Agenda item

REPORT OF THE ACTING CORPORATE LEGAL MANAGER AND MONITORING OFFICER

RESOLVED:

(1)       That the proposed amendments to the Council’s Constitution, as set out in Appendix A to the report, and as amended, be approved; and

(2)       That the Acting Corporate Legal Manager and Monitoring Officer, in agreement with the Leader, be delegated authority to make such amendments as are necessary to the Constitution to give effect to the Senior Management Restructure post implementation and once finalised to report these to the subsequent Council meeting.

REASON FOR DECISION: To ensure the Council meets its statutory obligations and continues to improve its working practices.

The Council considered the report of the Acting Corporate Legal Manager and Monitoring Officer in respect of the 2018 Annual Review of the Council’s Constitution.  The following appendix was submitted with the report:

Appendix A – Schedule of proposed amendments to the Constitution.

The Acting Corporate Legal Manager and Monitoring Officer advised the proposed amendments were summarised in the report and set out in more detail in Appendix A.  She went through the proposed amendments section by section, and commented that the Constitution would require further amendment following the conclusion of the Senior Management Restructuring process.

It was moved by Councillor Lynda Needham, and seconded by Councillor Julian Cunningham, that the recommendations contained in the report be approved.

As an amendment, it was moved by Councillor Judi Billing, and seconded by Councillor Ian Albert, that Paragraph 4.8.4 of the Constitution should be amended as follows:

“4.8.4 Substitute Members to Committees and Sub-Committees

(a) Any Member may act as a Substitute in place of a Member from their political group. However, any Member substituting at the Planning Control Committee will need to have undertaken any necessary training before acting as a substitute.

(b) The Committees for which substitutes are permitted are; Employment Committee, Planning Control Committee, Overview and Scrutiny Committee, Finance, Audit and Risk Committee, Council Tax Setting Committee, Joint Staff Consultative Committee and the Standards Committee. Substitutes will also be permitted at other ad hoc Task Groups and Working Parties established by the Council or a Council Committee.

(c) Substitute Members will have all the powers and duties of any ordinary member of the Committee but will not be able to exercise any special powers or duties exercised by the person they are substituting.

(d) Substitute Members may attend meetings in that capacity only:

(i) to take the place of an ordinary member;

(ii) when the ordinary member will be absent for the whole of the meeting;

(iii) after notifying the Proper Officer by 12 noon on the day of the meeting of the intended substitution.”

Following debate, and upon being put to the vote, the amendment was lost.

As a further amendment, it was moved by Councillor Ian Albert, and seconded by Councillor Frank Radcliffe, that the second sentence of Paragraph 4.8.11(f) of the Constitution be amended to delete the word “three” and insert ”six”, so the sentence reads:

“The maximum number of questions that my be asked at any meeting of the Full Council is six.”

Following debate, and upon being put to the vote, the amendment was lost.

As a further amendment, it was moved by Councillor Martin Stears-Handscomb, and seconded by Councillor Judi Billing, that a new recommendation 2.3 be added to the report to read:

“That the Council agrees to establish a cross-party group to review which key decisions are of such importance that they should be exercised by Cabinet by recommendation to Council. The group should report back to Council in the new Civic year with recommendations.”

Following debate, and upon being put to the vote, the amendment was lost.

As a further amendment, it was moved by Councillor David Levett, and seconded by Councillor Julian Cunningham, that

“Recommendation 2.2 of the report be amended to read:

delegates to the (Acting) Corporate Legal Manager & Monitoring Officer, in agreement with the Leader, authority to make such amendments as are necessary to the Constitution to give effect to the Senior Management Restructure post implementation and once finalised to report these to the subsequent Council meeting.

Table of Amendments – Appendix A

(a)        Page 7 - Section 2.4

Insert after revisions ‘ … as defined in para. 2.6 of the Constitution…..’

(b)        Page 10 - Section 4.8.9

Delete ‘….by delivering it…’

(c)        Page 13 - Section 5.6.22

Delete the word ‘capital’

(d)        Page 13 - Section 5.6.23

Delete the word ‘capital’

(e)        Page 16 - Section 8.4.5

Change ‘shall’ in last line to ‘may’ ”

Following debate, and upon being put to the vote, the amendment was carried.

Upon the substantive motion being put to the vote, it was

RESOLVED:

(1)       That the proposed amendments to the Council’s Constitution, as set out in Appendix A to the report, and as amended, be approved; and

(2)       That the Acting Corporate Legal Manager and Monitoring Officer, in agreement with the Leader, be delegated authority to make such amendments as are necessary to the Constitution to give effect to the Senior Management Restructure post implementation and once finalised to report these to the subsequent Council meeting.

REASON FOR DECISION: To ensure the Council meets its statutory obligations and continues to improve its working practices.