Agenda item

The Chairman invited Dominic Rowles, Deputy Head of Brussels Office to introduce the report.

Dominic introduced the report which set out information which related to the government’s consultation on a new subsidy control regime for the UK, ahead of issuing primary legislation.

Members made the following comments:

• Promoting community cohesion and social benefits is vital. What we’ve seen in terms of the volunteer response during the covid-19 pandemic is that it has brought communities together and I am concerned that councils will no longer be in a position to provide the relative grants.

• Road maintenance is very important, whilst different areas have different experiences in terms of managing their reduced budget, road maintenance should be a priority for councils.

Dominic responded to the comments made by Members:

• The roads and the highways issues are important. We need to ensure that the central government funding settlement is robust and then we need to be sure that we have the local flexibility to spend that funding on the initiatives.

• This paper has been submitted to the City Regions Board and LGA Exit taskforce as well as the People & Places Board.

Decision:

Members noted the report.

Action:

Members of the Board must submit their final comments on the draft response to Dominic Rowles by 31^st March.