Agenda item

GOVERNANCE ARRANGEMENTS (00-03-47)

To consider the following recommendation from the Cabinet:

The Standards Committee be asked to recommend to Council that the changes to the current arrangements set out in part 3 of this report be agreed and the Constitution amended accordingly and the Monitoring Officer be asked to draft the changes to the Constitution required to implement those changes for consideration by the Standards Committee. (Original report to Cabinet attached)

Minutes:

The Committee had been requested to consider the following recommendation from the Cabinet:

The Standards Committee be asked to recommend to Council that the changes to the current arrangements set out in part 3 of the report be agreed and the Constitution amended accordingly and that the Monitoring Officer be asked to draft the changes to the Constitution required to implement those changes for consideration by the Standards Committee.

The Committee had before it the original report* of the Head of Legal (Monitoring Officer) to the Cabinet meeting (19 December 2019), a **paper outlining proposed changes to Cabinet Procedure Rules and Access to Information Rules.

The Head of Legal (Monitoring Officer) highlighted the options within the Cabinet report and the tracked changes documents which identified how those changes would translate into the constitution.

Consideration was given to:

· The Governance review taking place

· The option for the Cabinet to self-refer to the Council for a view on an issue before a decision was taken by the Cabinet

· Pre-decision scrutiny

· Whether reports to Cabinet should include a section setting out whether the decision was in the Budget and the Policy Framework which would clearly identify whether a decision was one to be made by the Cabinet or to be taken by Full Council

It was therefore

RECOMMENDED to Council that:

i) The changes as set out in Part 3 of the report be agreed; and that

ii) The following paragraphs be added to the Cabinet Procedure Rules within the Constitution:

3.0 Cabinet may consult Council

3.1 Where it appears to the Cabinet that a decision involves matters on which it would like to receive the views of members at a meeting of the Council, the Cabinet may resolve so to do.

3.2 The effect of a resolution under Rule 3.1, is that the decision will stand deferred to the next meeting of the Cabinet which follows the Council’s consideration of the matter in question.

3.3 For the avoidance of doubt,

(a) a resolution under Rule 3.1 is entirely a matter for the Cabinet at its absolute discretion;

(b) the views of the Council are not binding on the Cabinet; and

(c) nothing in this Rule 3 (or a decision or resolution under it) transfers responsibility for any function or matter to the Council where, under this Constitution and the Local Authorities (Functions and Responsibilities) Regulations 2000, such function or matter is the responsibility of the Cabinet.

iii) Rule 16.4 within Access to Information Procedure Rules be amended to read: As soon as reasonably practicable after the decision maker has obtained agreement under Rule 16.3 (and in any event by no later than the next working day), a notice of the decision must be published setting out the reasons why the decision is urgent and has been taken under this Rule 16.

iv) Rule 17.3 – Report to Council be amended to read: The Leader will report all Cabinet decisions taken under Rule 16 (special urgency) to the next meeting of the Council, such report to include a summary of the decision(s) taken. The report may be given verbally where the decision is taken after the publication of the agenda for the Council meeting.

(Proposed by Cllr R M Deed and seconded by Cllr Mrs N Woollatt)

It was further RESOLVED that: reports to Cabinet include a section setting out whether the decision is within the Policy Framework and the Budget.

(Proposed by Cllr R M Deed and seconded by Cllr Mrs N Woollatt)

Notes:

i) Cllr Mrs F J Colthorpe requested that her abstention from voting be recorded;

ii) * Previous report and ** papers previously circulated, copy attached to minutes.

Supporting documents: