Agenda and minutes

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 21 September 2022 as an accurate record.

The minutes of the meeting held on 21 September 2022 were agreed as an accurate record.

Members are invited to declare any disclosable pecuniary interests (DPIs) they may have in relation to any item(s) of business on today’s agenda.

There were none.

To receive notice of any business not on the agenda which in the opinion of the Chair, by reason of special circumstances, be considered as a matter of urgency.

The council’s Director of Legal Services and Monitoring Officer, Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense, had provided the committee with the council’s proposed Outside Bodies Protocol, which the Chair had agreed should be reviewed at this meeting.

Members requested that comments should be included about how frequently members should report back from outside bodies.

RESOLVED, to consider and agree the draft Outside Bodies Protocol attached to the Report at Appendix 1.

This Work Programme is subject to consultation with Members of the Ethics Committee.

The interim Head of Democratic Services, Adrian May, introduced the Work Programme, highlighting that it had previously been expected that the Outside Bodies Protocol would not be produced in time for this meeting but that fortunately it had been.

Officers also explained that the process for the recruitment of one and extension of the tenure of another Independent Person was needed and that they hoped this would be brought to the Ethics Committee in April.

RESOLVED to note, consider and comment on changes to the work programme as detailed in this report.

The Council has determined that the Ethics Committee shall be responsible for receiving and considering reports on matters of probity and ethics and to consider matters relating to the Code of Conduct.

The Director of Legal Services and Monitoring Officer explained the next three reports en bloc, as they all concerned the same subject matter. In response to questions, officers explained the filtering process with which complaints were dealt, and that the Monitoring Officer used discretion when discerning whether to consult Independent Persons, and that there had been no instances of this during the reporting period.

Members requested that the number of individuals making complaints and also a brief description of the nature of the complaint should be presented to the committee in Part B papers in future meetings.

Members also requested that there be a statement beside each complaint to inform them whether or not Independent Persons had been consulted.

RESOLVED, to note the contents of the report.

The Council has determined that the Ethics Committee shall be responsible for receiving and considering reports on matters of probity and ethics and to consider matters relating to the Code of Conduct.

RESOLVED, to note the contents of the report.

The Council has determined that the Ethics Committee shall be responsible for receiving and considering reports on matters of probity and ethics and to consider matters relating to the Code of Conduct.

RESOLVED, to note the contents of the report.

It is a function of Ethics Committee, among other matters to support the statutory role of the Monitoring Officer as set out in Article 9 of the Constitution, including the promotion of high standards of Member conduct and receiving reports from the Monitoring Officer on matters of probity and ethics.

The Director of Legal Services and Monitoring Officer presented the report to members, outlining a case study of ethical standards in Planning matter, and mentioned that the Croydon Council Members’ Code of Conduct dealt with the issues raised.

The Chair thanked officers for proactively identifying points of interest and benchmarking for the committee, and members requested taking a report on Ethical Standards to the Member Learning and Development Panel.

RESOLVED, to note the report.

Members must comply with the Members’ Code of Conduct including the protocol around declaring gifts and hospitality. This report (Appendix 1) gives the committee the details of gifts and hospitality declared by Members (Executive Mayor and Councilors) since the 13 September 2022 (following publication date of the previous Ethics Committee meeting).

RESOLVED:

1.1.         To note the requirements on Members with regards to declaring Gifts and Hospitality.

1.2.         To note any Gifts and Hospitality declarations since 13 September 2022 (when Gifts & Hospitality report was last published).