Please Contact: Emma Denny
Please email: emma.denny@north-norfolk.gov.uk
Please Direct Dial on: 01263 516010
30 September 2013
A meeting of the Standards Committee of North Norfolk District Council will be held in the
Council Chamber at the Council Offices, Holt Road, Cromer on Tuesday 08 October 2013
at 2.00 p.m.
Members of the public who wish to ask a question or speak on an agenda item are
requested to arrive at least 15 minutes before the start of the meeting. It will not always be
possible to accommodate requests after that time. This is to allow time for the Committee
Chair to rearrange the order of items on the agenda for the convenience of members of the
public. Further information on the procedure for public speaking can be obtained from
Democratic Services, Tel: 01263 516047, Email: democraticservices@north-norfolk.gov.uk
Sheila Oxtoby
Chief Executive
To District Members: Mr B J Hannah, Mr P W Moore, Ms B Palmer, Mr J Savory, Mr R
Stevens, Mrs H Thompson and Mr P Williams
Co-opted Members: Mr G Allen, Mr R Barr, Mr A Bullen, Mr M Coates, Mrs M Evans, Mr H
Gupta, Mr A Nash, Mrs A Shirley
Members of the Management Team, appropriate Officers, Press and Public.
If you have any special requirements in order
to attend this meeting, please let us know in advance
If you would like any document in large print, audio, Braille, alternative
format or in a different language please contact us
Chief Executive: Sheila Oxtoby, Corporate Directors: Nick Baker & Steve Blatch
Tel 01263 513811 Fax 01263 515042 Minicom 01263 516005
Email districtcouncil@north-norfolk.gov.uk Web site northnorfolk.org
AGENDA
1.
TO RECEIVE APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
2.
PUBLIC QUESTIONS
3.
MINUTES
(attached – p. 1)
To approve as a correct record, the minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on
16 April 2013 and the Minutes of the Hearings held on 14 May and 04 June 2013.
4.
ITEMS OF URGENT BUSINESS
To determine any items of business which the Chairman decides should be
considered as a matter of urgency pursuant to Section 100B (4) (b) of the Local
Government Act 1972.
5.
DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
Members are asked at this stage to declare any interests that they may have in any
of the following items on the agenda. The Code of Conduct for Members requires
that declarations include the nature of the interest and whether it is a pecuniary
interest.
6.
PARISH AND DISTRICT MEMBERS’ REGISTER OF INTERESTS AND OFFICER
REGISTER OF GIFTS AND HOSPITALITY
The Parish and District Members’ Register of Interests and Officer Register of Gifts
and Hospitality are available for inspection in the Legal Section.
7.
PARISH COUNCILS AND STANDARDS
To receive an oral update with regards to Parish Town Council development and
support.
8.
STANDARDS REGIME
To receive an oral update from the Monitoring Officer with regards to changes and
updates to the Standards regime.
9.
EXCLUSION OF PRESS AND PUBLIC
To pass the following resolution:
“That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 the press and public
be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that
they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraphs 1
and 3 of Part I of Schedule 12A (as amended) to the Act”
9.
STANDARDS COMPLAINTS
(attached – p. 5)
NOT FOR PUBLICATION – BY VIRTUE OF PARAGRAPH 3 OF PART 1 OF
SCHEDULE 12A (AS AMENDED) OF THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT 1972
Summary:
This report advises Members of complaints
received by the Monitoring Officer, the type
of breaches alleged and the status of the
matters. Additional information is provided to
update Members on recent cases.
Recommendations:
Members are asked to note the contents of
the report.
Cabinet member(s):
Wards Affected:
All
All
Agenda Item 3
STANDARDS COMMITTEE
Minutes of a meeting of the Standards Committee held on 09 July 2013 in
the Council Chamber, Council Offices, Holt Road, Cromer at 2.00 pm.
Members present:
1.
District
Councillors:
Mrs H Cox (Chairman)
Mr P W Moore
Miss B Palmer
Mr R Stevens
Mr P Williams
Co-opted
Members:
Mr G Allen
Mr A Bullen
Mr M Coates
Mr H Gupta
Mr A Nash
Officers in
Attendance:
The Monitoring Officer
The Democratic Services Officer (ED)
TO RECEIVE APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
Apologies were received from Mr R Barr, Mr A Bullen, Mr B Hannah and Mr J
Savory.
2.
PUBLIC QUESTIONS
None received.
3.
MINUTES
The Minutes of the Meeting of the Standards Committee held on 16 April
2013 and the Minutes of the Hearings held on 14 May and 04 June 2013 were
approved as a correct record, subject to two amendments.
4.
ITEMS OF URGENT BUSINESS
There were no items of urgent business.
Standards Committee
1
09 July 2013
5.
DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
None
6.
PARISH AND DISTRICT MEMBERS’ REGISTER OF INTERESTS AND
OFFICER REGISTER OF GIFTS AND HOSPITALITY
The Chairman informed the Committee that the Registers were open to
display and were available for inspection in the Legal Services area.
7.
CHAIRMAN’S UPDATE
The Chairman informed the Committee that the proposed meeting to discuss
engagement with the parish and town councils had not taken place as
planned. She would like to progress the matter as soon as possible and was
keen to hear Members’ views. The Chairman then told the Committee that
she had recently met with Mr G Medler, a retired police officer, who had
considerable experience of working with restorative approaches. He had
offered to work alongside the Committee in a mediation role. The Monitoring
Officer said that it was beneficial to have people with good experience who
were willing to give their time to working with the committee. He suggested
that Mr Medler could be co-opted onto the Committee if members were in
agreement.
Members discussed the proposals:
1. Mr A Bullen suggested that members could just attend parish and town
council meetings initially and observe. Mr G Allen replied that this
approach could meet with some resistance as people were often
reluctant to have involvement from people outside of their communities.
2. Mr P Williams commented that Mr Medler’s experience of the restorative
justice system could be beneficial and he fully supported any assistance.
He agreed with the suggestion to observe meetings initially.
3. Mr R Stevens asked whether there would be any cost implications for
appointing an additional co-opted member. The Democratic Services
Team Leader replied that only mileage costs would be payable.
4. Mr G Allen asked whether it was necessary to co-opt a volunteer onto the
Committee as the role would be very specific. The Chairman said that Mr
Medler had a lot of experience and knowledge that he could bring to the
Committee and that he was highly regarded locally. Mr P W Moore
agreed. He said that co-opting Mr Medler would benefit the Committee as
a whole.
5. Mr A Bullen reiterated his earlier comments that it might be preferable for
the current committee to begin to engage with the parish councils initially
without Mr Medler’s involvement. It was likely that many of the existing
members had skills and knowledge that would come to the fore when the
process started. Mr A Nash agreed. He said that was concerned about
Mr Medler’s role and how it would work.
6. Mr P W Moore suggested that Mr Medler was invited to attend a meeting
of the Standards Committee so that members could meet him and decide
whether he could assist. Mr A Bullen replied that approach could put the
Committee in a difficult position.
7. Mr M Coates said that the main problems that needed to be addressed
were the knowledge of parish clerks and the behaviour of some members
Standards Committee
2
09 July 2013
8.
9.
of the public at parish council meetings. Mr P Williams added that the
behaviour of the Chairman could also cause problems. The best
approach would be to give parish councils the tools to deal with any
problems that arose.
Mr R Stevens commented that District Councillors attended parish
council meetings anyway as part of the ward duties.
Mr H Gupta said that it was important that co-opted members were
involved in the process fully. He suggested that two or three members
offered to attend each parish council meeting.
The Chairman said that the Committee needed to consider whether to contact
the parish councils in advance or whether to attend the meeting as members
of the public. Mr A Nash said that if the latter approach was taken, it would be
advisable to just observe. Parish Councils could then be contacted after the
meeting and offered support.
The Monitoring Officer advised that openness and transparency was
important and suggested a cooperative approach. He added that it would be
useful to offer to answer any questions that parish clerks and councillors may
have.
Mr P W Moore proposed that the next reserve date for the Standards
Committee should be used to formalise the approach that should be taken for
engaging with the parish councils.
AGREED
To meet on 6th August 2013 to consider the approach for engagement with
the parish councils.
8.
MONITORING OFFICER’S ANNUAL REPORT 2012/13
The Monitoring Officer introduced this item. He explained that the Annual
Report summarised the more important matters arising from the Monitoring
Officer’s wok from 1 April 2012 to 31 March 2013. During this period a total of
10 complaints were received and of these, 1 related to a District Councillor
and 9 related to Town or Parish Councillors. Of the three cases that were
referred for investigation, 1 was found to have breached the Code of Conduct.
The Monitoring Officer concluded by saying that the figures reflected the
general position under the Localism Act 2011. The number of cases was
down across the board, indicating that the new regime was being used with
caution.
The Chairman invited members to ask questions:
1.
Mr P Williams referred to Standards Committee Hearings. He said that
recent experience had shown that imposing a time limit of 5 minutes on
people wishing to speak would make the process more efficient. The
Monitoring Officer replied that he had devised a procedure for hearings
but that it was up to the Committee whether they wished to impose a time
limit. In response to a further question regarding allegations against
officers, he said that such complaints were the responsibility of the Head
Standards Committee
3
09 July 2013
2.
3.
4.
of Paid Service. He added that he was not aware of any formal
allegations against officers.
Mr P W Moore referred to an Audit Committee report which had
mentioned an allegation of fraud. He wondered why it was not included
within the Monitoring Officer’s Annual Report. The Monitoring Officer
replied that the case he referred to had been initiated under the whistleblowing policy. It was an allegation against a council contractor and
therefore fell within the terms of the contract and was not covered by the
whistle-blowing policy.
Mr P Williams commented that in future it would be useful if everything
that had been drawn to the Monitoring Officer’s attention could be
included within the Annual Report. The Monitoring Officer agreed.
Mr H Gupta asked whether there was likely to be a review of the Localism
Act one year after it had been introduced. The Monitoring Officer replied
that the statistics showed that the number of cases had been greatly
reduced and that the key notes of the new regime were flexibility and the
role of the Independent Person. He added that the DCLG might carry out
a review but that it would be left to local councils to decide of the
arrangements were working effectively.
It was proposed by Mr P Williams and seconded by Miss B Palmer that a time
limit of 5 minutes should be applied to people speaking at Standards
Committee Hearings. Mr R Stevens proposed that this was amended to a
recommended time of 5 minutes, at the Chairman’s discretion. Mr Williams
accepted the amendment.
RESOLVED
That speakers at Standards Committee Hearings should be limited to 5
minutes, any further time to be at the Chairman’s discretion.
9.
EXCLUSION OF PRESS AND PUBLIC
The Committee passed the following resolution:
‘That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 the press and
public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the
grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as
defined in paragraphs 1 and 3 of Part I of Schedule 12A (as amended) to the
Act’
10.
STANDARDS COMPLAINTS
The Monitoring Officer reported on the complaints received, the type of
breaches alleged and the status of matters.
The meeting concluded at 15.26 pm
___________
Chairman
Standards Committee
4
09 July 2013