BABERGH DISTRICT COUNCIL
STANDARDS COMMITTEE
MINUTES OF A MEETING OF THE STANDARDS COMMITTEE HELD AT THE HADLEIGH BUSINESS CENTRE, CROCKATT ROAD, HADLEIGH ON FRIDAY 23 JANUARY 2009
Quick Links
PRESENT:
|
Members |
Co-opted members |
|
Mr P K Beer
Mrs S P Clarke
Mr P Jones
Mr R E Kemp |
Mr P J Down
Mr R L Feltwell
Mrs T Kavvadias
Mr J B Newton (Chairman)
Mr J G Watson |
Miss P F Cook was unable to be present.
There were no declarations of interest.
RESOLVED
That the Minutes of the meeting held on 17 November 2008 be confirmed and signed as a correct record.
None received.
None received.
The above-mentioned Standards Board for England (SBE) publication was submitted, appended to a report by the Monitoring Officer (Paper H170).
The Bulletin contained further information about the model Code of Conduct for local government officers, which it was suggested would be divided into a set of general obligations applying to all officers and a set of specific requirements for those exercising delegated functions or in politically restricted posts.
The Monitoring Officer’s report also drew attention to a section in The Bulletin regarding workshop discussions at the latest Annual Assembly of Standards Committees concerning the authorisation of Monitoring Officers to pursue action other than an investigation following the consideration of a complaint. The advice given at the Annual Assembly and repeated in The Bulletin was that it was important to be clear in authorising alternative action that it would not be in the public interest to carry out an investigation and that the other action could assist the proper functioning of the council. It was also important to ensure that no conclusions were drawn, either before or after, as to whether the Code of Conduct had been breached but that assessment subcommittees were clear about the purpose of the action agreed. It was suggested that other action might be particularly appropriate where there was a poor understanding of the Code or where there had been a breakdown in relationships in a council to such an extent that it compromised the proper conduct of business.
The Bulletin also included the results of its consultation on the question of adjourning assessment sub-committee meetings to provide Monitoring Officers with an opportunity to ascertain whether a Member would co-operate if a complaint were referred for other action, especially in relation to mediation or training. Only 8 of 29 respondents had been in favour of adjourning meetings for that purpose and further guidance on other action, incorporating the issue of adjournment, was anticipated during the year.
In addition, the Monitoring Officer’s report made particular reference to the issue of referrals to the Adjudication Panel for England (APE), upon which the Panel had recently issued guidance, a copy of which was also submitted. It was noted from the guidance that the President or Deputy President of the APE needed to agree to accept a referral and that a view as to whether a referral would be accepted could be obtained in advance of the Committee’s consideration. The report stated that, in circumstances where it appeared that a complaint might be appropriate for referral either to the Standards Board for investigation or to the APE for determination, the Monitoring Officer would seek to secure a view as to the likelihood of acceptance in advance of the relevant Committee meeting.
RESOLVED
That the contents of Paper H170 be noted.
The Monitoring Officer presented a report (Paper H171) on two recent cases decided by the Adjudication Panel for England’s Case and Appeals Tribunals arising out of the investigation of alleged breaches of the Members’ Code of Conduct. The first case concerned a councillor whose inappropriate behaviour towards an employee had resulted in his suspension and the second case served as guidance that only in exceptional circumstances could it be justifiable to hold hearings in private.
RESOLVED
That the information in Paper H171 be noted.
The Deputy Monitoring Officer submitted a report (Paper H172) containing details of interests and gifts declared by Members and officers during the quarter from October to December 2008. No cases were dealt with under the local system of complaints during the period in question.
RESOLVED
That the information in Paper H172 be noted.
Mr Beer and Mr Feltwell reported on their attendance on behalf of the Committee at the Annual Assembly of Standards Committees in Birmingham on 13 and 14 October 2008 and Mr Feltwell referred to his written notes (Paper H182), which had been circulated prior to the commencement of the meeting. Information was included in that Paper about the lessons that had been learnt so far from the local system of complaints, including the issues relating to “other action” and adjournments and the average cost of hearings. The conference was regarded as being of high quality and attendance had been very useful.
RESOLVED
That the information in Paper H182 be noted.
The Chairman reported on his observation of proceedings at the meeting of the Strategy Committee on 15 January 2009. The Chairman was satisfied with the way that interests were declared and the general conduct of members during the course of the meeting.
RESOLVED
That the Chairman’s report be noted.
The Monitoring Officer reported on the arrangements made for training sessions on the Code of Conduct for Parish and Town Councillors at Stoke-by-Nayland Hotel and the Holiday Inn, Ipswich on 3 and 10 February 2009 respectively. A draft programme for the sessions was submitted as part of Paper H173, which also included a copy of the advertising flyer, the Monitoring Officer’s slide presentation and selections of Quiz questions and some problem scenarios for consideration at the proposed workshops.
The Monitoring Officer reported that as of lunchtime yesterday, only 5 Parish Councillors had expressed an interest in attending the session in Ipswich, while there were 13 on the list of attendees for the session at Stoke-by-Nayland. The flyer for the events had requested responses by no later than today.
RESOLVED
(1) That, in view of the small number of delegates, the session scheduled to be held at Ipswich on 10 February be cancelled and the parish councillors who had signed up for that session be invited to attend on 3 February instead at Stoke-by-Nayland.
(2) That the Committee record its gratitude to the Monitoring Officer for the quality of the training materials presented.
(3) That the scenarios numbered 1, 5, 6, 11, 15, 17, 18, 19, 20 and 22 in Paper H173 be agreed for use at Workshop sessions on 3 February.
(4) That a meeting be arranged between the Chairman of the Committee and the Chief Executive of SALC to discuss the role of SALC in the promotion of ethical behaviour, including progress with the previously agreed production of a leaflet for Parish Councils entitled, “Standards Made Simple.”
Note: The meeting was adjourned for refreshments between 10.48 a.m. and 10.56 a.m.
The business of the meeting was concluded at 11.10 a.m.
Chairman
|