Agenda and minutes

To receive any apologies for absence from Members.

Apologies were received from Councillors

To receive information on any changes in the membership of the Committee.

Note – When a member of a Committee is unable to attend a meeting of a Committee or Sub-Committee, the relevant Political Group Leader (or their nominated representative) may, by notice to the Monitoring Officer (or their nominated representative) prior to the meeting, appoint a substitute member from within the same Political Group. The contact details on the front of this agenda should be used for notifications.

Councillor Challinor substituted for Councillor Haines and Councillor Andrews substituted for Councillor Maidment.

To elect a Chair of the Standards Committee for the 2023/24 municipal year.

In accordance with the Constitution Meeting Procedure Rules the Chairman of the Council presided over the meeting for this item.

A nomination was received and seconded for Councillor Vanessa Ricketts. No further nominations were received.

RESOLVED that Councillor Vanessa Ricketts be elected as Chair of the Standards Committee for the 2023/24 Municipal Year.

Voting: Unanimous

To elect a Vice-Chair of the Standards Committee for the 2023/24 municipal year.

The Chair of the Standards Committee presided over this item and sought nominations for Vice Chair.

A nomination was received and seconded for Councillor Adrian Chapmanlaw. No further nominations were received.

RESOLVED that Councillor Adrian Chapmanlaw be elected Vice-Chair of the Standards Committee for the 2023/24 Municipal Year.

Voting: Unanimous

Councillors are requested to declare any interests on items included in this agenda. Please refer to the workflow on the preceding page for guidance.

Declarations received will be reported at the meeting.

There were no declarations of interest received on this occasion.

To confirm and sign as a correct record the minutes of the Meeting held on 13 March 2023.

The minutes of the meeting held on 13 March 2023 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

To receive any public questions, statements or petitions submitted in accordance with the Constitution. Further information on the requirements for submitting these is available to view at the following link:-

https://democracy.bcpcouncil.gov.uk/ieListMeetings.aspx?CommitteeID=151&Info=1&bcr=1

The deadline for the submission of public questions is 4 clear working days before the meeting.

The deadline for the submission of a statement is midday the working day before the meeting.

The deadline for the submission of a petition is 10 working days before the meeting.

The Chair advised that no petitions or statements had been received on this occasion but that three questions had been received by a member of the public.

Question from Alex McKinstry on Agenda Item 8

Question 1.

I see from Table 1 in tonight's report that complaint no. 97 (BCP-097) is still unresolved. Those who followed Standards Committee meetings earlier this year will recall how the councillor involved in this complaint overlooked three related letters or emails (dating back to 15 September), and then introduced "fresh evidence" when they did reply on 27 February. A "further determination" was made on 13 March, in the light of this new evidence; but Table 1 suggests that the complaint remains upheld, and that once again, the Committee is awaiting a reply from the subject councillor. Is this correct, and if so can we have an update on what has happened with this complaint since 13 March?

Response by Ingrid Brown, Head of Legal Services

In response to Question 1, this matter remains live and is still at the informal stage of the process. It is referred to in the report to be considered by the committee which has not yet been considered or accepted. I am in correspondence with the subject Councillor and in the event of the absence of a response from the Councillor within a reasonable time, a report will be presented to the next meeting of formal standards.

Question from Alex McKinstry on Agenda Item 8

Question 2.

Just to clarify, have all three allegations in Complaint BCP-097 been upheld?

Response by Ingrid Brown, Head of Legal Services

In response to question 2, the entire complaint was upheld by the Chair, after consultation with the members of Standards Committee, the Independent Persons and the Monitoring Officer.

Question from Alex McKinstry on Agenda Item 8

Question 3.

Complaint no. 132 (BCP-132) attracted much interest, involving as it did six breaches of the code of conduct by Cllr. Mark Anderson, and his subsequent resignation from Cabinet. That complaint is now marked "Determined"; but at the summing-up on 28 February, this Committee said it would be asking the Chief Executive to carry out a separate investigation into "areas of concern" that it had identified. My question is: can we, the public, be told anything about that investigation at this stage? (Even basic information, such as whether the investigation has started yet; what its precise terms of reference are; what its timescales are; whether it will be reporting back to this Committee; etc., etc.)

Response by Ingrid Brown, Head of Legal Services

In response to Question 3 I am able to confirm that the Committee shared its further areas of concern with the chief executive. These matters remain confidential.

The Committee is responsible for maintaining high standards of conduct by Members of BCP Council and the Town and Parish Councils, monitoring the operation of the Code of Conduct, and considering the outcome of commissioned independent investigations.

The report provides Members with an update on complaints regarding alleged breaches of the Code of Conduct against Councillors received or concluded since the last report to the Committee in February 2023.

The Head of Legal Services presented a report, a copy of which had been circulated to each Member and a copy of which appears as Appendix ‘A’ to these Minutes in the Minute Book.

The report provided Members with an update on complaints regarding alleged breaches of the Code of Conduct against councillors received of concluded since the last report to the Committee in

The Committee was reminded that it was responsible for maintaining high standards of conduct by Members of BCP Council and the Town and Parish Councils, monitoring the operation of the Code of Conduct and considering the outcome of commissioned independent investigations.

RESOLVED that the outcome of concluded complaints and the progress of those still outstanding be noted.

Voting: Unanimous