Agenda item

To receive a report from the Director of Legal, HR & Governance (Monitoring Officer) on the proposed amendments of the Constitution.

The Committee had before it, a report * from the Director of Legal, HR & Governance (Monitoring Officer) outlining the proposed amendments to the Constitution.

 

The Leader of the Council highlighted the following:

 

·         An advisory from the Planning Advisory service (PAS) was received regards to the Planning Committee and the removal of Public Question Time.

·         The Leader of the Council and the administration do listen to the residents of Mid Devon Council and formally thanked all the public questions that had been submitted in advance.

·         The Leader of the Council thanked the former Leader for his document and invaluable to read it and helpful. To help the administration challenge and re look at a report that had been put forward. 

·         The first document that was published an amendment document had been circulated and published and outlined the amendments.

 

The Leader of the Council outlined the following amendment:

 

Under 9.1-

·         Residents, electors or business rate payers of the District wishing to raise a question under public question time are asked to provide their written questions to the Democratic Services team by 5pm three clear working days before the meeting to ensure that a response is received at the meeting to the written question.

·         Questions must be relevant to an item on the Agenda for that meeting (excluding the Minutes unless challenging the accuracy of the minutes). The exception to this is at Full Council when residents, electors or business rate payers can ask a question concerning any of the Council’s powers / duties or which otherwise affects the District.

·         Contributions from members of the public will be limited to 3 minutes, and 30 minutes (extendable at the Chairman’s discretion) will be available at the beginning of meetings for such questions.

·         NB Planning Committee has its own arrangements for public questions.

·         9.5 Recording of Questions by the Public. The minutes shall contain a condensed written record of questions made by the public which accurately conveys the context. The minutes are not verbatim.

·         20.1 Removal of member of the public to be as follows.

(a) If a member of the public interrupts proceedings, the Chairman will warn the person concerned.

(b) If they continue to interrupt, the Chairman will order their removal from the meeting room or online.

·         The proposed changes to 4.0 and 4.1 were removed.

·         The proposed changes to13.3 were removed.

·         The proposed changes under Appendix J 9.1, 9.2 and 9.3 were removed.

 

 

Consideration was given to:

 

·         A debate on the original document before the amendments.

·         The time on the changes to the constitution following a previous planning committee decision from 21 March 2018.

·         The importance of the constitution updates.

·         The task and finish group that reported to Standards Committee in June 2023 with recommendation to Full Council in September on Council Procedure rules and the constitution was changed in December.

·         As referred to in the report at 2.4 who is we? And who made the decision to do another review after 6 to 8 weeks after all the hard work from elected members, and what evidence.

·         In the document PAS came in March 2023 and Standards Committee has the review in June 2023.

·         The review of the public engagement.

·         Some of the changes that were put forward from the Standards Committee were intended to make the Council more open and make engagement from the public.

·         The proposal in the report restricts the public engagement regime.

·         The quote on the report of other Local Authorities are County not District Council.

·         The appendix 1 with the changes to section 1 and 5 can be done with the delegated powers of the Monitoring officer and doesn’t need the approval from the Standards Committee.

·         Section 9 under the questions and statements, previously work had been taken already and that the Standards Committee should reject this section.

·         The public question time in relations to Planning Committee.

·         The figures on those that view the documents in Phoenix House.

·         Planning application and the public engagement.

·         The statements that had been removed under public question time.

·         To understand the policing around the public question time at meetings regarding the removal of statements.

·         What kind of Council are we if we do not aloud residents to make statements?

·         The engagement between the Council and residents of Mid Devon to enable representation.

 

Cllr N Woollatt MOVED an AMENDMENT seconded by Cllr A Glover that:

 

·         Section 1 and 5 in appendix 1 be noted by the Standards Committee and that the Monitoring Officers under the delegated powers to make the changes to the constitution.

 

Upon a vote being taken the AMENDMENT were declared to have been CARRIED.

 

Cllr N Woollatt MOVED an AMENDMENT, this was not seconded therefore was declared to have FAILED

• Not to make the changes as set out in the appendix under questions by the public.

 

Cllr N Woollatt MOVED an AMENDMENT seconded by Cllr L Taylor.

 

Existing:

 

• 4.0 Notices of meeting

4.1 The Council will give at least five clear days notice of any meeting by posting details of the meeting at Phoenix House, Phoenix Lane, Tiverton Devon known as the designated office or on its website at www.middevon.gov.uk

• 13.3 Publication of the Notice of Key Decision

The Notice of Key Decision must be made available for inspection by the

public at Phoenix House, Phoenix Lane, Tiverton Devon known as the

designated office or on its website at www.middevon.gov.uk.

 

Change to:

• 4.0 Notices of meeting

4.1 The Council will give at least five clear days notice of any meeting by posting details of the meeting at Phoenix House, Phoenix Lane, Tiverton Devon known as the designated office and on its website at www.middevon.gov.uk

• 13.3 Publication of the Notice of Key Decision

The Notice of Key Decision must be made available for inspection by the

public at Phoenix House, Phoenix Lane, Tiverton Devon known as the

designated office and on its website at www.middevon.gov.uk.

 

Upon a vote being taken the AMENDMENT were declared to have been CARRIED.

 

Cllr L Taylor MOVED an AMENDMENT seconded by Cllr A Glover

 

·         To withdraw the original amendment to remove statement in 9.1 bullet point 6.

·         For the Monitoring Officer under delegated powers be given the authority to make the changes to the Constitution to add and or statements to the relevant sections in 9.1, 9.2 and 9.5.

 

Upon a vote being taken the AMENDMENT were declared to have been CARRIED.

 

Cllr N Woollatt PROPOSED to vote separately on the three sections of the amendments.

 

 

 

 

It was therefore RESOLVED:

 

The Committee NOTED:

 

·         That delegated authority is provided to the Director of Legal, HR & Governance (Monitoring Officer) to amend the Constitution as in section 1 and 5.

 

RESOLVED that:

 

9. Questions by the Public

9.1

• Residents, electors or business rate payers of the District shall be entitled to ask questions and/or make a statement.
• Residents, electors or business rate payers of the District wishing to raise a question under public question time are asked to provide their written questions to the Democratic Services team by 5pm three clear working days before the meeting to ensure that a response is received at the meeting to the written question.
• Questions and/or statements must be relevant to an item on the Agenda for that meeting (excluding the Minutes unless challenging the accuracy of the minutes). The exception to this is at Full Council when residents, electors or business rate payers can ask a question concerning any of the Council’s powers / duties or which otherwise affects the District.

 

 

• The Chairman, following advice from either the Chief Executive, Monitoring Officer or Democratic Services Manager, shall have the discretion to reject a question and/or statement, giving reasons if it:

1.  Is not about a matter for which the Council has a responsibility or which affects the District

2.  Is in his/her opinion scurrilous, improper, capricious, irrelevant or otherwise objectionable

3.  Is substantially the same as a question and/or statement which has been put at a meeting of the Council in the past six months;

4.  Requires the disclosure of confidential or exempt information.

 

• At the discretion of the Chairman of that meeting, the questioner may ask a supplementary question at the meeting, if it is relevant to the original question and/or statement.
• Contributions from members of the public will be limited to 3 minutes, and 30 minutes (extendable at the Chairman’s discretion) will be available at the beginning of meetings for such questions and/or statements.
• The Chair of any meeting has the right and discretion to control question time to avoid disruption, repetition and wasting of meeting time.
• NB Planning Committee has its own arrangements for public questions.

 

9.2 Attendance

Persons submitting questions and/or statements must be present (remotely or in person) at the meeting unless the Chairman agrees to address the questions in the questioner’s absence.

Persons attending the meeting in person are required to sign in at reception on arrival.

 

9.5 Recording of Questions and Statements by the Public

The minutes shall contain a condensed written record of questions and/or statements made by the public which accurately conveys the context. The minutes are not verbatim.

 

20. Disturbance by the Public

20.1Removal of member of the public

(a) If a member of the public interrupts proceedings, the Chairman will warn the person concerned.

(b) If they continue to interrupt, the Chairman will order their removal from the meeting room or online.

 

Note: Cllr N Woollatt voted against.

 

RESOLVED that:

 

Access to Information Procedure Rules

 

• 4.0 Notices of meeting

4.1 The Council will give at least five clear days notice of any meeting by posting details of the meeting at Phoenix House, Phoenix Lane, Tiverton Devon known as the designated office and on its website at www.middevon.gov.uk

• 13.3 Publication of the Notice of Key Decision

The Notice of Key Decision must be made available for inspection by the

public at Phoenix House, Phoenix Lane, Tiverton Devon known as the

designated office and on its website at www.middevon.gov.uk.

 

Appendix J – Protocol of Good Practice for Councillors Dealing in Planning Matters

 

9.1 Public Question Time is available at the beginning of the meeting for those present to ask questions about any item of the agenda, or to speak briefly by way of background or introduction to those questions, including planning applications

 

9.2 For applications reserved for individual consideration, the Chairman will call those who have indicated a wish to speak in the following order: officer, one objector (3 minutes), one from applicant/agent/supporter (3 minutes), parish council (3 minutes) and ward member(s) (5 minutes each). For the avoidance of doubt, the Chairman has the discretion to vary the number and order of speakers, including the amount of time for which they may speak. In some circumstances, it may also be appropriate to hear from the County Councillor.

 

9.3 Through the Chairman, members of the Planning Committee may ask questions of any person who has spoken under paragraph 9.2 of this Protocol. Further, a ward member who has spoken under 9.2 may raise through the Chairman a point of order in order to correct a statement or error of fact which has been made during the course of the debate.

 

RESOLVED that:

 

·         That the Standards Committee recommend to Full Council that delegated authority is provided to the Director of Legal, HR & Governance (Monitoring Officer) to amend the Constitution as per Appendix 1 and any other amendments required to reflect the changes.

 

(Proposed by the Cllr L Taylor, was it seconded by Cllr A Glover)

 

Note:  * Report previously circulated.