Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Malik and Councillor Porter.

Members are asked to declare any interests they may have in the business to be discussed on the agenda.

There were no declarations of interest.

The minutes of the meeting of the Commission held on 22 April 2021 are attached and Members are asked to confirm them as a correct record.

AGREED:

That the minutes of the meeting of the Economic Development, Transport and Tourism Scrutiny Commission on 22 April 2021 be confirmed as a correct record.

Members are asked to note the membership of the Commission for the 2021/22 Municipal Year, as follows:

Councillor Joel (Chair)

Councillor Sandhu (Vice-Chair)

Councillor Fonseca

Councillor Malik

Councillor Rae Bhatia

Councillor Singh Johal

Councillor Porter

Councillor Valand

AGREED:

That the Members of the Economic Development, Transport and Climate Emergency Scrutiny Commission note the membership of the Commission.

Members are asked to note the dates of Commission meetings for the 2021/22 municipal year as follows:

Wednesday 16 June 2021

Wednesday 18 August 2021

Wednesday 13 October 2021

Wednesday 15 December 2021

Wednesday 19 January 2022

Wednesday 23 March 2022

AGREED:

That the Members of the Economic Development, Transport and Climate Emergency Scrutiny Commission note the dates of the Commission for the next municipal year.

The Monitoring Officer to report on any Questions, Representations and Statements of Case received in accordance with Council procedures.

The Monitoring Officer noted that non had been recieved.

The Monitoring Officer to report on any Petitions received in accordance with Council procedures.

The Monitoring Officer noted that non had been received.

The Director of Planning, Development and Transportation submits a report providing an update on accessibility following engagement conducted with working groups.

Members of the Commission are recommended to receive the report and pass any comments to the Director of Planning, Development and Transportation.

The Deputy City Mayor for Environment and Transportation introduced the item and paid tributes to Sujhata Bharat.

The City Transport Director delivered an overview of the report.

As part of the discussions it was noted that the proposed work would make a lot of difference for the better. Having an Accessibility Group in the city was the way ahead as this would contribute towards continual improvements for all disability groups and individuals. Communications with the various organisations and individuals across the city would result in the best possible outcomes.

Is was noted that road safety audits were undertaken independently, and these would be referred to the various groups involved and future items would be bought to the scrutiny commission for further engagement.

Future schemes were now moving out of the city centre and going further into local communities. It was suggested that reasons such as this made it more important to facilitate discussions with residents across the city to tailor to their needs.

It was noted that a number of new services such as the City Centre Connector bus, a free service soon to be introduced along with the Santander Cycle Scheme and new signage were making the city centre more accessible and giving residents across the city a fair chance in the city.

Members of the Commission welcomed the comprehensive report, tributed to the many campaigners. It was noted that there were no financial implications in consulting with the residents as implications were more on delivering the schemes.

Multi operator bus tickets that had already existed were now effectively been made available on the mobile phone via the operator’s platforms. Members of the Commission commended the work and were in support of the long overdue greener cities. It was suggested that going ahead in collaboration with the bus operators, the aim was to reduce the premium price of the Flexi Bus ticket to encourage more users to the integrated, coherent bus services.

It was suggested that the schemes were positive moving towards the greener European cities where the public transport systems are more welcoming, the works which have made visible improvements were suggested as a shift away from the industrial past of the city.

The Assistant City Mayor for Communities, Equalities and Special Projects noted that the developments have indicated that residents across the city were involved in addressing equalities issues and the Service were committed to listen to and make provisions for positive impacts in peoples lives across the city.

The Chair commended the report and thanked the Members of the Executive and Officers for their commitments and suggested incorporating diverse languages into the transport network to address the needs for a multicultural city.

It was noted that the transport department were actively working within various communities for equity of access. Exploring the technology available was being considered for future opportunities.

Agreed:

1)    That the report be noted and;

2)    That Officers note the comments made by the Economic Development, Transportation and Climate Emergency Scrutiny Commission.  

The Director of Planning, Development and Transportation submits a presentation on the Transforming Cities Fund Scheme, which provides an update on the proposals for the Aylestone Road Scheme.

Members of the Commission are requested to receive the presentation and pass any comments to the Director of Planning Development and Transportation.

The City Transport Director delivered a presentation on the Transforming Cities Fund (TCF) Scheme: Connected Leicester – Aylestone Road. The presentation gave a brief overview of the scheme and sustainable transport.

It was suggested that the scheme would improve crossings, minor amendments to carriages without the loss of lanes, to improve sustainable transport and safe for all road users.

As part of the discussions it was noted that:

·         The proposed scheme was planned to commence in the summer of 2022 and that the duration of the works would be provided to Members.

·         E- bikes were legally allowed to be used in the cycle lanes

·         Mopeds continued to be used on the main carriage way.

Members of the Commission shared their concerns with the impact of the works on the vibrancy of the city centre. It was noted that:

·         The absolute purpose of these schemes was to maintain the economic viability of the city.

·         Improving access around the city for all considering the aspects of economic viability, health and environment factors.

·         Using the small space to deliver the best infrastructure across the city for future development of the city.

Members of the Commission shared their concerns with the closure of roads due to pedestrianisation. It was suggested that the proposed closing of Walnut Street would allow for the future opening of Evesham Road and Boundary Road.

It was noted that:

·         The schemes were designed to allow for moving around the city in alternative more sustainable means to the car

·         The proposed scheme allowed for designing the city for people and moving away from designing cities for cars

·         All proposed works would be consulted on and Ward Councillors would be engaged with

·         The plans delivered as part of the presentation showed the proposals and no road closures were confirmed.

·         All proposals would be discussed, and the benefits of the schemes need to be considered.

The Director for Tourism Culture and Inward investment submits a report providing an update on the on the progress of the three-year Graduate Retention Scheme led by the Economic Regeneration Team.

Members of the Commission are requested to receive the report and pass any comments to the Director of Tourism, Culture and Inward Investment.

The Director for Tourism, Culture and Inward Investment presented the report on the Graduate Retention Scheme.

Work was on going with both universities in the city and the city council to improve the retention of students. European funding had been sourced to develop internships for second year students at university with local businesses as it was suggested that building more of these links would further link students with staying in the city.

As part of the discussions it was noted that:

·         Members of the Commission welcomed the report.

·         It was suggested that local enterprises should host open days to promote local business

·         That the local authority help promote local enterprise

·         There would be better employment opportunities following graduate retention as this would encourage employers to the city such as IBM

·         Graduate retention should also be aimed at local students staying in the city

·         Graduate retention and having a pool of talent would encourage improving the lives of people in the city and further economic growth

·         The offer of a living wage from the small or medium sized enterprises would encourage student retention

·         Partner organisations are being encouraged to deliver a living wage with the aim of raising the average wage across the city

·         Development in the city, making a vibrant atmosphere would further encourage students to further their careers in the city.

The Chair thanked officers for their work in producing the report.

Agreed:

1)    That the report be noted and;

2)    That Officers note the comments from the Members of the Commission.

The Director for Tourism, Culture and Inward Investment submits a report updating the Commission on the city and city centre.

Members of the Commission are requested to receive the update report and pass any comments to the Director of Tourism, Culture and Inward Investment.

The Director of Tourism, Culture and Inward Investment delivered the report and presentation on the Economic Recovery Plan. Targeting to improve opportunities within the authority and the wider city to encourage people to come and stay longer in the city.

The ERDF campaign funded from European Regional Development Fund supported the promotion of reopening of city.  A series of illustrations and videos had been put together to illustrate the impact on the city following the pandemic based around the personal outlook of the city and reopening of the city.

The Director of Tourism Culture and Inward Investment delivered a presentation on the Levelling Up fund. Proposing future developments in the City and it was suggested that this would be a long term plan and this meeting gave the opportunity to engage with Members.

It was noted that the Levelling Up Fund was a £4 billion fund and Leicester was in a priority 1 category designated as a leading authority, although this did not guarantee any funding.   

It was suggested that there were a number of projects that could be funded if the authority was successful in its bidding process with stage one to include Pilot House, Ian Marlow Centre and Leicester Train Station.

As part of the discussion it was noted that:

·         Members of the Commission were supportive of the future plans and wished the service the best with their funding applications.

·         The authority would be seeking support from the local MP’s in and out of the city boundaries

·         Members of the Commission requested that the Commission be updated with any developments in the funding process and the item be brought back to the Commission in the future

AGREED:

1)    That the report and presentation be noted

2)    That the Director of Tourism, Culture and Inward Investment be requested to provide updates in the future and;

3)    That the Director of Tourism Culture and Inward Investment be commended for their contributions.

For Members consideration, Work Programme for 2021/22 is attached.

The Chair requested Members of the Commission to contact the Chair or the Scrutiny Policy Officer, for items to be considered on the Work Programme.

There being no items of urgent business, the meeting closed at 8:00pm