Agenda item

To agree to increase the membership of the Standards Committee to three Independent Persons and three Parish Councillors.

76.1          Attention was drawn to the report of the Monitoring Officer, circulated at Pages No. 106-107, which proposed to increase the number of independent persons and Parish Councillors on the Standards Committee.  Members were asked to agree to increase the number of independent persons assisting the Monitoring Officer and Standards Committee from two to three and to increase the number of Parish Council members on the Standards Committee as non-voting members from one to three. 

76.2          In proposing the recommendation in the report, the Chair of the Standards Committee advised that the Standards Committee currently had two independent persons, both of whom had indicated they would be stepping down over the next year or so.  It was important to retain at least one Member who was knowledgeable in the field and therefore it was necessary to encourage new independent persons to come forward.  It was also intended to increase the number of Parish Councillors from one to three and the Monitoring Officer had received a positive response from Parish Councils who had been approached to establish whether anyone would be interested in taking up a position, pending the outcome of tonight’s meeting.  It was intended there would be an interview process in the New Year carried out by the Monitoring Officer and the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Standards Committee.  The Standards Committee currently met twice per year but a number of those meetings had been cancelled in recent years and, when the Committee had met in October, it was agreed the number of meetings should be increased to three per year going forward.  It was important there was renewed focus on the Committee and there were currently insufficient members to achieve that, hence the recommendation today.  The proposal was seconded by the Lead Member for Customer Focus.

76.3           A Member sought clarification as to the reason for the existing independent persons wanting to resign from their duties and the Monitoring Officer explained that the two current independent persons had been in their roles for a number of years and were ready to stand down.  It was preferable to avoid a situation whereby they were replaced by two new independent persons with no experience so, by increasing the number at this stage, it would be a more gradual process of replacement.  The Committee on Standards in Public Life had reported to the government in 2019 there should be two independent persons as a minimum, although more than two was preferable.  There was one slot for a Parish Councillor on the Standards Committee but that was currently vacant so it was important to address that issue in order to have a Parish Council view when dealing with complaints.  He stressed that the Standards Committee was not a political Committee.

76.4           A Member asked for the rationale behind the proposal to increase the number of Parish Councillors and the criteria for selection.  In response, the Monitoring Officer advised that it would be preferable to have a spread through the borough but, as it stood there were four applicants so they may not have that luxury.  Ideally they would have experience but ultimately they would all be interviewed and the best three candidates would be selected; should there be more interest a sifting process would be needed.  A Member asked what would happen if the Parish Councillors were not considered to be appropriate when they were interviewed and assurance was provided that only those who were suitable would be appointed so it would be a case of readvertising.  Another Member noted that the report stated that the independent persons were paid a small allowance and she asked how much that was and how often it was paid.  The Monitoring Officer advised that it was an annual allowance of £500.  In response to a query as to whether they would still be paid if they had no involvement over the course of the year, the Monitoring Officer confirmed that the legislation required him to consult with the independent persons every time there was a complaint; the independent persons did not sit on the Committee themselves but were a guide to him in his role as Monitoring Officer and could also be a guide to those making the complaint, or in receipt of a complaint.  A Member indicated it would have been useful for the Minutes of the Standards Committee meeting on 16 October 2023 to have been appended to the report and the Monitoring Officer indicated that was usual practice but had not been possible on this occasion due to resource issues within the Democratic Services team which Members would be aware of.   In response to a query regarding the status of the Parish Councillors on the Committee, the Monitoring Officer clarified they were non-voting members of the Committee.  The independent persons did attend Committee meetings but were not technically members and could speak but not vote; the only voting members were the seven Borough Council Members.  A Member suggested that the second part of the motion be amended to refer to Parish Councillors as opposed to Parish Council Members on the Standards Committee in order to make that clearer and the proposer and seconder of the motion indicated they were happy to make that change.

76.5           The Leader of the Council expressed the view that the proposal set out a move towards more openness and transparency which he supported.  He recognised that the Chair of the Standards Committee had been required to propose the motion at short notice due to the absence of the Lead Member for Corporate Governance and he indicated that he would not like to see Members put in that position again.

76.6           Upon being put to the vote, it was

RESOLVED          1. That the number of independent persons assisting the Monitoring Officer and Standards Committee be increased from two to three.

2. That the number of non-voting Parish Councillors on the Standards Committee be increased from one to three.