Agenda item

The Monitoring Officer presented a report to enable the Committee to consider investigation, pre-hearing and hearing procedures to apply where the Assessment Sub-Committee has referred a complaint of alleged breach of the Code of Conduct for investigation. In considering the report, Members were also asked to determine arrangements for the Committee to consider reports referred by the Monitoring Officer following local investigation or by an Ethical Standards Officer.

The Committee had previously approved pre-hearing and hearing procedures based on guidance from the Standards Board. However, these procedures required updating in the light of the Standards Committee (England) (Regulations) 2008. New draft procedures were therefore appended to the report for consideration.

Members of the Committee discussed the options put forward in the draft procedures for dealing with Regulation 17 of the Standards Committee (England) (Regulations) 2008. Regulation 17 provides that where a Monitoring Officer refers a report to the Standards Committee under Regulation 14 or 15 (that is, following investigation locally or by an Ethical Standards Officer), the Standards Committee shall convene to consider the report and make one of the following findings:

• that it accepts the Monitoring Officer’s finding of no failure to comply with the Code,
• that the matter should be considered at a hearing of the Standards Committee,

or

• that the matter should be referred to the Adjudication Panel for determination.

Regulation 6 provides that the Standards Committee may appoint sub-committees to deal with its functions under Regulation 17. After consideration, members of the Committee agreed that it would be appropriate to re-convene the Assessment Sub-Committee that originally referred the complaint, to consider the Monitoring Officer’s report in accordance with Regulation 17. When reconvened in this way, it was agreed that the Sub-Committee be referred to as the Assessment (Regulation 17) Sub-Committee, to distinguish from its preliminary assessment function. Members asked that the draft procedures be amended to reflect this.

The Committee asked for further details of how the access to information rules would apply to the Assessment Sub-Committee and the Assessment (Regulation 17) Sub-Committee. The Monitoring Officer explained that the access to information rules would not apply to the Assessment Sub-Committee, meaning that dates of meetings and agenda papers would not be published and the meetings would be held in private. Access to information rules would apply to the Assessment (Regulation 17) Sub-Committee, however, meaning that dates of meeting and the agendas would be published and the meeting would be held in public. In practice, however, the nature of information to be discussed by the Assessment (Regulation 17) Sub-Committee might mean that agenda papers would be likely to be confidential or exempt from public access.

Members raised the issue of a definition for the term “Independent Member” and whether Appendix 1 of the draft procedures, relating to Composition of the Hearing Sub-Committee, made adequate distinction between Independent Members of the Standards Committee and Parish Members. The composition of the Hearing Sub-Committee was considered and agreement reached about its five members, as follows:

• where the matter for determination relates to a parish council matter, the Sub-Committee will comprise two Independent Members, and either one Parish Member and two City Councillors, or two Parish Members and one City Councillor

• where the matter for determination concerns a City Councillor, the Sub-Committee should include no more than two City Councillors.  The other members of the Sub-Committee will be either two Independent Members and one Parish Member, or three Independent Members.

The quorum of the Sub-Committee meeting was also discussed and agreement reached that this should be three members, of whom one must be an Independent Member, and no more than one should be a City Councillor.  For hearings concerning a parish matter, a Parish Member must be present. 

The Committee asked that the Monitoring Officer make the appropriate amendments to the draft procedures regarding composition of the Hearing Sub-Committee.

After detailed consideration of the draft procedures, the Committee agreed further amendments. That:-

• (page 4, paragraph 3) the sentences “The appointment will set out the responsibilities delegated by the Monitoring Officer to the Investigating Officer. The Monitoring Officer will maintain the function of overseeing the investigation.” to be added at the end of the paragraph.

• (page 4, paragraph 7) the words “endeavour to” be removed

• (page 5, paragraph 8) the words “shall be referred to an Assessment Sub-Committee” in the penultimate sentence be changed to “shall be referred to a new Assessment Sub-Committee”.

• (page 5, paragraph 9) the words “key parties to the investigation” be replaced with “the Subject Member and Complainant”

• (page 5, paragraph 11) the word “include” in the first line be replaced with “commence with”

• (page 5, paragraph 14) correction of typing error “Pre-heating” to “Pre-hearing”

• (page 9) the title of Form A be changed from “Members response to the evidence set out in the Monitoring Officer’s report”. to “Members response to the evidence set out in the Investigating Officer’s report”

• (page 15, paragraph 6) the words “the Standards Committee” be replaced with the Hearing Sub-Committee” in the third and fourth bullet points.

Resolved:

1. That the original Assessment Sub-Committee will be reconvened to deal with the functions under Regulation 17 of the Standards Committee (England) (Regulations) 2008. 

2. That the Sub-Committee be referred to as the Assessment (Regulation 17) Sub-Committee when carrying out the Committee’s functions under Regulation 17.

3. That the draft Investigation, Pre-hearing and Hearing Procedures be approved, subject to the revisions noted above.

(The revised procedures are appended to these minutes).