Issue - meetings

That the report be received.

Julia Hughes presented her report on the Standards Conference held on 14 September 2018, copies of which had been circulated prior to the meeting.  Whilst the report contained her own findings from the conference, she acknowledged that each attendee would have their own viewpoints and invited contributions from the Committee’s other representatives who had attended.

She highlighted some of the key points which had been raised by speakers, including representatives from the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales (PSOW) and the Adjudication Panel for Wales (APW).

Councillor Heesom commented on the low number of elected Members in attendance at the conference which he felt had been well chaired by the Monitoring Officer.  With regard to discussion on dispensations, he felt that the process in Flintshire should be reviewed by the Planning Strategy Group, taking into consideration the work undertaken by Gwynedd Council on catchment areas in relation to application sites.  In explaining the approach taken in Flintshire, the Monitoring Officer agreed to contact Gwynedd Council and report back the findings to the next available meeting.  The Chair suggested that Wrexham County Borough Council also be contacted on the same matter.

The Monitoring Officer agreed to circulate a website link where papers and video clips of the conference were available.

RESOLVED:

That the report be received.