Agenda and draft minutes

Apologies for the meeting were received from Martin Rawle, Independent Person.

Confirmation of the minutes of the Standards Committee held on Wednesday 13^th July 2022.

It was proposed by Councillor Clarke, seconded by Councillor Gubb and –

Resolved:

That the Minutes of the meeting held on Wednesday 13 July 2022 be agreed as a correct record.

(Vote:  For 7, Against 0, Abstentions 2)

Members with interests to declare should refer to the agenda item and describe the nature of their interest when the item is being considered.

The Chair asked that declarations of interest be made as and when the specific agenda item to which they related was under discussion.

There were no Part II items.

No items.

Continuation of training on Code of Conduct, provided by the Head of Legal and Governance & Monitoring Officer.

 The Head of Legal and Governance (& Monitoring Officer) introduced the code of conduct training for members, this was a continuation of training started in July and focused on the application of the Code of Conduct.

The Head of Legal and Governance (& Monitoring Officer) facilitated member discussions and provided examples of conduct issues.

Members shared their thoughts regarding the types of scenarios covered by the code. There was a specific discussion about social media use and public perceptions.

Following a discussion about abuse on social media and how contact details of Councillors can be used for abusive means, it was explained that TDC would support in these situations and information can be removed.

The Head of Legal and Governance (& Monitoring Officer) confirmed that social media is now explicitly covered by the new LGA code of conduct, though it isn’t yet within the Torridge version.

Discussion moved onto which issues generate the most complaints. The need to be able to debate, remain civil and maintain respect was discussed.

During discussions members asked about the contracting of services and the Chief Executive clarified the process.

There was also lengthy discussion regarding the standards of councillor conduct and the training examples.  Harassment legislation was highlighted, as well as bullying behaviours and how it relates to the Code and what would constitute a breach. The Head of Legal and Governance (& Monitoring Officer) then ran through the examples in relation to equalities legislation and political neutrality of officers and summarised the role of the monitoring officer and independent person in dealing with complaints and breaches of the code.

The Head of Legal and Governance (& Monitoring Officer) then ran through the examples in relation to equalities legislation and political neutrality of officers. Finally, the role of the monitoring officer and independent person was explained when dealing with complaints and breaches of the code.

At the end of the session members asked if this training was made available to all members.  The Head of Legal and Governance (& Monitoring Officer) confirmed that all members were able to access training at the start of their term.  She also confirmed that Beth Evans had delivered training in the last 12 months, but this had been poorly attending and sessions were voluntary.

Chair reminded members of their role to raise these issues within all Council meetings.

To review the forward plan.

Chair reviewed the forward plan with members and it was agreed that Code of Conduct training would be added to the agenda for the next Committee meeting on 29 March 2023.