Agenda and minutes

Minutes of the meeting held on 18 April 2016, previously circulated.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on 18 April 2016 be signed as a correct record.

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

There was no item raised as a matter of urgency.

County Solicitor to report on proposed amendments to the Council’s Rules of Procedure (Standing Orders).

The County Solicitor outlined suggested changes to the Council’s Procedure Rules (Rules of Debate) in relation specifically to consideration of Referred Notices of Motions through   requiring notice to be given of any amendment(s) to a Referred Motion or to a Cabinet recommendation (consistent with the existing practice for dealing with amendments to any Committee Minutes submitted to the Council) which, it was felt, might obviate difficulties experienced on recent occasions and facilitate more coherent, structured, debates for the benefit of all those attending or observing Council meetings.

The Committee was also reminded that Cabinet Member Reports were intended to provide an opportunity for Members to seek and receive information on matters of wider interest or service provision over and above the facility to seek responses to factual, local issues, through formal questions or seeking the Council's approval to a proposed course of  action through a Notice of Motion; Cabinet Member Reports were intended as a purely discursive/informative item.  

It was MOVED by Councillor Connett, SECONDED by Councillor Westlake, and

RESOLVED

(a)that no change be made to the current arrangements for dealing with Referred Notices of Motion and that the proposed procedural changes outlined above be not approved;

(b)that the proposed factual, typographical and grammatical changes to the Council’s Rules of Procedure (Rules of Debate) outlined at the meeting and appended to the signed minutes be approved and the Constitution be amended accordingly.

Joint Report of the Head of Service for Communities and County Solicitor (CS/16/26) on the revision of the Devon Library Byelaws, attached.

The Cabinet considered the Joint Report of the Head of Services for Communities and the County Solicitor (CS/16/26) – presented by Mr M Peasey of Libraries Unlimited - outlining proposed revised byelaws for public libraries to replace those adopted in 1990. The revised byelaws reflected the model byelaws produced by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport recently modified to ensure appropriate use of libraries including additional clauses restricting the use of photography.

While Members recognised the nature and purpose of the Byelaws was to provide a guide to library usage and what was permissible and while there was some concern at the language and wording contained in the Department of Culture, Media and Sport’s ‘model’ byelaws, which it was felt  could benefit from re-drafting, nonetheless:

It was MOVED by Councillor Moulding, SECONDED by Councillor Hart, and

RESOLVED

(a) that the Public Library Service byelaws made by the County Council on 4 July 1990 be revoked and;

(b) that the revised Public Library Byelaws appended to Report CS/16/26 be adopted and the Council’s intention to confirm them be now advertised.