Minutes:
As required by the Council’s Constitution, the Director of Law and Corporate Governance submitted for consideration a draft Annual Report setting out the work undertaken by the Committee during 2005/06. In addition to summarising the achievements of the Committee over the last municipal year, the Annual Report detailed the composition of the Committee; its current terms of reference; the developments within the Standards Board for England; the development and maintenance of the Council’s own Ethical Framework and the Standards Committee’s work programme for the remainder of the current municipal year.
During consideration of the Committee’s work programme, Members considered which documents within the Council’s Ethical Framework they would wish to review during the current municipal year. It was suggested that in addition to the Planning Public Participation Scheme, the Committee should review the Member/Officer Relations Code.
The Committee was advised that in addition to the tasks set out in the proposed work programme, the Standards (Local Determination) Sub-Committee would be asked to determine complaints about alleged Member misconduct. There were currently five outstanding investigations being undertaken by the Standards Board for England’s Ethical Standards Officers and Council’s legal officers representing the Monitoring Officer which when completed would be referred to the Sub-Committee for determination. During discussion of this matter concern was expressed at the perceived petty nature of several of the complaints made in the past which it was felt would have been more efficiently and cost effectively dealt with at a local level by the Monitoring Officer informally.
Recommended –
(a) That the Annual Report of the Standards Committee for the municipal year 2005/2006 now submitted be approved by the Council.
Resolved – (b) That the Standards Committee at its meeting on 15th January, 2007 review the Planning Public Participation Scheme and the Member/Officer Relations Code of Conduct.