Wrthi'n llwytho
Y penderfyniadau fel y mae cofnodion y cyngor yn eu cofnodi. Bydd crynodeb mewn iaith glir yn dilyn pan fydd wedi'i ysgrifennu.
RESOLVED – (1) T H A T the draft response to the Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru’s initial proposals as outlined within the report be noted. (2) T H A T the Vale of Glamorgan Council’s formal response for submission to Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru by 12th November, 2025 be approved. Reason for decisions (1&2) Having regard to the discussions at the meeting and to enable Council to submit a response to the Consultation. November 03 Minutes and DN (JLT)
These were received from Councillors Bronwen Brooks, Charles Champion, Vince Driscoll and Rhys Thomas.
No declarations of interests were received.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED – (1) T H A T the draft response to the Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru’s initial proposals as outlined within the report be noted. (2) T H A T the Vale of Glamorgan Council’s formal response for submission to Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru by 12th November, 2025 be approved. Reason for decisions (1&2) Having regard to the discussions at the meeting and to enable Council to submit a response to the Consultation. November 03 Minutes and DN (JLT)
The Leader presented the report, a reference from Community Liaison Committee on 16th October, 2025, and shared that the Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru Act 2013 required a review of the municipal area once every 12 years, and that this review considered several elements such as the number of Members, Wards, Members within Wards and Ward names for example. She noted that on November 03 Minutes and DN (JLT) 5th June, 2025, the initial consultation was published, and the proposals being considered today were published on 2nd October, 2025, with the deadline for responses being 12th November, 2025. The Leader highlighted that Section 2.2 of the report provided a summary of the changes being proposed, and that this was initially shared with Community Liaison Committee on 16th November, 2025, to share their views, which had been included within the agenda. Councillor Birch, Chair of Community Liaison Committee, shared that they discussed this item thoroughly, that all views that were shared were within the minutes, and that there was very little in terms of the proposals that was not covered during the discussion, including the usage of Welsh naming conventions. The Leader concluded that the report along with the minutes of both Community Liaison Committee and Council would be shared with the Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru, and that individuals and Town and Community Councils were able to submit their own responses to the Commission. Councillor Carroll shared that the boundary review process did not often interest the wider public as it was highly bureaucratic, but that he was aware of concerns with some of the proposals, including those related to the Western Vale. He indicated that they were rigorously scrutinised at Community Liaison Committee, and it was clear that the proposed arrangements did not serve in the interests of effective local government, and that there should be a range of factors to be balanced when drawing boundaries including population sparsity and electoral parity, whilst ensuring that boundaries were clear and well defined considering local ties. He reflected that St Brides Major and Llandow’s proposed boundaries seemed bizarre, including Saint Mary’s Hill being incorporated in the same electoral unit as St Donats, Marcross, and Monknash communities, and how Saint Hilary had been included in the Llandow ward. He welcomed many of the draft proposals but indicated they were unable to support this particular element as it was important to represent communities who were dissatisfied with proposals. He further reminded Members of the purpose of democratic representation, where communities should identify with electoral units with a strong sense of place and local identity, and encouraged the Council to relook at these proposals as he felt they did not encourage strong local government. Councillor Cave reflected on what had happened in the Llandow ward in the last 10 years, and that when they were initially elected, this ward included Ewenny and Colwinston, which were subsequently moved to St Brides ward, and felt that these proposals were looking at Wards being sectioned off again based on being told they were too large, and now being told they are too small. She referred to the previous reorganisation and how she felt that Community Councils were heavily beaten, including the merging of Colwinston and Llangan Community Councils, and that dedicated Members were being asked to consult upon something they were unhappy with, including the possibility of a further merger with St Brides Major, which could impact upon local representation and stop people from feeling part of the democratic process. She noted that one of the drivers for change was due to the area being undemocratic as they did not regularly hold elections, but this was because people knew each other and that individuals who were seeking election were best placed to represent the community, meaning there was no need for others to come forward for a contested election. She further highlighted the lack of representation for November 03 Minutes and DN (JLT) Colwinston and Llangan communities, where there were several dedicated people who had worked for communities for a long time were now being told they formed part of the St Brides area, and emphasised that the views represented the Llandow area. Councillor Mahoney shared that he felt the report was factually inaccurate, highlighting the Commission noting “the existing Cosmeston ward”, which did not exist. He referred to the previous consultation, which the public were not aware of, and alerted residents, resulting in residents making 55 replies on behalf of 400 houses, with 53 objecting to the changes. He indicated that the consultation process was a farce, as it would be waved through despite public opposition. They reflected that one of the concerns was being placed within Penarth Town Council area, which could lead to an increase in their Council Tax, that local representation would be reduced and that the Council should reject the report. He closed that residents felt strongly around the use of the Sully place name of Norman origin, and not to use the Welsh name, Sili. Councillor Wilson noted that this Consultation was around the Council area as a whole and did not relate directly to communities, which was consulted upon previously. He indicated that the Commission’s key area of focus was proportionality, but referenced that all wards were different, unique and with their own interests, but that there was a need to focus the debate upon the whole county area and not local communities. Councillor Dr. Johnson said that the recommendations were the results of two previous reports, including the desire to merge Community Councils and reduce from 26 to 20 Councils, and following inquiry, increasing the number of Councillors to 59, based on several factors including population, poverty and rurality. He emphasised that Members had talked upon current boundaries, not what had been considered as part of the proposals. He noted that as a group, Plaid Cymru supported the decision to merge Cosmeston and Plymouth areas due to the population size, they had no comment on Dinas Powys and Barry boundary changes and Waterfront ward, did not support the merging of Wenvoe and St Nicholas and Llancarfan and supported the creation of a rural ward North of Cowbridge for local communities. He said that the only controversial changes were in the Western Vale, including Llanmaes not wanting to be part of Llantwit Major area, which would be a geographically significant ward, and that it would have been possibly to combine Llangan, St Mary and Ystradowen to create an area above the A48, but this was not possible due to the rules in dividing a community. He further referenced the meeting of Community Liaison Committee and Councillor Cave’s wants to keep the current ward, which would be outside legal processes, and that there had been no alternative solutions offered, and emphasised that these changes related to the 2027 elections, where there could be different elected Members. Councillor Ernest shared comments surrounding the proposals relating to Cosmeston and Plymouth wards and highlighted how the Plymouth ward was grossly underrepresented, and only had 2 Councillors presently, and that the Commission belatedly recognised the underrepresentation being this the case 10 years ago. He reflected that even with 3 Councillors covering the ward, they would November 03 Minutes and DN (JLT) still be stretched as all local Members were hardworking, and that Cosmeston had never been part of Penarth, with closer local ties to Sully and Lavernock. Councillor Protheroe shared that she was a Councillor in the Western Vale, and highlighted the geographical spread of her ward, covering approximately 12 miles, with several Community Councils and villages. She referenced the potential increase in villages and how they would still maintain their distinct identities and also highlighted how this piece of work was being undertaken by the Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru, and not the Council. She highlighted what Elected Members did for their residents, irrespective of urban or rural, which would have an impact and reserved judgement of the value of an additional Councillor within her ward, as this would be dependent upon who was elected, and how they supported their communities. Councillor Perry highlighted that changes in Town and Community Councils’ election cycles alongside changes to the number of elected Members resulted in less democracy, and that there needed to be more effort to increase involvement in democracy and involvement in Community Councils. Councillor Haines raised the increase in the number of Councillors, which would be less value for money for the taxpayer, and stated disagreement with Councillor Wilson’s previous comments surrounding communities, and that there needed to be considerations for historic local areas. Councillor Goodjohn emphasised that Council was not endorsing the report, but the response to the Commission, based on the contents of this meeting and the previous meeting of Community Liaison Committee, ensuring that everyone’s viewpoints were considered. Councillor Dr. Johnson queried the purpose of the vote, to which the Leader advised this was to agree for consultation responses to be submitted, whilst also emphasising that individuals were entitled to submit their own responses. Councillor Carroll also sought additional clarity as to whether this was voting for the forwarding of all comments from the meetings, or if they were voting to endorse the Commission’s proposals, to which the Chief Executive advised that it was for all minutes to be sent the Commission. The vote took place as follows: Member For Against Abstain Anne Asbrey √ Julie Aviet √ Gareth Ball √ Rhiannon Birch √ November 03 Minutes and DN (JLT) Member For Against Abstain Gillian Bruce √ Ian Buckley √ Lis Burnett √ Samantha Campbell √ George Carroll √ Christine Cave √ Janice Charles √ Amelia Collins √ Marianne Cowpe √ Pamela Drake √ Anthony Ernest √ Christopher Franks √ Wendy Gilligan √ Russell Godfrey √ Ewan Goodjohn √ Emma Goodjohn √ Stephen Haines √ Sally Hanks √ William Hennessy √ Nic Hodges √ Mark Hooper √ Catherine Iannucci-Williams √ Gwyn John √ November 03 Minutes and DN (JLT) Member For Against Abstain Ian Johnson √ Susan Lloyd-Selby √ Belinda Loveluck-Edwards √ Julie Lynch-Wilson √ Kevin Mahoney √ Naomi Marshallsea √ Michael Morgan √ Jayne Norman √ Helen Payne √ Elliot Penn √ Sandra Perkes √ Ian Perry √ Joanna Protheroe √ Ruba Sivagnanam √ Carys Stallard √ Neil Thomas √ Steffan Wiliam √ Margaret Wilkinson √ Eddie Williams √ Mark Wilson √ Nicholas Wood √ Total 37 10 1 November 03 Minutes and DN (JLT) RESOLVED – (1) T H A T the draft response to the Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru’s initial proposals as outlined within the report be noted. (2) T H A T the Vale of Glamorgan Council’s formal response for submission to Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru by 12th November, 2025 be approved. Reason for decisions (1&2) Having regard to the discussions at the meeting and to enable Council to submit a response to the Consultation. November 03 Minutes and DN (JLT)
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