Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Cllr J Rest.

None received.

To approve as a correct record, the minutes of the meeting of the Standards Committee held on 18^th February 2021.

Minutes from the meeting held on 18^th February 2021 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

To consider any actions arising from the minutes.

Cllr N Dixon referred to item 27 paragraph 5 and updated Members that the CE had provided a response to the Committee, though he did not yet feel that a substantive answer had been provided. He added that he had therefore had a meeting the CE that had given rise to further questions, that he would continue to pursue.

Cllr G Perry-Warnes stated that if the issue were to be raised at the Committee again, she would appreciate confirmation from the MO that it fell within the remit of the Committee.

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.

None received.

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.

None declared.

Members are reminded that the Parish and District Members’ Register of Interests and Officer Register of Gifts and Hospitality are available for inspection in the Democratic Services section.

The DSGOS informed Members that the registers were available to view in Democratic Servicers upon request.

Cllr L Shires noted that District Members received regular reminders to update their registers and asked whether the same reminders were given to Parish Councillors, or whether this service was provided by Parish Clerks. The DSM replied that this was generally covered by Parish Clerks, as there were over a thousand Parish Councillors to monitor. She added that the National Association of Local Councils were encouraging Parish Councils to adopt the new Code of Conduct, and this could lead to more cooperative working with Parish Councils, to improve the process of updating Member’s registers. Cllr A Brown suggested that it would be helpful for register update reminders to become a standard item for Parish Council AGMs.

LIST OF BACKGROUND PAPERS AS REQUIRED BY LAW

(Papers relied on to write the report, which do not contain exempt information and which are not published elsewhere)

Contact Officer, telephone number and email:

Cara Jordan:  01263 516373 cara.jordan@north-norfolk.gov.uk

Cllr V Gay - Chair of the Constitution Working Party informed Members that the CWP had reviewed the new Code of Conduct and were happy to recommend its approval. She added that it was a clear document that thoroughly addressed the Nolan Principles, and it was hoped that neighbouring authorities would also adopt the Code. The MO informed Members that it had been hoped that consensus would be reached to adopt a single Code of Conduct for all Norfolk authorities, though some Councils had adopted with minor amendments, and some were yet to adopt the code. She added that there were significant changes to the code that included an increase in the threshold for the register of gifts and hospitality to £50, and the actions for declarations of interests had been strengthened.

Questions and Discussion

       i.          Cllr N Dixon endorsed the comments made on the aspirations to adopt a common Code of Conduct for Councils in Norfolk, in order develop a common understanding across the County, as well as making resource savings.

      ii.          Cllr G Perry Warnes stated that she was in favour of harmonisation across authorities, and noted that the MO had suggested that some Councils had made minor amendments, and asked whether this would be an issue. The MO replied that whilst some authorities may adopt the code with minor amendments, there was no reason that these couldn’t be addressed in the future, to achieve the aspiration of a shared Code of Conduct.

     iii.          The Chairman stated that whilst it was a large step for all Councils to adopt a shared code, it would be beneficial to improve wider understanding of the Code for Councillors and members of the public.

    iv.          The recommendation was proposed by Cllr L Shires and seconded by Cllr N Dixon.

RESOLVED

To recommend to Full Council that the Model Code of Conduct be adopted.

LIST OF BACKGROUND PAPERS AS REQUIRED BY LAW

(Papers relied on to write the report, which do not contain exempt information and which are not published elsewhere)

Contact Officer, telephone number and email:

Emma Denny, Democratic Services Manager, 01263 516010, emma.denny@northnorfolk.gov.uk

The DSM introduced the report and informed Members that there had not been a full review for some time, though elements had been reviewed at varying stages. She added that as the Code of Conduct was under review, it was now an appropriate time to review the full Member Officer Protocol, as they were considered together during investigations. It was noted that examples from several authorities had been reviewed as part of the process, and most had been considered more robust than the existing Protocol, which supported the case for improvements. The DSM stated that the new Protocol had strengthened its guidance on the roles of Councillors and Officers, in addition to improvements to the guidance for handling cases of bullying and harassment. She added that the CWP had made minor amendments to the wording which had been highlighted, and it was hoped that the new Protocol would be a more robust document for future use. It was noted that the Media Relations Protocol had been reviewed separately by the Communications Manager, but would be merged back into the main document.

Questions and Discussion

       i.          Cllr V Gay thanked officers for developing the Protocol and noted that it hadn’t been reviewed for many years. She added that whilst the old Protocol did provide useful guidance, it did not provide a clear statement on the roles and responsibilities of Members and Officers. It was stated that the new Protocol provided clear guidance on these issues, as well as improvements on the Media Relations Protocol in relation to social media. Cllr V Gay stated that the new Protocol would provide clear guidance for Members during the induction process, and throughout their tenure. She added that CWP were happy to recommend its approval.

      ii.          Cllr L Shires stated that the new Protocol had been well prepared, and asked for clarification on the extent of consultation with Officers. The DSM replied that she had circulated the new Protocol with CLT and the HR Manager, who had provided feedback on strengthening the guidance on bullying and harassment. She added that it was yet to be shared with wider staff, though if Members were supportive, then it could be shared with the Staff Focus Group to ensure that Officers were aware of the changes and content.

     iii.          Cllr A Brown thanked Members of the CWP for their input and noted that the language used was very clear. He referred to section 4.8 on expressions of political opinion, and asked whether these should be restricted to Full Council, or whether these were appropriate at other Committees. Cllr A brown then asked how Members would be kept informed of relevant ward information, and asked if there was a requirement for Officers to notify Members under these circumstances. The DSM replied that both issues had been raised by CWP and noted that the first point on political statements had been included to make Officers aware that it was an important aspect of Member’s roles. She added that some Committees  ...  view the full minutes text for item 43.

The MO stated that she had no substantive updates in regards to any recent standards complaints.

Questions and Discussion

       i.          Cllr N Dixon stated that it would be helpful to know how many complaints had been received, and how long they had been in process, potentially with an anticipated completion date. He added that he was aware of complaints that had been active for several months without any outcome determined. Cllr N Dixon proposed that an update be provided at all future meetings on the number of complaints received, and the amount of time they had been active. The MO replied that she would be happy to provide updates at future meetings, and stated that whilst she did not have the full figures available, there were approximately ten matters in progress, which included Parish Council complaints.

      ii.          The Chairman asked whether a split was available between District and Parish complaints, to which the MO replied that there were significantly more complaints received regarding Parish Councils, though this could in large part be due to the higher number of Councillors.

     iii.          Cllr L Shires stated that she supported the request for an update at every meeting, and suggested that this could also include information on the number of cases where no breach of the Code of Conduct had been found.

    iv.          The DSM stated that a summary was previously provided and suggested that she could share previous versions with the MO to provide an update at future meetings. The MO stated that she was happy to provide the information in the future, and noted for the benefit of Members, that when a complaint was received, they passed through a sifting process to determine whether it met the threshold for potentially breaching the Code of Conduct.

      v.          Cllr N Dixon stated that an update on complaints was central to the role of the Committee, and stated that the omission should be resolved as soon as possible for future meetings.

ACTIONS

To receive an update on standards complaints at all future meetings.

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”.