Agenda and draft minutes

Ethics Committee - Monday, 29th July, 2024 6.30 pm

Venue: Council Chamber, Town Hall, Katharine Street, Croydon CR0 1NX. View directions

Contact: Klaudia Petecka, Democratic Services  Email: klaudia.petecka@croydon.gov.uk

Items
No. Item

1/22

Minutes of the Previous Meeting pdf icon PDF 93 KB

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 15 November 2023 as an accurate record.

Minutes:

The minutes of the meeting held on 15 November 2023 were agreed as an accurate record.

2/22

Disclosure of Interests

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.

 

Minutes:

There were none.

3/22

Urgent Business (if any)

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.

Minutes:

There were no items of urgent business.

4/22

Work Programme pdf icon PDF 109 KB

To consider the Committee work programme for the remainder of the Municipal Year.

Minutes:

The Director of Legal Services and Monitoring Officer, Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense, and Democratic Services and Governance Officer, Klaudia Petecka, presented the updated work programme including the proposed agenda for the next meeting, scheduled for the 13th of November 2024.

 

The proposed agenda for the next meeting looked as follows:

-          Standing items:

o   Members’ Dispensations,

o   Complaint Monitoring,

o   Ethics Committee Work Programme,

o   Members Gifts and Hospitality,

o   Legal & Ethics Update,

-          Other items:

o   ‘Tidying up’ amendments to the Member’s Code of Conduct and rearrangement for dealing with allegations of breaches of the Code,

o   Outcomes of the Independent Person Survey.

 

The Committee agreed to expand the scope of the ‘Tidying up’ amendments to the Member’s Code of Conduct and rearrangement for dealing with the allegations of breaches of the Code by the Officer and Member Protocol review.

 

RESOLVED: That updated work programme as detailed in the report be noted.

5/22

Member Gifts and Hospitality pdf icon PDF 88 KB

Members must comply with the Members’ Code of Conduct including the requirements around declaring gifts and hospitality. Appendix A to this report provides the details of gifts and hospitality declared by Members since the Committee was last updated on declarations of this nature.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Director of Legal Services and Monitoring Officer, Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense, introduced the Gifts and Hospitality report covering the last reporting period. It was noted that an addendum to the report had been circulated to the Committee after the publication date.

 

The Committee agreed that information outlining the requirements for declarations—including value thresholds, timelines for providing additional details, and exemptions from declaration—would be shared with Members.

 

RESOLVED: That the Gifts and Hospitality declarations made by Members since 15 November 2023 are noted.

6/22

Update on Ethics Complaints Received in the Fourth Quarter of 2023 pdf icon PDF 116 KB

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

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Director of Legal Services and Monitoring Officer, Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense, introduced the report on Ethics Complaints received in the Fourth Quarter of 2023. It was explained that during this period, one new complaint had been received, and one ongoing complaint, previously presented to the Committee, remained under review.

 

RESOLVED:  That the Quarterly Complaints report be noted.

 

7/22

Update on the Ethics Complaints Received in the First Quarter of 2024 pdf icon PDF 102 KB

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

Minutes:

The Director of Legal Services and Monitoring Officer, Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense, introduced the Update on Ethics Complaints Received in the First Quarter of 2024 report. It was explained that no complaints were received in this period.

 

RESOLVED: That the Quarterly Complaints report be noted.

 

8/22

Annual Complaints Report pdf icon PDF 131 KB

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.

Minutes:

The Director of Legal Services and Monitoring Officer, Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense, introduced the Annual Complaint Report, providing details of the complaints received throughout the year. It was highlighted that 14 complaints were received last year, which was a significant improvement compared to the 43 complaints received in the previous year.

 

The Council's review of the Member’s Code of Conduct and the arrangements for handling allegations of breaches was also noted.

 

In response to questions from the Committee, the following points were clarified:

-          The 43 complaints received in the previous year was considered to be relatively high. It was also explained that there was currently no comparative data available from other local authorities; however, it was agreed that such data would be requested from peer authorities.

-          There was insufficient data to establish a causal link between the decrease in complaints and the development of social media guidance.

 

It was agreed that the complaints section of the Council’s website would be refreshed and a Teams page would be created for Members to access all necessary documents.

 

RESOLVED: That the Annual Complaint report be noted.

 

9/22

Independent Person Appointment pdf icon PDF 116 KB

The Ethics Committee, on the 19 April 2023, due to a vacancy which had arisen, agreed to commence a recruitment process under the provisions of the Localism Act 2011 to ensure a sufficient pool of Independent Persons.

Minutes:

The Director of Legal Services and Monitoring Officer, Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense, and the Democratic Services and Governance Officer, Klaudia Petecka, introduced the Independent Person Appointment Report.

 

The Committee thanked the Members and officers involved in the recruitment process for their efforts.

 

RESOLVED: That the appointment of Joanne Middlewick as an Independent Person be recommended to Full Council for agreement.

10/22

Recent Developments in Ethical Standards Report pdf icon PDF 151 KB

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.

Minutes:

The Director of Legal Services and Monitoring Officer, Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense, and Principal Lawyer, Gina Clarke, introduced the report.

 

In response to questions from the Committee, it was clarified that:

-          Councillors have enhanced protection regarding the freedom of speech during public meetings.

-          Regarding the Warwickshire case, if the complaint had been received from a different stakeholder, the outcome of the investigation would likely have been unchanged. However, this would depend on the context and severity of the situation.

 

It was agreed that the Recent Developments in Ethical Standards Report will be shared with all Members.

 

11/22

Exclusion of the Press and Public

The following motion is to be moved and seconded where it is proposed to exclude the press and public from the remainder of a meeting:

 

“That, under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act, 1972, the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information falling within those paragraphs indicated in Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, as amended.”

Minutes:

It was not necessary to exclude the press and public from any portion of this meeting.

12/22

Update on Ethics Complaints Received in the Fourth Quarter of 2023

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