Wrthi'n llwytho
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RESOLVED- That the minutes of the North Wales Police and Crime Panel held on 25 September 2023 be agreed as a correct record.
RESOLVED- That the report be noted.
RESOLVED- That the report be noted.
RESOLVED- That the North Wales Police and Crime Panel - Mid- Year Monitoring Report: 1 April 2023 to 30 September 2023 be noted.
RESOLVED- That the Forward Work Programme for the North Wales Police and Crime Panel be noted.
RESOLVED: That the meeting on 25 March 2024 be cancelled.
Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Chris Bithell and Sioned Wyn Davies (Co-opted Independent Member).
In the interest of transparency, Councillor Louise Emery advised that her husband worked within the Welsh Counter Terrorism Unit and whilst he was employed by North Wales Police, the unit was funded nationally.
No urgent matters.
The Chair extended his congratulations to Nigel Harrison on his appointment as the new Deputy Chief Constable of North Wales Police.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED- That the minutes of the North Wales Police and Crime Panel held on 25 September 2023 be agreed as a correct record.
The minutes of the North Wales Police and Crime Panel held on 25 September 2023 were submitted for approval. RESOLVED- That the minutes of the North Wales Police and Crime Panel held on 25 September 2023 be agreed as a correct record.
An update on the actions from the previous meeting held on 25 September 2023 was given as follows: Minute 27 – Periodic Update by the North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC): It was noted that the PCC’s response to the HMICFRS report into the effectiveness of vetting arrangements in North Wales Police had been circulated to Panel Members.
A number of questions had been submitted to the Police and Crime Commissioner from Panel Members and a member of the public. The responses to the questions are attached as an appendix to these minutes. Following an investigation into the use of live facial recognition (LFR) by the Justice and Home Affairs Committee, Councillor Harper asked a supplementary question, which related to what scrutiny was undertaken to ensure the appropriate use of the technology and that images of innocent people were not being stored inappropriately. In response, the Chief Constable advised that the data stored on the Police National Database was governed by statutory codes of practice and guidance, which set out national principles for police information and records management. It was noted that North Wales Police did not use LFR, and the use of images related to crime scenes and CCTV images.
Member Champion – Establish a Victims Panel Councillor Non Dafydd advised that she had visited the Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre (RASASC) in Bangor with the Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner. It was noted that North Wales had the second highest rate of reported rape cases in the UK (the highest being London) and that 38% of 9 year old children had watched serious sexual violence. Councillor Dafydd welcomed the action being taken under the initiative “Don’t Steal my Future”, which promoted awareness and learning objectives with the aim to reduce violence, particularly towards women and girls. In addition, the IRIS programme was commended, which was funded entirely by the Police and Crime Commissioner and helped GPs to recognise the signs of domestic abuse and would help reduce the health costs in the future, by tackling the problem sooner rather than later. It was noted that the demand for help was increasing and with men taking 26 years on average to talk out about abuse, and women and children around 8 years, it was likely more cases would emerge during the next few years following the lockdown periods. Councillor Dafydd was reassured that the PCC and his team took domestic and sexual violence very seriously, which could be why so many people in North Wales were coming forward to report their experiences to the Police. It was noted that the collaboration between the Police and support services in North Wales was very good, and Councillor Dafydd encouraged anyone who was suffering or had suffered to contact them. The RASASC service was available bilingually, and it was vital to be able to speak in your mother tongue when discussing difficult subjects, and it was obvious this was acknowledged by the service. Councillor Dafydd advised that she would be visiting the Amethyst Centre in Colwyn Bay shortly and would report back to the next PCP meeting. Member Champion for Professional Standards The Chair advised the PCP that he had recently met with the Chief Executive of the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner, who had advised that currently there were 35 ongoing cases, with 7 Police Officers suspended and 12 on restricted duty. It was noted that there were 13 cases of gross misconduct and 14 cases of gross misconduct and possible associated criminal investigation. The PCP was informed that 550 complaints had been received during the year, (compared with 480 in the previous year), which mainly related to the delivery of service and lack of updates. It was noted that there was a growing rise in the use of inappropriate language, and where the complainant was not satisfied with the impartiality of the Officer. However, the Chair advised that there were no significant trends or causes of concern at this moment in time.
The North Wales Police and Crime Panel considered the Police and Crime Commissioner’s (PCC) report outlining the proposed precept and budget for 2024/2025, together with the Medium Term Financial Plan. The PCC proposed to increase the precept to £106,269,443 (an increase of 6.01% from the 2023/2024 precept), which would increase Council Tax by 4.97% (equivalent to £349.65 per annum, an increase of £16.56 per annum, or 32p per week for a Band D property). The PCP received a presentation from the Chief Finance Officer (Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner - OPCC), which highlighted the following: · The proposed precept · Changes in funding allocations between 2023/2024 and 2024/2025 · Central Allocations (top slicing) · Changes to North Wales Police Grants · Inflation · Savings · Growth · Breakdown of Council Tax increase · Survey Results · Risks · Proposed Budget for 2023/2024 The Member Champion for Finance felt that it was a fair budget and acknowledged the savings that had been identified of £3,171,837, particularly in relation to the work undertaken by the Procurement Department, which had resulted in savings of £0.286m and the investment income proposed. The work undertaken by the Optimisation Programme to look at specific operational areas and how the resources available could be best used was also acknowledged. Whilst the Member Champion acknowledged that over 1500 responses were received in respect of the PCC’s precept survey, this only represented a really small percentage of the population in North Wales. It was noted that specific grants for School Liaison Officers would be withdrawn and the grant for PCSOs would be reduced for 2024/2025. However, due to the importance of these roles, it was proposed to use funding from the base budget, reserves and an increase in the Council Tax in order to protect these roles for the forthcoming year. The PCC advised that discussions were being undertaken on how to deliver the all Wales School Liaison Programme in the future. A number of issues were also raised as follows: · Reference was made to the areas of growth and policing of Wrexham football matches – it was noted that the Force could only charge for policing inside the ground. However, the Chief Constable advised that she had recently met with the Chief Executive of the football club and advised of the positive work the club was undertaking within the community and that there was a piece of work being undertaken to measure the impact of this. · Retention of Officers – whilst the Force was losing more Officers than in previous years, retention figures were better than in most other Forces. In addition, due to the Uplift Programme, the Force was recruiting at a higher level than previously. · The importance of the School Liaison Programme targeting those who had been excluded or did not attend school regularly. · A number of questions were raised by the co-opted independent Member (Sioned Wyn Davies) prior to the meeting, as she was unable to attend. (In the interest of transparency the questions and respective responses from the PCC are attached to the minutes.) In the current financial climate, the PCP felt that it was a fair budget and acknowledged the work undertaken to identify savings and move resources within the organisation, and therefore, the PCP supported the proposed increase, in order to provide a sufficient budget to enable the operational delivery of the policing service in North Wales for 2024/2025. RECOMMENDATIONS: (a) That the precept be increased for 2024/2025 to £106,269,443. - This will increase Council Tax by 4.97% - equivalent to £349.65 per annum, an increase of £16.56 per annum, or 32p per week for a Band D property. - This increases the Tax Base by 0.99%. - This is an increase in precept of 6.01% from 2023/2024. (b) That it be noted that the base Government Grant increased by 5.97%/£5.297m. (c) That it be noted that the total inflationary pressure is 8.61% or £16.270m. (d) That it be noted that £4.719m was awarded as additional specific grant, but in reality this is to fund the base budget. (e) That it be noted that £2.166m of unavoidable and structural growth is included. (f) That it be noted that £3.171m of savings have been identified for 2024/2025. (g) That it be noted that £0.776m has been included to protect School Liaison Officers and PCSO numbers following withdrawal and reduction of Welsh Government grants. (h) That the Medium Term Financial Plan be noted, which includes the following assumptions: · That Council Tax will increase by £13 in the following years, which equates to 3.72% in 2025/2026, 3.58% in 2026/2027, 3.46% in 2027/2028 and 3.35% in 2028/2029. · That policing grants are estimated to increase by 1% in the years 2024/2025 to 2028/2029. · That the annual pay award will be 2.5% to be applied in September 2024, with an additional 0.5% being earmarked in reserves for 2024/2025 and 2.5% to be applied each subsequent September.
This item was considered as part of Minute 39 above.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED- That the report be noted.
The Police and Crime Panel (PCP) was presented with the North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner’s (PCC) periodic update for the period 1 August 2023 to 1 November 2023. The report provided an overview of the decisions made by the PCC, and other scrutiny and actions during the period. In scrutinising the report, the PCP raised the following: • The positive impact of the three part film ‘Oliva’s Story’ on road safety. • The increase in the use of Domestic Violence Protection Orders (DVPO) and Domestic Abuse Protection Notices (DVPN) in 2023. It was thought a combination of many factors was responsible for the increase, including a more proactive approach and due diligence to build up greater protection for the victim and an increase in reporting since the pandemic. • The impact of the drink and drug driving campaign over the Christmas period. The PCP was advised that there had been more drug related driving offences than drink driving offences. It was noted that there were ongoing communications throughout the year raising awareness of road safety; however it there was a particular issue in an area, then further campaigns could be rolled out. RESOLVED- That the report be noted.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED- That the report be noted.
The Police and Crime Panel was presented with the annual summary of the complaints received against the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) and Deputy PCC. It was noted that 2 recordable complaints had been received during the reporting period of September 2022 – September 2023, which related to the same matter. No complaints had been received against the Deputy PCC. RESOLVED- That the report be noted.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED- That the North Wales Police and Crime Panel - Mid- Year Monitoring Report: 1 April 2023 to 30 September 2023 be noted.
The Police and Crime Panel (PCP) was presented with the mid-year monitoring report on the use of the PCP grant and the expenses incurred during the period 1 April 2023 to 30 September 2023. The report also provided details of the progress against performance indicators, including the number of meetings, documents produced and engagement with the Police and Crime Commissioner. RESOLVED- That the North Wales Police and Crime Panel - Mid- Year Monitoring Report: 1 April 2023 to 30 September 2023 be noted.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED- That the Forward Work Programme for the North Wales Police and Crime Panel be noted.
Members were presented with the forward work programme (FWP) for the North Wales Police and Crime Panel (PCP). The PCP was advised that the Scrutiny and Committee Services Officer would discuss with the Chief Executive of the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC) topics for the FWP following the Police and Crime Commissioner elections. In addition, the PCP was advised that a meeting schedule for 2024/2025 would be devised shortly and circulated to Panel Members and the OPCC for comments. RESOLVED- That the Forward Work Programme for the North Wales Police and Crime Panel be noted.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED: That the meeting on 25 March 2024 be cancelled.
As there was no statutory business and due to the pre-election period the Police and Crime Panel agreed that the meeting scheduled for 25 March 2024 should be cancelled. RESOLVED: That the meeting on 25 March 2024 be cancelled.
Rhaid i gynghorwyr ddweud pan fydd ganddyn nhw gysylltiad personol â rhywbeth sy'n cael ei drafod, fel swydd, eiddo neu aelod o'r teulu. Mae buddiant sy'n rhagfarnu yn ddigon cryf i'r cynghorydd adael yr ystafell fel arfer a pheidio â chymryd rhan.
Caiff datganiadau eu darllen o'r cofnodion unwaith y byddan nhw wedi'u cyhoeddi.
Yn rhestru cynghorwyr presennol y cyngor yn unig. Nid yw aelodau cyfetholedig, swyddogion a chyn-gynghorwyr yn cael eu dangos.