To receive apologies for absence, including notifications of any changes to the membership of the Board.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Cowell and Law.  It was also reported that, in accordance with the wishes of the Liberal Democrat Group and Conservative Group, the membership of the Board had been amended to include Councillors Fox and Barbara Lewis in place of Councillors Johns and Hutchings respectively.

To confirm as a correct record the minutes of the meeting of the Board held on 7 August 2024.

The minutes of the meeting of the Board held on 7 August 2024 were confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

To consider a report on an update on the Greener Way for our Bay Framework and Action Plan and make recommendations to the Place Leadership Board.

(Note:  The Director of Pride in Place, Divisional Director for Planning, Housing and Climate Emergency, Principal Climate Emergency Officer and Cabinet Member for Place Development and Economic Growth have been invited for this item.)

The Board considered the submitted report on the Greener Way for our Bay Framework and Action Plan which had been developed by the Torbay Climate Partnership with support from Torbay Council and set out the long term actions the Partnership intended to take to tackle climate change locally.  Two consultations had been carried out with nearly 2,000 people being engaged overall in the process.

The Board also had regard to a representation from 7 Concerned Citizens which set out their view and suggestions in respect of this issue.  It was noted that this representation had been included as part of the consultation responses to the Greener Way for our Bay Framework and Action Plan together with over 600 consultation responses but anonymised (as was the normal practice for consultation responses), which were summarised with a summary response provided in the submitted papers.  Further details would be published on the website at Greener Way for Our Bay - Torbay Council prior to the Place Leadership Board on 27 September 2024.  A written response to the points raised by the 7 Concerned Citizens was circulated to the Board prior to the meeting and published as a supplement to the documents on 5 September 2024.

The Board asked a number of questions in relation to how the Partnership could encourage the large organisations in Torbay to do more to tackle climate change as well as encouraging residents to be more active; one initiative had been around planting more trees, how many trees have been planted over the last five years (a written response would be provided to this question); were all the allotments currently being utilised (a written response would be provided to this question); how was the Council going to enforce protecting seagrass in Tor Bay; what reassurance could be given that the proposals affecting transport and planning do not conflict with the Torbay Local Plan; were the plans ambitious enough shown in the immediate plans table e.g. it was proposed for Exeter Community Energy to reach 250 households but with winter fuel pressures should we not be reaching out to more residents, proposals for more cycling routes but this not being achieved in the new Strand redevelopment and concerns that the proposed new Bus Partnership Ticket would not reach all the communities that need it due to removal of some bus routes; there was an article about electric cars and busses being heavier due to batteries and the impact on the roads and multistorey car parks, had this been considered; who was proposed to operate the repair cafes; was there anyway to speed up the installation of electric charging points in our car parks; were the proposals ambitious enough.

In response to questions Members were informed that Torbay Hospital and South Devon College had been involved with the work of the Partnership and were committed to making a difference.  The main changes would come though influencing and changing behaviours and having this Framework and Action Plan would help to achieve this.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 18.

To consider a report on the implications to Torbay’s economy arising from the Plymouth and South Devon Freeport and to explore potential risks and benefits to Torbay.

(Note: The Director of Pride in Place, Cabinet Member for Place Development and Economic Growth, the Harbour Master and Divisional Director Maritime and Coastal Services and Members of the Harbour Committee have been invited for this item.)

Background information can be found at Plymouth and South Devon Freeport | PLYMOUTH.GOV.UK

The Board considered and noted the submitted report which provided an update on the Plymouth and South Devon Freeport status and how it impacted on Torbay’s economy. 

The Board asked a number of questions in relation to potential risks to businesses considering relocating to Plymouth and people leaving Torbay to work elsewhere; and what opportunities there were for Brixham.

In response to questions Members were advised that there was minimal risk of people wanting to go to Plymouth and that Freeport status would not provide a huge economical benefit to Torbay, as it mainly affected start up businesses and associated tax relief.  It was noted that there could be changes arising from the Government but that they were unknown at this time and the British Ports Association and Harbour Authorities would be monitoring this closely.  There would be benefits to exploring options for home grown businesses such as shellfish hatcheries which could bring in new investment to the Brixham area.  There was potential to explore infrastructure changes and new processing facilities to reduce pressure on transporting fish by road.

Members noted that the Harbour Master and Divisional Director of Maritime and Coastal Services was leaving the Council and thanked him for all his hard work and support and wished him well in his new role.