Welsh Government set to end two-year intervention in running of council

The Welsh Government’s two-year-long intervention in the running of Anglesey Council is to finish at end of this month.

A team of commissioners was appointed in March 2011 to take responsibility for the day-to-day running of the authority, after an adverse corporate governance inspection report by the Auditor General for Wales.

In their seventh and most recent report, the commissioners recommended that the Welsh Local Government Minister should bring the intervention to an end when the current ministerial direction expires on 31 May 2013.

The commissioners wrote: “Over the two years which have elapsed since the commissioners were first appointed, they have reported substantial improvements in the council’s corporate governance arrangements. Significant changes have been made in the way in which the council carries out its business, and relationships between political groups, elected members and senior officers have been transformed.”

They added: “Member conduct has improved considerably and the executive has engaged constructively and enthusiastically with the commissioners to manage both the day-to-day business and strategic development of the council. As a result, the level of adverse publicity which the council attracts has diminished considerably.”

At the same time, the report said, the corporate centre had been strengthened, a revised, outcome-based corporate planning process had been implemented and new systems for managing finance, performance and risk had been established.

It added that, over the past twelve months, a “more robust, more fit for purpose” constitution had been adopted and a stronger and more capable senior leadership team had been recruited.

“In order to consolidate this early progress, the council has now embarked upon an ambitious programme of transformational change which will help sustain the improvement which has been achieved this far and ultimately result in improved services for the people of the Island,” the commissioners said.

Addressing Anglesey’s councillors last week, Local Government Minister Lesley Griffiths said: “I am convinced the council can now manage its own affairs without external intervention. Negotiations towards forming a stable administration following last month’s election and the sustained progress the council has made, gives me confidence in my decision. The commissioners and the Auditor General for Wales share my view.”

Griffiths added: “Under the guidance of the commissioners, the council has demonstrated green shoots of recovery and we expect to see continuing improvement…..The council will elect a new Leader, marking a fresh start. It is now the job of the new cohort of councillors to build on the progress achieved by their predecessors under the commissioners’ stewardship.”

The minister said the Welsh Government was in discussions with the council, the commissioners and the Welsh Local Government Association to determine the level of ongoing support required by the local authority. Anglesey’s Education Recovery Board will remain in existence, pending the outcome of Estyn’s re-inspection over the coming months.

Griffiths said: “This stage of the council’s recovery journey is now complete and progress in the last two years has been encouraging. It is a testament to all those involved in the turnaround, council officers and Members, Commissioners and.... my predecessor, Carl Sargeant AM. It also demonstrates our ability to solve even the most difficult problems of public service delivery by working together towards a common goal.”

Anglesey Chief Executive Richard Parry Jones said: “Since democratic control was restored in October 2012, Anglesey has clearly demonstrated an appetite and commitment to change."

"I'm confident that the authority is now more than capable of managing its own affairs. We're already making good progress in delivering service improvements and have responded positively to the guidance provided by commissioners and our regulators."