Issue - meetings

Adoption of the Model Ordinary Language Guide to the Constitution and updates made to the National Model Constitution.

To recommend adoption of the ordinary language guide and updated Constitution, following the work undertaken by the working group.

Additional documents:

Decision:

RESOLVED:

(a) That the Committee recommends to Council that the draft amended constitution should be adopted, with the exception of the role descriptions contained at Section 31 of the draft constitution and subject to a final internal consistency check, proof-read, and cross reference with the ordinary language guide;

(b) that paragraph 4.6.21 of the draft Constitution be amended to include the following “(carrying out its performance duties under the Local Government and Elections Act 2021)”

(b) That any additional work that the Committee considers should take place in

respect of the Council’s constitution will form part of a forward work

programme for the Committee.

Minutes:

The Chief Officer (Governance) presented a report to recommend adoption of the ordinary language guide and updated Constitution. He provided background information and referred to the working group which had been convened to consider the matters raised by the Committee on the draft consultation at a meeting held on 12 January 2023. The Chief Officer reported that the Committee had recommended that Council adopt the ordinary language guide to the constitution and it was adopted by Council at a meeting held on 24 January 2023. A draft of the constitution and the ordinary language guide were appended to the report. The changes the working group proposed be made to the Council’s constitution were shown as tracked changes, including the additional amendments made as a result of the comments which were raised by the Committee. The Chief Officer reported on the main considerations as detailed in the report.

Councillor Alasdair Ibbotson thanked the working group for its work on the matters which had been raised by the Committee on the draft consultation He referred to paragraph 1.14 of the report and said that he felt that the point raised by the Committee concerning Trade Unions and the Council’s whistleblowing policy had not been addressed. Councillor Ibbotson also referred to paragraph 4.6.21 of the draft constitution which was appended to the report and said that if the intention was that only the Council could carry out the self-assessment process the wording should be revised to state this. The Chief Officer responded to the comments made by Councillor Ibbotson and suggested that paragraph 4.6.21 be amended to include the following “(carrying out its performance duties under the Local Government and Elections Act 2021)” to clarify the corporate self-assessment duty and confirm it was not intended to remove the functions of the Overview & Scrutiny Committees. Councillor Ibbotson asked that the verbal clarification given by the Chief Officer also be included in the paragraph for confirmation.

The recommendations in the report were moved by Councillor Ted Palmer and seconded by Councillor Steve Copple.