Today marks the first anniversary of the publication of Sir Charles Hendry’s report on the future of tidal lagoon energy with the clear recommendation to the Government to get on with the Swansea tidal lagoon project. I acknowledge that the lagoon doesn’t have 100% support but the vast majority of people I’ve spoken to are in favour of it and it has cross-party support in Council.
We’ll continue to exert as much pressure as we can to secure this project and the massive economic boost it’d bring to the city and the region. This week we had a Love the Lagoon birthday cake made to mark the anniversary. It’s part of our campaign and was shared with business leaders and visitors to Swansea Market. We also sent first birthday cards to the Prime Minister, Welsh Secretary and Business Secretary as a friendly nudge for them to make a decision.
You may have seen this week that the First Minister has now waded in to the debate with an offer of substantial financial support from the Welsh Government. It remains to be seen whether this will help unblock the project at UK Government level, but I know that the pressure of our Love the Lagoon campaign has been felt in Cardiff and London so thanks to all who‘ve joined with it.
On Monday I attended our Scrutiny Programme Committee along with the Leader where the subject of the lagoon was raised once again. The committee heard from the Leader about progress on a range of issues from City Deal and the broader regeneration programme to the work of the Public Services Board and our corporate priorities. Scrutiny is an essential function of local government and we responded to a range of challenging and important questions. The report is available here. During the meeting we noted that Greg Clark, the current Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, had retained his post in the UK Government Cabinet reshuffle. During our recent meeting with him he said a decision would be made “shortly” so we hope he keeps to his word and we can leave the second birthday candle firmly in the drawer.
Homelessness
This week saw the publication of the Wales Audit Office report into how councils are managing homelessness. The report presents a mixed picture on performance but acknowledges that many of the causation factors are outside the control of councils and Welsh Government. For example there’s a general concern over the impact of welfare reform and a growth in the numbers of people finding themselves without a home.
Auditor General, Huw Vaughan-Thomas said: “My report today highlights that Local Authorities continue to focus on managing people in crisis rather than stopping them getting into crisis in the first place. To truly prevent homelessness public bodies need to take a long-term view and work with other organisations to really tackle the issues that cause homelessness. This requires a focus on, for example, better educational attainment, access to employment, well planned transition when leaving care and access to welfare benefits.”
We’re praised in the report for work on preventing homelessness through the creative use of Supporting People funding, its work with private landlords and its strategic approach to prevention. This Council has led the way in Wales on tackling homelessness for many years and I was proud to read the comments of the auditor. My thanks go to all those who work in this important and essential service area.
Sharing Information
On Tuesday I met with the Assistant Police and Crime Commissioner to discuss the effectiveness of information sharing protocols with housing following the introduction of new arrangements last year. It’s clear our council is also leading the way nationally on this initiative and although there are still some issues to resolve this is having an impact on community safety for our housing estates. Thanks to Dave Thomas and all in the housing team who’ve helped to make this a success.
Congratulations
The ‘Jig-so’ project has been shortlisted for prestigious British Journal of Midwifery Awards. It’s a Swansea-wide team of midwives, nursery nurses, family facilitators and early language development workers. Well done to all involved and let’s hope the team get the right result on the night.
Our corporate building and property services team is carrying out works at council homes to help tenants save money on their heating bills. The team has taken on more staff to do the work in-house, leading to a 25% increase in turnover compared to 2016/17. This will help us reach the Welsh Housing Quality Standard, so well done to all staff involved.
Staff in a range of services have joined forces with businesses and organisations to help improve the appearance of St Phillips Community Centre in Sandfields. This will improve things for thousands of people who use the community centre every year, so my thanks to all involved.
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