Notice of Motion
In accordance with notice duly given under Procedure Rule 4, Councillor W Stamp to move the following motion duly seconded by Councillor R H Siddall:
“Maldon District Council has a statutory duty to promote and maintain high standards of conduct by its councillors and co-opted Members - Section 27(2) of The Localism Act 2011 (The Act) requires the council to adopt a Code of Conduct. It is not required in law for MDC to adopt a joint standards committee but it is good practice - and why wouldn't they?
In light of external investigations, I propose the following motions to council:
The motions have been set out separately for ease of voting.
Motion 1
To disband the Joint Standards Committee in its current form and all appointed councillors.
Motion 2
The council waives the overall political control of the authority (political balance) to reconstitute the Joint Standards Committee.
Motion 3
The committee will consist of 8 elected members - four from each political group, plus 2 Parish Council observers (no voting rights) and the Independent Person (no voting rights).
Motion 4
i) The Chairman and Vice-Chairman to be appointed not from the same political group.”
Minutes:
Councillor J V Keyes joined the meeting at this point.
In accordance with Procedure Rule 4, four motions proposed by Councillor W Stamp and seconded by Councillor R H Siddall were received on 10 June 2020. Amendments to motions 3 and 4 were received on 11 June 2020. The revised motion is as follows:
“Maldon District Council has a statutory duty to promote and maintain high standards of conduct by its councillors and co-opted Members - Section 27(2) of The Localism Act 2011 (The Act) requires the council to adopt a Code of Conduct. It is not required in law for MDC to adopt a joint standards committee but it is good practice - and why wouldn't they?
In light of external investigations, I propose the following motions to council:
The motions have been set out separately for ease of voting.
Motion 1
To disband the Joint Standards Committee in its current form and all appointed councillors.
Motion 2
The council waives the overall political control of the authority (political balance) to reconstitute the Joint Standards Committee.
Motion 3
The committee will consist of 8 elected members - four from each political group, plus 2 Parish Council observers (no voting rights) and the Independent Person (no voting rights).
Motion 4
i) The Chairman and Vice-Chairman to be appointed not from the same political group.”
Councillor Stamp spoke to her motions, providing further explanation.
Councillor Siddall had formally seconded the motion and proposed that a further amendment be made to motion 3 to read as follows:
The Committee will consist of eight elected members, plus two Parish Council observers (no voting rights) and the Independent Person (no voting rights). The eight members should reflect the balance of the membership of the Council; however, no group should have a majority on the Committee. All political groups (a group is defined as having three or more members and is recognised as a political entity) within the council should have representation. Any substitutions must be made from the same political group.
This amendment was duly seconded.
In response to a question regarding political balance, the Lead Legal Specialist and Monitoring Officer provided some guidance on the principles of political balance and how this would be applied to a Committee made up of eight members.
In accordance with Procedure Rule 13 (3) Councillor W Stamp requested a recorded vote.
The Chairman clarified at this point that the Council would debate all four motions prior to taking separate votes on each motion.
A lengthy debate ensued, and a number of Members commented on the tabled motions. Following a question and comments raised, the Lead Legal Specialist and Monitoring Officer provided some clarification on the wording of motion 2. In response, Councillor E L Bamford proposed that Motion 2 be reworded, as follows, to add clarity that this motion only related to the Joint Standards Committee.
That the Council waives political balance to reconstitute the Joint Standards Committee.
This proposal was duly seconded and supported by both ... view the full minutes text for item 1009