Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors R Welton, K Gillott, P Coleman (Parish Council Representative) and the Legal Team Manager & Deputy Monitoring Officer.  

Members are requested to declare the existence and nature of any disclosable pecuniary interests and/or other interests, not already on their register of interests, in any item in the agenda and withdraw from the meeting at the appropriate time.

There were no Declarations of Interest.  

To approve as a correct record and the Chair to sign the Minutes of the Standards Committee held on 7 March 2023.

RESOLVED – That the Minutes of the Standards Committee meeting held on 7 March 2023 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

Report of the Assistant Director of Governance and Monitoring Officer.

Committee received the updated draft version of the proposed constitution. Members discussed the draft at length and drew particular attention to the proposed protocols for changing the Constitution and Council Policy that would require any proposed changes to be first debated at the relevant Scrutiny Committee. Members considered that these protocols could cause difficulties if the necessary meetings could not be arranged but heard that emergency ad-hoc meetings could be organised and the Council’s Procedure rules could be suspended if necessary.

Members considered that having the Parish Representatives attend meetings of the Standards Committee was useful but that an amendment should be made in order to prevent the two representatives being from the same Parish Council.

RESOLVED – That:

(1)            Standards Committee approved an amendment to the proposed constitution that restricted the two Parish Representatives from being from the same Parish Council.

(2)            Standards Committee noted the proposed constitution.

Report of the Assistant Director of Governance and Monitoring Officer.

Committee received an update on the number of complaints that had been received and what action had been taken on these.

Members heard that two new complaints have been received and two existing complaints had been closed. There were a total of seven ongoing complaints.

Committee were informed that the Monitoring Officer would be organising training sessions for the Parish Councils. Members considered that it would be useful for a Member of the Standards Committee to accompany the Monitoring Officer during these sessions.

RESOLVED – That Standards Committee noted the complaints update.

Report of the Assistant Director of Governance and Monitoring Officer.

Committee were informed that a package of training events would be put in place as part of the Members Induction following on from the Local Government Elections in May. Member attendance and feedback at the training events would be carefully recorded and reported back to Committee.

Members discussed possible repercussions against those Members that did not attend training events and heard that the Council could not impose any sanctions against Members and that this would instead need to be a decision taken by each political Group. Committee agreed that they could write to the Group leaders, as a Committee, to inform them of the attendance statistics.

RESOLVED – Committee supported and noted the suggested approach to monitoring Member Training attendance.

Report of the Assistant Director of Governance and Monitoring Officere.

Committee discussed the arrangements for developing the Work Plan for the 2023-24 Municipal Year and some of the specific issues that the reconstituted Committee might be asked to consider.

Members enquired as to when the schedule of meetings and the Council Diaries would be distributed to the newly elected Members and heard that a pre-diary, containing the schedule of meetings, would be distributed to Members during the 10 May 2023 induction session. The full diary would be rapidly distributed following Annual Council.

RESOLVED – Committee agreed on the proposed approach to setting the Committee Work Plan for the 2023/24 municipal year.

To consider any other matter which the Chair is of the opinion should be considered as a matter of urgency.

The Chair thanked Members for their work over the course of the municipal year and wished them luck in the future.

There was no other urgent business.