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Agenda and minutes

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Contact: Rob Hooper 01392 382300  Email: rob.hooper@devon.gov.uk

Items
Note No. Item

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1.

Minutes

Minutes of the meeting held on 6 April 2017, previously circulated.

Minutes:

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on 6 April 2017 be signed as a correct record.

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2.

Items requiring urgent attention

Items which in the opinion of the Chairman should be considered at the meeting as a matter of urgency.

Minutes:

There was no item raised as a matter of urgency.

 

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3.

Members Allowances Scheme

In accordance with Standing Order 23(2), Councillor Brennan has asked that the Committee consider reviewing the Council’s Scheme of allowances currently payable (as previously recommended by the Independent Remuneration Panel) in respect of ‘the expenses of arranging for the care of children or dependants … and as to the amount of such allowance’ to reflect more accurately the charging practice of providers and not thereby discriminate against any Member(s).

Minutes:

[NB: All Members of the Council had been granted a dispensation to allow them to speak and vote in any debate at any meeting of the County Council, its Cabinet or any Committee, Sub- Committee,  Joint Committee  or Working Party relating  to any allowance, travelling expenses, payment or indemnity  for Members or Co-opted Members of the Council].

 

(Councillors Atkinson and Brennan attended in accordance with Standing Order 25(2) and spoke to this item).

 

The Committee noted that in accordance with Standing Order 23(2), Councillor Brennan had asked that the Committee consider reviewing the Council’s Scheme of allowances currently payable (as previously recommended by the Independent Remuneration Panel) in respect of ‘the expenses of arranging for the care of children or dependants … and as to the amount of such allowance’ to reflect more accurately common usage, the charging practice of providers of child care, nursery or before/after school clubs and not thereby discriminate against any Member(s).

 

Councillor Brennan had posited that the existing policy was unrealistic in that it did not take into account how childcare settings operated and discriminated against people who required childcare and nursery provision, especially working parents and most commonly women, nor did it reflect the charging policy of the majority of, if not all, providers.

 

The Committee was reminded that all Councils were required to make a scheme of allowances in line with the Local Government & Housing Act 1989 and the Local Government Act 2000.  The detailed requirements relating thereto were set out in of The Local Authorities (Members’ Allowances) (England) Regulations 2003  (SI 1021/2003) which provided that Councils may make, inter alia, a  payment of ‘dependants carers’ allowance’. 

 

The legislation provided that a Council must establish an Independent Panel and must have regard to its recommendations before making or amending its scheme of allowances.  A Panel might make recommendations to the Council:

 

(i)             as to the amount of basic allowance which should be payable to Members, 

 

(ii)    the duties in respect of which such Members should receive a special responsibility allowance and the amount of such an allowance, and

 

(iii)   as to whether the scheme of allowances should include allowances in respect of the expenses of arranging for care of children or dependants of such councillors and as to the amount of such allowances.

 

The Regulations also made it clear that in claiming expenses (whether for travelling, subsistence or 'caring') a Member might only claim for  expenses that were necessarily incurred in the attendance at or travelling to a meeting, committee or other body or of any other duty approved by the Council  relating to the discharge of the Council's functions and not for an  extended period. 

 

The Council could not  alter the legal basis of how payments might made be made for specific duties.   However, how any ‘dependant carers’ allowance’ was constructed within a Scheme  was, as indicated above, a matter for the Council to determine having regard to the IRP’s views.

 

Currently, the Council’s Scheme provided that a  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.

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4.

Council Procedure Rules: Nomenclature

In accordance with Standing Order 23(2), Councillor Brennan has asked that the Committee consider amending the Council’s Constitution, Rules of Procedure (Standing Orders) and Working Practices to substitute an alternative, gender neutral, term in place of 'Chairman’ for the person presiding at a meeting.

Minutes:

(Councillors Atkinson and Brennan attended in accordance with Standing Order 25(2) and spoke to this item).

 

In accordance with Standing Order 23(2), Councillor Brennan had asked that the Committee consider amending the Council’s Constitution, Rules of Procedure (Standing Orders) and Working Practices to substitute an alternative, gender neutral, term in place of 'Chairman’ – which was felt to be unacceptable in society today - for the person presiding at a meeting.

 

The Committee was invited to balance the status quo and any proposal for change against the Council’s own ‘Acceptable Language Guide’, common usage and parlance, personal preference and any statutory provisions/applications and make an appropriate revision to the Council’s Constitution and Working Practices.

 

A number of Members expressed the view that the Council should instead – as now – continue to adopt a flexible approach and recognise that the person presiding might wish to express a preference for how he/she/they would wish to be addressed rather than formally amending the Council’s Constitution and Working Practices; noting for example, that the aforementioned contained around 200 references/mentions of the term ‘Chairman’ and there would be many more in other Council publications and on its website.

 

The matter having been debated and the options and/or alternatives and other relevant factors referred to above having been considered:

 

It was MOVED by Councillor Greenslade, SECONDED by Councillor Hughes, and, nem com,

 

RESOLVED that the suggestion that the Council’s Constitution should be amended, as referred to above, by the deletion of the term Chairman and the substitution therefor of the term Chair be considered further at the next meeting of this Committee,  together with the benefit of any advice from the Council’s Equality Reference Group.

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5.

Constitutional Matters: Delegations

County Solicitor to report.

Minutes:

The County Solicitor reported on the procedural necessities to enable the Council to apply for probate for a deceased resident of a County Council Residential Home, where the County Council was a creditor.

 

It was MOVED by Councillor Hannaford, SECONDED by Councillor Clatworthy, and

 

RESOLVED that the County Solicitor (or any Officer nominated by her/him) be authorised to act, on behalf of the County Council, as its nominee for the purpose of taking out letters of administration of the estate of any person (e.g. applying for probate) of whom the County Council is a creditor.

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6.

Future Meetings

County Solicitor to Report

Minutes:

It was MOVED by Councillor Hughes, SECONDED by Councillor Hannaford, and

 

RESOLVED that the meeting scheduled for 20 September 2017 be re-arranged for 13 September 2017 on the rising of the Cabinet or at 2.00pm whichever was the later.

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7.

Deputy Monitoring Officer

County Solicitor to report

Minutes:

It was MOVED by Councillor Clatworthy, SECONDED by Councillor Hughes, and

 

RESOLVEDthat Mr S Clarey be designated Deputy Monitoring Officer, with effect from 1 October 2017, upon the retirement of the current Deputy, Mr R Hooper,


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