Agenda, decisions and minutes

To receive any Declarations and advise Members accordingly.

None.

None.

To receive details of the Chair’s review of the year.

As outgoing Chair, Councillor Brian Lloyd presented his review of the year during which he and his Consort had been proud to represent Flintshire at a number of worthy civic events such as the North Wales Armed Forces Day and Pride of Flintshire Awards.  On Flintshire Business Week, he expressed his thanks to Councillor Derek Butler, Kate Catherall and Lord Barry Jones for their assistance.

He thanked all those who had helped in supporting him in raising almost £14K for his three chosen charities, Macmillan Cancer Support, Claire House Children’s Hospice and Barnardos Cymru.

In summing up, he extended thanks to the Chief Executive and Chief Officer Team, Leader and Council employees for their support and to Members for electing him as Chairman.  He expressed his gratitude to the Civic Member Services team for their help during the year and his two Chaplains.  He went on to thank the Vice-Chairman for his support, wishing him well in his new role, and paid tribute to his wife Jean for her support as Consort, a role which she had greatly enjoyed.

During the meeting, a number of Members paid tribute to the outgoing Chair for his work during the year and fundraising achievements.

That Councillor Paul Cunningham be elected Chairman of the Council for the municipal year 2018/19.

It was proposed by Councillor Ian Roberts and seconded by Councillor Michelle Perfect that Councillor Paul Cunningham be elected Chairman of the Council for the municipal year 2018/19.

RESOLVED:

That Councillor Paul Cunningham be elected Chairman of the Council for the municipal year 2018/19.

Councillor Cunningham was invested with the Chain of Office by the retiring Chairman and signed his Declaration of Acceptance of Office in the presence of the Chief Executive.

(At this point Councillor Cunningham chaired the remainder of the meeting.)

The Chairman then presented Councillor Brian Lloyd with his retiring Chairman’s Badge of Office and his Consort Mrs Jean Lloyd with her retiring Badge of Office.

The Chairman expressed his thanks to Councillor Lloyd as the outgoing Chair and to Members for their support in electing him as Chairman for the year ahead.

That Councillor Marion Bateman be appointed as Vice-Chair of the Council for the municipal year 2018/19.

It was proposed by Councillor Carol Ellis and seconded by Councillor Rita Johnson that Councillor Marion Bateman be appointed Vice-Chair for the municipal year 2018/19.

RESOLVED:

That Councillor Marion Bateman be appointed as Vice-Chair of the Council for the municipal year 2018/19.

Councillor Bateman was invested with the Chain of Office by the Chairman and signed the Declaration of Acceptance of Office in the presence of the Chief Executive.

That Councillor Aaron Shotton be appointed Leader of the Council for the municipal year 2018/19.

It was proposed by Councillor Tony Sharps and seconded by Councillor Ray Hughes that Councillor Aaron Shotton be appointed Leader of the Council for the municipal year 2018/19.   In support of his proposal, Councillor Sharps acknowledged the difficult decisions which had been made during the current financial climate with strong leadership.

RESOLVED:

That Councillor Aaron Shotton be appointed Leader of the Council for the municipal year 2018/19.

That the choice of Councillors to serve on the Cabinet and their portfolios detailed below, be noted.

Councillor Aaron Shotton thanked Members for their support in appointing him as Leader of the Council for the next 12 months.  He welcomed the united and pragmatic stance taken by the Council during the year and hoped that this would continue in meeting future challenges.

In accordance with the Constitution, Councillor Aaron Shotton set out his choice of Councillors to serve on the Cabinet.

RESOLVED:

That the choice of Councillors to serve on the Cabinet and their portfolios detailed below, be noted.

That the proposals for the Theatr Clwyd Board of Governors, as outlined in the report, be approved and recommended to Cabinet.

The Chief Executive introduced the report on the composition of the new Board of Governors which comprised seven elected Member and six external appointments, prior to seeking formal approval by Cabinet.

He thanked the Group Leaders for their co-operation on the nomination of two elected Members for the two vacancies to serve alongside the five elected Members who had chosen to remain on the Board.  The full membership, including the six external co-optees with respective skills who had been recruited through the process, would be reported to Cabinet.

He thanked the Chief Officer (Strategic Programmes) and the Theatre’s Artistic Director and Executive Director for their roles in strengthening the business model.

RESOLVED:

That the proposals for the Theatr Clwyd Board of Governors, as outlined in the report, be approved and recommended to Cabinet.

(a)       That the Staged Budget Process as set out in the amended appendix to the report to the Constitution & Democratic Services Committee be approved for Budget Consultation purposes; and

(b)       That section 16 of the Constitution be amended to the suggested wording set out in the new appendix, with the revised wording for Requirement 19 on the webcasting of meetings.

The Democratic Services Manager presented recommendations from the Constitution & Democratic Services Committee meeting on 26 April 2018 following the review of the budget consultation process.

Member feedback generated from the consultation had been developed into a series of requirements as set out in the report alongside responses.  A Staged Budget Process flowchart, using the 2018/19 approach, could be adapted for future use and helped to illustrate the complexities of the process and consultation requirements.

Due to the timing of the Constitution & Democratic Services Committee meeting, the Democratic Services Manager circulated a revised report with changes agreed at that meeting:

The amended resolutions to approve the revised report and form of words for insertion into section 16 of the Constitution were agreed by Members.

Following a query from Councillor Mackie, it was clarified that requirement 19 would be taken out of the report as the use of call-in would be considered by the Constitution & Democratic Services Committee in June.

The Chief Executive commented on the inclusivity of consultation on the budget process and progress on the budget for 2019/20.

Councillor Richard Jones referred to requirement 18 on the conclusion of proposals which had been through the budget process and requested that ‘unless new information comes to light’ be inserted to take account of any changes.  On the need for confidentiality on information sharing, the Chief Executive gave examples of reporting stages between committees and referred to the working protocol which could be developed.  The importance of call-in was noted and further discussion would be required on this.  In response to further comments, oversight of the entire budget was the responsibility of the Corporate Resources Overview & Scrutiny Committee which would consider a report on the Integrated Assessment Tool.  Officers would give further consideration to the need for a clear understanding of consequences of budget decisions.

In response to Councillor Jones’ suggestion to webcast every committee meeting with an impact on budget discussions, the Chief Officer (Governance) explained the limitations on webcasting equipment.  The Chief Executive said that agreement to webcast the all-Member budget meeting of Corporate Resources Overview & Scrutiny Committee would be extended to other meetings of that Committee convened as part of the staged budget process, whether all Members were invited or not.  Requirement 19 would be amended to reflect this, noting that the annual budget meeting ‘will’ be webcast (rather than ‘could’).

Councillor Heesom also raised concerns about requirement 18 on the conclusion of proposals and said that further discussion should not be prohibited which would hinder the democratic  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

That the guidelines be approved for adoption in to the Constitution.

The Chief Officer (Governance) introduced a report on a revised set of principles on sharing information within the Council to enable Members and officers to fulfil their roles.  He explained the importance of understanding the principles which had been developed by a working group and included example scenarios from different perspectives.  Some minor refinements had been incorporated following consultation with officers and Members.

In moving the recommendations, Councillor Heesom spoke in support of the report.

As Chair of the Constitution & Democratic Services Committee, Councillor Rita Johnson proposed that the principles be approved for adoption within the Constitution.

Councillor Richard Jones gave an example where a resident could give written consent for their local Member to discuss their personal data with Council officers.  The Chief Officer said that the examples appended to the guidelines reflected this scenario and other examples where personal information should be protected.

Councillor Marion Bateman thanked members and officers of the working group which she had chaired.

RESOLVED:

That the guidelines be approved for adoption in to the Constitution.

Appointment of Committees

That the Council appoint the following committees:

Audit Committee

Clwyd Pension Fund Committee

Constitution and Democratic Services Committee

Joint Governance Committee (for Pensions)

Licensing Committee

Planning Committee

Standards Committee

The six Overview & Scrutiny Committees listed in paragraph 1.01

Determination of the size of committees

That the size of each Committee be as set out in paragraph 1.03 of the report.

Terms of Reference of committees and Pension Delegations

That the terms of reference for each committee in Part 2 of the Constitution be approved).

Political Balance

(a)       That the seats be allocated in accordance with political balances (and the rules on membership of the Planning Committee); and

(b)       That the Constitution be amended so that in the event of two Members from a multiple Member ward being nominated to the Planning Committee, then the seat be allocated:

·         In the first instance, by agreement between the two respective Group Leaders;

·         In the event that agreement is not possible, the Chief Officer to draw lots from the nominations to decide which councillor can take up the seat.

Appointment of Chairs of Standing Committees

(a)       That the chair of the following Committees be appointed (noting any restrictions on eligibility):

·             Clwyd Pension Fund Committee - Councillor Dave Hughes

·             Constitution & Democratic Services Committee - Councillor Rita Johnson

·             Licensing Committee - Councillor Sharps

·             Planning Committee - Councillor Wisinger

(b)       That the following groups be allocated the chair of the Overview & Scrutiny Committees as outlined:

            Community and Enterprise           -             Labour Group

            Education and Youth                     -             Labour Group

            Corporate Resources                     -             Conservative Group

            Environment                                    -             New Independents Group

            Organisational Change                 -             Independent Alliance Group

            Social & Health Care                      -             Independent Group

Local Choice Functions

That the existing Local Choice functions as set out in the Constitution be confirmed.

Nominations to Internal Bodies

That the make-up of the Appointments Committee be approved.

Standards Committee

That the composition and membership of the Standards Committee be noted.

Appointments to Outside Bodies

That Council notes that nominees to Outside Bodies have been appointed for the whole council term and the Chief Executive’s power to vary those nominations (in consultation with Group Leaders).

The Council considered the report of the Chief Officer (Governance) which dealt with matters that required decision at the Annual Meeting of the County Council in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 1.1 (vii) - (xiv).  The report was split into sections, each one dealing with one decision that needed to be made and the relevant issues for consideration.  Each section was considered and voted on in turn.

(A)       Appointment of Committees

The Chief Officer (Governance) explained that the Constitution provided for the appointment of the following: Audit Committee; Clwyd Pension Fund Committee; Constitution & Democratic Services Committee; Joint Governance Committee (for Pensions); Licensing Committee; Planning Committee; Standards Committee and six Overview and Scrutiny Committees.

Councillor Attridge moved approval of the recommendations as outlined in the report which were seconded by Councillor Bithell.

RESOLVED:

That the Council appoint the following committees:

Audit Committee

Clwyd Pension Fund Committee

Constitution and Democratic Services Committee

Joint Governance Committee (for Pensions)

Licensing Committee

Planning Committee

Standards Committee

The six Overview & Scrutiny Committees listed in paragraph 1.01

(B)       Determination of the size of Committees

The Chief Officer (Governance) explained that the size of each committee must be decided at the Annual Meeting.  Details of the provision for the size of the Committees were outlined in the report.

Councillor Attridge moved approval of the recommendations as outlined in the report which was seconded by Councillor Bithell.

RESOLVED:

That the size of each Committee be as set out in paragraph 1.03 of the report.

(C)       Terms of Reference of Committees and Pension Delegations

The Chief Officer (Governance) explained that the Annual Meeting was required to decide the terms of reference of the committees that it appointed.  The existing terms of reference of the existing committees were as set out in Part 2 of the Constitution.

Councillor Attridge moved approval of the recommendations as outlined in the report which was seconded by Councillor Bithell.

RESOLVED:

That the terms of reference for each committee in Part 2 of the Constitution be approved).

(D)       Political Balance

The Chief Officer (Governance) explained that at, or as soon as practicable after the Annual Meeting, the Council was required to decide the allocation of seats to political groups in accordance with the Political Balance Rules contained in the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 and the Local Government (Committees and Political Groups) Regulations 1990 as amended.

There were 157 seats in total for Councillors across all of the committees based on the current group membership and the entitlement of each group to seats was shown in paragraph 1.12 of the report.  As there had been no change in group sizes, the current political balance seat calculations were appended for consideration as one of a number of possible solutions.

Councillor Peers referred to Planning Committee membership restrictions on multiple member wards as set out in the legislation and the mechanism agreed by the Council to firstly resolve these nominations through negotiation between respective Group Leaders.  If this could not be  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.

That the draft schedule of meetings for 2018/19 be approved.

The Council received the report on the schedule of meetings for 2018/19.

RESOLVED:

That the draft schedule of meetings for 2018/19 be approved.

There was one member of the press and 12 members of the public in attendance.