Contact: Colin Hinxman - 7343

1. Summary

This report reviews the operation of the Part 3 - Questions to Executive Members - system at County Council meetings which was introduced on a trial basis for the May and July County Council meetings, and asks the Committee to decide whether to put forward any recommendation to amend the Constitution to give permanent effect to this procedure. It also considers what action could be taken to cover the circumstances where minority group spokesmen and their deputies are both personally involved in a matter before the Standards Committee and thus unable to participate, and suggests that arrangements be made for an additional deputy to be appointed by minority groups in those circumstances. Finally it gives the opportunity for the Committee to discuss the guidance to Councillors relating to mutual respect and the need for restraint, which arose from the Committee's special meeting on 8 July.

2. Questions to Executive Members

2.1. At its meeting in April, the Committee agreed that, for the May and July meetings of the County Council, on completion of Part II of the agenda, 30 minutes be set aside for questions of Cabinet Members without notice on any decision taken by the Cabinet or an Executive Member acting individually since the preceding meeting of the Council; but that these arrangements should not include questions on items already dealt with in Part II of the agenda and schemes estimated to cost over £0.5 million. Members have had the opportunity to see the system in operation at the end of the May and July meetings, and the Standards Committee are asked to consider whether the procedure should be retained as a permanent feature on the County Council's agenda.

2.2. Subject to further practical experience at the July meeting of the Council, the Standards Committee may now wish to take a view as to what recommendation they should make. If their view is that the questions procedure has not been effective as a means of holding the Executive to account, then no action is required and the experiment can be allowed to lapse. If on the other hand they do feel it serves a useful and valuable purpose in enabling Members to question the Cabinet and Executive, then the following addition would need to be made to Part 3 of the Constitution - Rules of Procedure by amending Section A - Council Standing Orders by the addition of the following:

48. Questions to Cabinet and Executive Members

On completion of Part II of the Agenda, 30 minutes be set aside for
questions of Cabinet Members without notice on any decision taken by
the Cabinet or an Executive Member acting individually since the
preceding meeting of the Council; but that such arrangements shall not
include questions on items already dealt with in Part II of the Agenda
and schemes estimated to cost over £0.5 million. Every question shall
be put without notice and answered without discussion and the person
to whom the question has been put may decline to answer or may opt
to reply in writing within 6 days. Each item will have appeared on the précis agendas which are sent to all Members and on which an e-mail will have been sent to Members notifying them of the outcomes. Policy Review Committee Members will have received the decisions in full and, in the event that it has not been possible for the decision sheet yet to be published on Hantsnet (where Members would normally be able to see detailed decisions) these can readily be obtained on request. This procedure is in addition to that contained in paragraph 20 of the Council's Standing Orders:- "Questions by Members". It shall be known as

"Part III - Questions to the Cabinet and Executive Members".

2.3 If the Standards Committee is minded to continue the Part III question procedure, it is proposed in the interests of sustainability that the list of Executive agenda items will be sent out as a separate document for Members with the White Book, since they will already have had the information once via the précis agenda system. This is necessary because of the very wide and extensive circulation of the White Book and the need to reduce the circulation of unnecessary quantities of paper.

2 Deputies for Minority Groups

3.1 Present arrangements are that a minority group with only one representative on a Committee may appoint a standing deputy. This principle was established by the former Procedures Sub-Committee in January 1998, which recommended that the appointment of deputies to Committees, Sub-Committees and Panels of the Council be approved on the basis that, where a political group has only one place, it may nominate a deputy to provide cover in the event that the named member is unable to attend. At present this applies to both the Liberal Democrat and Labour Groups on the Standards Committee. This situation caused particular difficulties for the Liberal Democrat Group at the special meeting of the Standards Committee on 8 July, when both their principal representative (Councillor Ludlow) and the standing deputy (Councillor Mrs Barron) were personally involved as complainants, had a prejudicial
interest and were therefore unable to participate in the Committee's investigation of the incident. In order to overcome this practical constraint, the Committee may wish to recommend to the Council allowing minority groups on a Committee to appoint a further deputy on a one-off basis when these circumstances arise, in order to ensure that all political groups are represented.

3 Guidance to Members

3.1 The Committee may wish to take the opportunity to consider what if any guidance should be issued to Members pursuant to the debate at the special meeting held on 8 July 2003, when it was agreed that consideration should be given to guidance relating to mutual respect and the need for restraint in avoiding intemperate or abusive language or behaviour. Perhaps the point of departure would be Standing Order 28 - Misconduct of Members - which provides that the Chairman shall call a Member to order for irrelevance, repetition, unbecoming language or in breach of order. The Committee may feel that they wish the Monitoring Officer to formulate and issue appropriate guidance.

RECOMMENDATIONS

1. That the Standards Committee consider what recommendation they wish to make to the County Council on the Part III questions to Executive Member procedure, on the basis set out in paragraph 2 above.


2. That it be a RECOMMENDATION to the County Council

To amend the Constitution at Part I Chapter 9 paragraph 9.2 by adding at the end of the second paragraph the following:-

"However, so as to ensure that all political parties are represented on the Standards Committee if the member and deputy member representing either of the minority parties are unable to attend any meeting of the Standards Committee, the appropriate leader of the minority party may nominate an alternative member to attend in their place by notifying the Chief Executive of the reasons for non-attendance of the originally appointed member and deputy member."


3. That the Standards Committee consider what guidance they wish to issue to Members on mutual respect.

Section 100 D - Local Government Act 1972 - background papers

The following documents disclose facts or matters on which this report, or an important part of it, is based and has been relied upon to a material extent in the preparation of this report.

NB the list excludes:

1 Published works.

2 Documents which disclose exempt or confidential information as defined in the Act.

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