for 227,000 new homes in Greater Manchester over the next 20 years. It also included a significant amount of building on protected ‘Green Belt’ land – Bury fared worst, set to lost 20% of its Green Belt, and in Prestwich, Whitefield and Unsworth the loss was nearly 50% of green belt.

According to the announcement from GMCA: “The second draft will take into account concerns raised by some members of the public during the first consultation period, and will aim to make the most of Greater Manchester’s brownfield sites and reduce the impact on greenbelt”. Importantly this doesn’t say ‘no greenbelt’ ….  Residents may remember that before his election, Andy Burnham made clear promises on the GMSF, and said “I would go further and propose that we consider the aim of no net loss of green belt.”

This process will continue in September with the publication of the responses to the initial consultation. This will be followed later in the year by the publication of data and associated sources of information such as population estimates which will help GMCA calculate the requirements for housing and employment.

The second draft of the plan will be developed in the new year, with a view to publish it in June 2018. Following publication of the draft plan, there will be a 12-week consultation with the public. Conveniently this publication date is just AFTER the next set of elections in Greater Manchester, which take place in May 2018…..

Green belt land proposed to be lost across Greater Manchester in the first proposals.