Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence had been received from Councillor Bennett, Mr Steven Gould and Rev Peggy Jackson.

Members are asked to declare any interests in matters for consideration at the meeting.

There were no declarations of interest.

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 23 May 2007.

The minutes of the meeting held on 23 May 2007 be received and approved and the Chair be authorised to sign them.

The Committee heard representations from Councillor Mumford on agenda item six.

This report proposes revisions to the Members’ Protocol (including the Appendices to it) in view of the new Members’ Code of Conduct and also some other issues identified by the Standards Committee.

Report of the Head of Legal Services attached.

1. The Council be recommended to adopt the revised Members’ Protocol, as set out in the report, subject to the following amendments:

(i) The words “(in particular from senior officers)” be deleted from section 2.1.

(ii) Section B (a) include an explanation the Protocol was also there to protect Members.

(iii) In Section B (e) “partner spouse relative or friend” be replaced with “a member of your family or any person with whom you have a close association”. 

(iv) The Student Support and Appeals Panel be removed from Section E (b) if it was confirmed to have no decision making powers.

(v) In Section E (b) both instances of the words “(in part)” be replaced with “(where they are considering the rights and interests of others)”.

(vi) The second person be used in all sections aimed specifically at Members.

2. The Council be recommended to adopt the revised Protocol for Members’ Use of Personal Computers Provided by the Council, as set out in the report, subject to the following amendment:

(i) The second person be used in all sections aimed specifically at Members.

3. The Council be recommended to adopt the revised Anti Fraud and Corruption Strategy, as set out in the report, subject to the following amendments:

(i) “Councillors” be added at the start of section 4.5.

(ii) The words “and others” be added after the word “employees” in section 5.14.2.

(iii) The second person be used in all sections aimed specifically at Members.

4. The note as to Equality Enactments and the Code of Conduct and Publicity not be included as part of the Members’ Protocol, but instead be publicised and placed on the intranet.

5. All Councillors be contacted to remind them the only gifts they need declare in the Register of Members’ Interests were those received from 1 July 2007.

[The Committee discussed the wide range of changes being proposed to the various Protocols. Council would be recommended to approve them at its meeting on 17 July.

The Committee questioned whether section 2.1 of Members’ Protocol should continue to emphasise senior officers and instead agreed it should be amended to refer to all officers.

Members discussed the addition to section 3.1.2 (f), which had arisen from a complaint the Standards Sub-Committee had heard in 2006. While applying this could still present some issues, it was agreed this provided a useful marker for Councillors.

The new rules on gifts and hospitality were noted, especially the need for the records to be kept for three years and this was not retrospective. The Head of Legal Services would contact Members to remind them of this.

It was questioned whether the Student Support Appeals Panel should be included in Section E of the Members’ Protocol as some Councillors thought it had no decision making powers and was merely an advisory body to the Cabinet Member for Children’s Services and Education. If the latter was correct, its reference in the Protocol would be removed.

The Committee discussed whether there was any  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.

This report summarises the views of the Planning Committee from its meeting on 28 June as to suggested revisions to the Planning and Development Control Protocol, which forms Appendix A to the Members’ Protocol.

Report of the Acting Assistant Director Development and Streetscene and the Head of Legal Services attached.

1. Council be recommended to adopt the revised Planning Protocol as an Appendix to the Members’ Protocol and as set out in the report, subject to the following amendments:

(i) In section A2, the words “and so in the public domain” be replaced with “or material on the application which is in the public domain”.

(ii) In section C3, the words “acting in a representative or quasi-representative role” be added after “Non-voting Members”.

(iii) In section C3, it be made clear non-voting Members were allowed to attend private meetings with applicants, supporters and objectors.

(iv) In Table A, “Speaking as a Ward Member” be amended, as it would be inappropriate for a Councillor to seek to act as a Ward Councillor on an application of their own.

(v) The second person be used, where practicable, in all sections aimed specifically at Members.

[The Committee discussed section A2 at length. It was noted that information was frequently not on either the Council’s website or in the libraries, but this was something over which the Committee had no control. The intention of section A2 was to make clear that Councillors could read information held by planning officers as part of the public record. It was agreed a minor amendment was needed to clarify this.

As the Code of Conduct did not address the common law issue of bias, guidance on this was being added via section A6 of the Protocol. The Standards Board was also preparing a paper on this subject.

The Committee felt the distinction between voting and non-voting Councillors in section C3 was unclear, especially regarding the latter’s representative role. Clarification would be provided, including non-voting Members’ involvement with objectors, applicants and supporters.

The Committee heard representations from Councillor Mumford.]

Amendments are necessary to the Licensing Protocol in light of the Gambling Act 2005 and the new Members’ Code of Conduct (which takes effect on 1 July). A draft revised Licensing and Gambling Protocol can be found at Appendix A.

Report of the Head of Legal Services attached.

1. The Council be recommended to rename the Licensing Protocol the ‘Licensing and Gambling Acts Protocol’.

2. The Council be recommended to adopt the Licensing and Gambling Acts Protocol as set out in Appendix A to the report, as an Appendix the Members’ Protocol and subject to the following amendments:

(i) Section 17 (b) be reworded to make clear Councillors with prejudicial interests who had spoken earlier in the meeting could return to hear the result of the application.

(ii) The second person be used, where practicable, in all sections aimed specifically at Members.

[Officers outlined the key changes being made to the Protocol, which included greater flexibility for Councillors. Greater consistency with the Planning and Development Control Protocol would also be achieved.

It was noted there were slight differences in Members’ representational roles at Gambling Act and Licensing Act hearings. It was emphasised Councillors must always make written representations before being allowed to speak, because of the law on such hearings.

While welcoming the increased speaking rights for Members with prejudicial interests, the Committee agreed allowing them to return for the announcement of the decision would also be beneficial. Where a Councillor was an applicant, they should be allowed to stay to take questions in the same way as any other applicant, so long as the Sub-Committee felt was necessary.

It was agreed greater use of the second person, where practicable, would make the Protocol easier to read and conform with the Committee’s own recommendation to the Department for Communities and Local Government when it was consulted on the new Code of Conduct.]

This report introduces the Fourth Annual Report on the work of the Standards Committee in 2006/7.

Report of the Head of Legal Services attached.

Council be RECOMMENDED to receive the Fourth Annual Report of the Standards Committee as set out in the Appendix to the report, subject to the following amendments:

(i) In section 3.2, the replacement of the word “Penny” with the word “Peggy”.

(ii) In section 4.3, the replacement of “at more than seven sessions” with “at a number of sessions”.

(iii) In section 7.7, the replacement of “on for example in relation to the often” with “with the”.

(iv) An explanation for the sharp increase in ombudsman complaints, particularly in planning, be added to section 10.

[The Committee noted the report, suggesting a number of minor changes.

The large rise in ombudsman complaints was largely due to 13 being received regarding the same planning application, 12 of which were classed as ‘premature’. The Report would be amended to explain this.]