Meeting documents

Present:

Mrs Valerie Bracken (Chair)
Councillors Bell and S Quinn, Mr Berry and Town Councillor Carter

Also in attendance:

Sandra Stewart (Borough Solicitor/Monitoring Officer) and Ben Jay (Deputy Borough Treasurer).

Apologies for Absence:

Councillors Baines and Kitchen, Mrs Barnes, Town Councillor Milne and Reverend Thomas.

77. Declarations Of Interest

There were no declarations of interest submitted by members of the Standards Committee.

78. Chair’s Opening Remarks

Members of the Committee joined the Chair in sending their best wishes to Reverend Thomas for a speedy recovery following his recent stay in hospital.

79. Minutes

The Minutes of the proceedings of the Standards Committee held on 13 December 2011, having been circulated, were taken as read and signed by the Chair as a correct record.

80. Ethical Framework

The Borough Solicitor provided an update on the future ethical framework in local government following the introduction of the Localism Act 2011 which abolished the Standards Board regime and made fundamental changes to the system of regulation of standards of conduct for elected members. Members of the Standards Committee had previously discussed the desire for a regime which would uphold the Council’s excellent record of high standards and preserve the positive aspects of the standards regime. A key aspect in establishing new arrangements was to make certain that the public could expect the highest standards from their representatives and that the Council was taking responsibility to ensure that these standards were being set and maintained.

She circulated a bulletin produced by the Association of Council Secretaries and Solicitors which provided detailed of two models; a template from the Local Government Association; and an illustrative text from Communities and Local Government for information. She also advised that the Monitoring Officers of the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities were actively working on a possible code of conduct to recommend to authorities which would be considered at their meeting arranged for 7 May 2012.

Resolved

1. That the update report be noted.
2. That the Borough Solicitor provide a further details at the meeting of the Standards Committee to be held on 19 June 2012.

81. Maintaining High Standards Of Conduct During The Elections

Consideration was given to a report of the Borough Solicitor advising that the Chief Executive as Returning Officer and Electoral Registration Officer had been assessed by the Electoral Commission as achieving the highest standards in respect of all areas of performance. This compared favourably with other Returning Officers within the Northwest region. The Council wished to maintain its reputation for high standards and it was important, therefore, that whilst the Returning Officers continued to comply with legislation that the ethical governance relating to the process was also maintained in order that the public had confidence in the integrity of the elections. With that in mind all candidates and agents for the Local Elections 2012 had signed up to the Council’s ethical framework which included:

1. Current Council police on CRB checks; and
2. Code of conduct for political parties, candidates and canvassers on the handling of postal vote applications and postal ballot papers which had been agreed by the main political parties.

Resolved

That the Committee note the position adopted by the Returning Officer and the advice given to all candidates for the Local Elections that the Committee expected to be complied with to maintain the high standards of electoral conduct.

82. Publication Of Members Interests On The Council’s Website

The Borough Solicitor advised the Committee that Elected Members were currently required under the Code of Conduct to record financial and certain other personal interests in a register available for public inspection. Any changes to those details would have to be notified to the Monitoring Officer within 28 days of the change taking place. Currently the Register was kept in a paper copy format and was available for public inspection at the Council Offices during normal office hours. Publishing the registers of the website would make the information much more readily accessible, would accord with best practice and would demonstrate the Council’s commitment to openness and high ethical standards. Examples of the revised format for publication of the Register of Members’ Interests on the Council’s website were circulated for consideration.

The Standards Committee Members commented favourably on the revised format which would assist with transparency and support the current arrangements for ethical and corporate governance of the Authority. Councillor Carter added that she would consult her colleagues on Mossley Town Council regarding the possibility of publishing similar information on the Town Council’s website.

Resolved

That the revised format of the Register of Members’ Interests be approved and made available on the Council’s website.

83. Register Of Interests And Gifts And Hospitality

The Register of Interests and Gifts and Hospitality were made available for inspection.

84. Urgent Items

The Chair advised that there were no urgent items for consideration at this meeting.

85. Date Of The Next Meeting

It was noted that the Standards Committee would meet on the following dates during the Municipal Year 2012/13:

Tuesday 19 June 2012
Tuesday 11 September 2012
Tuesday 11 December 2012
Tuesday 12 March 2013

Chair