Madam,

Please allow me the opportunity to respond to the points raised by Quentin Deakin (Letters, 12 November, ‘Not democratic that Cabinet is making cuts decisions’) regarding the on-going “Gwynedd Challenge” public consultation on the service cuts that the council will unfortunately have no option but to implement from the spring of 2016 onwards.

1. Corporate or “back-office” services (finance, policy, per-sonnel etc) do not feature in the consultation as the council is already committed to cutting these functions to the bare minimum as part of our efforts to deliver £34m of efficiency savings by 2017/18.

This process will continue and intensify alongside the decisions that need to be taken with regards to the ‘public facing’ services that are currently the subject of the Gwynedd Challenge public consultation. There is no option included for percentage budget cuts as such a broad brush technique would take no account of the effects upon Gwynedd’s citizens of those cuts. For me, it is the effect of any cut which is important rather than the financial value or percentage of budget.

2. The results of the “Gwynedd Challenge” consultation will be scrutinised by the 75 Plaid Cymru, Independent, Llais Gwynedd, Labour and Liberal Democrat councillors who have been democratically elected to represent the county’s communities. The results of the consultation will also be published so that any member of the public can have access to the information.

3. With regards to the time-table, residents have until 30 November to respond to the questionnaire, the responses will then be collated and evaluated during December and the results published in early 2016.

4. Mr Deakin is wrong to suggest that the final decision will be taken by the council Cabinet and ‘civil servants’. In fact, all 75 Gwynedd councillors will have the opportunity to debate the service cut options between January and March 2016 and will decide which cuts to implement at the full council meeting on 3 March 2016.

Finally, I would like through your paper to thank the hundreds of Cambrian News readers who have already taken the time to engage positively with the Gwynedd Challenge process and to urge those who have not to visit www.gwynedd.gov.uk/GwyneddChallenge or pick up a paper copy of the consultation document from their local library, leisure centre or Siop Gwynedd one stop shop and to fill in and return the questionnaire by 30 November.

Yours etc

Dilwyn Williams, Chief Executive, Gwynedd Council.