Issue - meetings
Decision of Case Tribunal
Meeting: 04/12/2017 - Standards Committee (Item 39)
39 Decision of Case Tribunal 
PDF 79 KB
For committee to consider a recent decision of
a case tribunal in respect of a former Councillor.
Additional documents:
- Appendix 1 - Decision of case tribunal, item 39
PDF 191 KB
- Appendix 2 - Notification of case tribunal decision, item 39
PDF 306 KB
Decision:
(a) That the judgement of the case tribunal be noted; and
(b) That the Monitoring Officer prepare a draft summary of the points raised by the Committee to share with Members.
Minutes:
The Monitoring Officer presented a report on the case tribunal decision relating to the former Councillor Alison Halford, who had been disqualified for 14 months (even though she had retired at the May 2017 Elections). Decisions were reported to the Committee to consider whether there were any lessons arising which could be shared with other Members to assist them in following the Code of Conduct.
A brief summary was given on the findings of the case tribunal which had determined that Councillor Halford had breached the Code of Conduct by (i) using inappropriate language, (ii) using incorrect channels to raise her concerns and (iii) choosing the wrong audience.
During discussion, the Monitoring Officer provided details of the indemnity insurance scheme which was available to Members who chose to opt in.
Ms. Phillipa Earlam felt that the Committee had a duty to comment on the decision once the time limit for an appeal had ended. Officers confirmed that the deadline had lapsed.
Councillor Paul Johnson asked about attendance levels at the Member induction sessions which included information on the Code of Conduct. The Monitoring Officer referred to the statistics previously been reported to the Committee which had reflected a high turnout of new Council Members. The training had also been available to returning Members, some of whom may have attended sessions in previous years.
Concerns were raised by Mr. Robert Dewey that some Members may be ‘slipping through the net’ in respect of training, particularly on the Code of Conduct. The Monitoring Officer said it was the responsibility of individuals to ensure they kept up-to-date with training made available to them.
The Monitoring Officer agreed to share a draft of the points raised before circulating to Members.
RESOLVED:
(a) That the judgement of the case tribunal be noted; and
(b) That the Monitoring Officer prepare a draft summary of the points raised by the Committee to share with Members.