Agenda item

This report includes the draft Access to Information Protocol for the consideration of the Ethics Committee.

Interim Executive Director of Resources and Monitoring Officer Asmat Hussain introduced this report, which contained a revised version of the Access to Information Protocol. The first draft of the Protocol had been considered by the Ethics Committee in May 2021, and feedback was considered by officers in consultation with various Members including the Chairs of Scrutiny Committees. The Protocol was informed by the need for improved Member access to information, and the Council’s commitment transparency and openness. Since then, a substantial amount of work was carried out to improve and update the Protocol. The report recommended that the Protocol form a part of the Constitution and be part of a training package of the new cohort of Members after the next election.  A flowchart illustrating the way the protocol would work in practice was included in Appendix 2, and this would be included in the Members’ Handbook. Workshops with officers and Members were planned in October. It was proposed that the Protocol take effect from January 2022.

The Information Protocol would form part of the work of the Constitutional Working Group. The Access to Information Protocol would need to be reconsidered once the Cabinet Member Advisory Committees (CMACs) were established. If answering a Members’ request was not practicable, it would be clearly communicated why the request was denied (for example if a requested document cannot be located or does not exist).

In response to a request from Councillor Clouder for further detail on the flowchart, officers said they would revise the flowchart accordingly and bring it to the next Ethics Committee meeting.

In response to questions from Councillor Fraser about why the current Constitution did not make a reference to changes made to the Governance Review, officers said that this was due to the Council’s capacity and resources, and the decision to prioritise urgent work. As a result, some recommendations have not yet been implemented. However, this would form part of the work programme that the Constitutional Working Group were currently reviewing.

In response to Councillor Fraser’s question about officers’ responsibilities regarding withholding information, officers explained that the Protocol stipulated that information would be given on a ‘need to know’ basis. If answering a Members’ request was not practicable, it would be clearly communicated why the request was denied (for example if a requested document cannot be located or does not exist).

Members said that officers should provide the legal basis on which the information was denied and that sometimes they should be entitled to information which was not relating to a matter under scrutiny, as stipulated in the Protocol. Furthermore, it should be made clear in the Protocol which documents members were entitled to. Officers agreed to make those amends.

The Chair said that this report should be brought back to a future meeting of the Ethics Committee. He asked Members to endorse the sections which relate to Scrutiny, as they have not been objected to by the Committee. The report would be delayed in going to Full Council until further information and clarifications on specific points on the report were provided. Members agreed to endorse the sections that relate to Scrutiny and asked officers to follow the principles set out in the Protocol in relation to Scrutiny.

The Committee RESOLVED to:

-       Endorse the sections of the Access to Information Protocol which related to Scrutiny.

-       Delay the recommendation to Full Council to approve the Protocol until it had been further revised.

-       Agree that the Committee would undertake an annual review of the Protocol and consider performance against standards for response as part of its annual review.

-       Note that the Interim Executive Director of Resources and Monitoring Officer would arrange briefings for Members and Officers on the implications and operation of the Protocol.