CCBC costs and cutting

[Meleri]

Thanks very much for that Steve, look forward to hearing any updates. By the way why do Pound signs show up as question marks on the Forum?

Norman where do I access the chat you mention, as it sounds very interesting?

[Ian]

why do Pound signs show up as question marks on the Forum?

We're not quite sure about that, Meleri; still trying to solve it.

[norman08]

Meleri go onto his Facebook page his chat usually starts 7 pm only answers questions that he wants to.

[Meleri]

Thanks very much Norman will give it a go.

[norman08]

Hi Meleri did you manage to get on his page last night.    What did you think of it, he only answers what he wants to.  😅

[Meleri]

Well Norman you were spot on with your prediction, you must know him well. I noticed he had answered the questions before & after mine then continued to answer the others as they came in. After 25 minutes I asked him again if he could please answer my question, but he said it wasn't there he couldn't find it. Very odd as he had answered everyone else. So I typed it all out again & a few people agreed & wanted an answer, so I guess he had no choice but to answer. Apparently he had discussed this subject with The Minister (which one I don't know) & it was being looked into. Hopefully something would be done & the money would be given back to CCBC at a later date. He did point out my calculations weren't quite right, as they hadn't been there for that long. So in the end I got an answer of sorts, so let's hope the full amount is paid back to CCBC. Thanks again for letting me know about that live chat.

[norman08]

Yes you asked him the Question before I finished typing it. Well done.  We go back to when he first got elected, I volunteer at a foodbank I invited him to a private meeting to show him the working. He stood there with two of us and offered us a ?1k , he was asked about 6 months later by a business man who delivered food and toys for us at Xmas. And denied he?d offered he?s full of crap. He is very two faced.you will notice he only answers his friends who praise him unless he?s tackled.

[Hugo]

I've not followed this story until I heard from Meleri today but what can I say Norman when you have examples like him and Boris to follow
A typical Tory, roll on 2025

[SteveH]

DP piece on the story.............

Snowdonia Hilton hotel asylum seekers 'cost social services thousands'
The Home Office hosed 87 asylum seekers at the Hilton Garden Inn Snowdonia in Dolgarrog in November due to a backlog of cases elsewhere in the UK

cont https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/snowdonia-hilton-hotel-asylum-seekers-26315191

[Helig]

I presume the costs will be borne by local Council Tax payers? It is an outrage when the cost of living is rocketing and people are struggling to survive. Heaven knows where the illegal immigrants will live since it appears they are going to be allowed to live here due to the Home Office being unable to cope with all their applications. It is a free for all immigration policy which will give all and sundry a right to live in the UK. There is a housing crisis in the UK and they cannot provide homes for UK nationals so where will these go? It seems they can house the immigrants but not the British people.

[Ian]

But didn't Johnson promise us an extra 350m per week if we left the EU?  He can't have been making that up, surely? ...

[Meleri]

I agree Helig there is a terrible housing shortage in the UK & Conwy County alone has over 200 people who are homeless families & single residents. CCBC are paying ?85 per night per person for B&B to house these poor people, it's no place for children to be brought up.

I'm pleased to see it is being openly talked about in the press Steve, so thanks for that link. Council Tax payers have every right to know where the money is being spent especially as we are now faced with all these cuts to services & the huge rise in Council Tax as I have said before.

[SteveH]

I have just watched the CCBC Cabinet meeting that took place this morning & it looks like we will all be paying between 9.9 & 10% rise in our Council Tax, this will be determined on 2nd March at the full council meeting. There is no price cap on what Councils in Wales can charge, in England it's 5%.

What did come to light at this meeting was 15 of the young men housed in the Hilton Garden Inn Hotel, Dolgarrog were found to be minors, so came under Social Service responsibility. CCBC had to pay 500 per week for each, so given they were there for 3 months it cost CCBC 90,000. I would be interested to know if the Home Office is going to reimburse CCBC & also interested to hear what fellow members of the forum think, given all the service cuts we are facing in the future to balance the budget.

I have queried it with a local councillor, will let you know what is said.

The answer received was...........

My understanding is that the Home Office doesn?t currently reimburse local authorities for this, and I believe representations have been made to the UK Government.

 

[Meleri]

Thanks very much Steve for letting us know, sadly not the answer we were expecting  The thing is where to go next to find out what is going on?

[SteveH]

THIS National Empty Homes Week (February 27 ? March 5) Conwy County Borough Council is highlighting the assistance available to owners of empty properties to unlock housing potential.

Conwy has about 1,700 households on its waiting list for all types of properties.
At any one time, the county has roughly 2,500 privately owned, empty properties; many of these are temporarily empty and will come back into use within a few months.

But approximately 1,500 will remain empty for longer than six months and some for many years, while people are struggling to find affordable accommodation in the area.

The council is encouraging empty property owners to get in touch to find out about the help that could be available to bring the wasted resource of these empty properties back into use.

A range of initiatives are available:
? An interest-free property improvement loan of up to ?35,000 is available for properties that have been empty for six months or more, which need work to enable them to be sold or let at the end of refurbishment.

? Grants of up to ?20,000 are available for work to properties that have been empty for six months, and to landlords who are considering buying a property that has been empty for that period of time, who would be willing to rent the properties to people in a housing need, at an affordable rate, for at least five years.

? Leasing schemes are available for empty properties. Grants range from ?5,000 to ?25,000 (maximum available if the property has been empty for six months or more) to complete works identified by the council, in exchange for a lease of the property (five to 20 years), during which time repairs and maintenance are covered, the rent is guaranteed, and full management and support is provided to tenants.

Cllr Emily Owen, cabinet member for housing and regulatory, said: "Housing touches on every aspect of people's lives.
?By bringing an empty home back into use, we can help towards the council?s aim for people in Conwy to have access to affordable, appropriate and good quality accommodation.?

For more information, property owners can visit the council?s website, or contact the its empty homes officers on 01492 574633 or 01492 574235.      ref pioneer