Issue - meetings

That it be recommended to Cabinet:

(a)       To commit to the Partnership and the Project by adopting, along with the other four councils, the principles in the 2^nd Inter-Authority Agreement which reflect the key terms of the Project Agreement to be entered into by the Lead Council with the Preferred Bidder on Contract Award;

(b)       To delegate authority to the Lead Chief Executive to:

§         finalise the 2nd Inter-Authority Agreement for signing by the constituent authorities;

§         circulate the finalised agreement to the Monitoring Officers of all five Authorities;

§         take into account the views of all constituent Authorities and to refer back to the Joint Committee for approval any material departures from the agreed principles.

(c)        To agree to sign the 2nd Inter-Authority Agreement once it has been finalised in accordance with the above procedure.

The Chief Executive presented the report to invite comments on the key principles for the second Inter-Authority Agreement for adoption by all constituent Authorities.  The main points of the presentation were:

§         Purpose of the Agreement

§         Coverage of the Second Agreement

§         The underpinning principles of the Second Agreement

§         Key Provisions of the Agreement

The Chief Executive said that the Agreement would become a legally binding document between the five Councils and was based on the principles of the first Agreement adopted for the procurement phase.  He highlighted the table in the report summarising significant issues discussed by the Joint Committee including additional recommendations.

As the Monitoring Officer, the Head of Legal & Democratic Services spoke of work currently being undertaken to finalise the draft Agreement and the need for each Council’s Monitoring Officer to be satisfied with its terms and conditions before adoption.

The Chairman said that the detail had been reported previously to the Committee and that this report was seeking comments to Cabinet.

As Section 151 officer, the Head of Finance gave assurance that the draft Agreement was also being considered from a financial viewpoint and that this work would also feed into the finalisation of the Agreement.

The recommendations in the report were proposed and seconded.  On being put to the vote, these were carried with ten votes for and one against.

In response to Councillor Ian Dunbar’s request that Members be given more time to consider the detailed report, the Chief Executive agreed that this was a complex topic and asked that any concerns be raised with him directly.  He went on to say that it had been clarified how the risks would be managed and that as mentioned, the refinements to the draft Agreement were being made.  Councillor Dunbar indicated that he was satisfied with this response.

RESOLVED:

That it be recommended to Cabinet:

(a)       To commit to the Partnership and the Project by adopting, along with the other four councils, the principles in the 2^nd Inter-Authority Agreement which reflect the key terms of the Project Agreement to be entered into by the Lead Council with the Preferred Bidder on Contract Award;

(b)       To delegate authority to the Lead Chief Executive to:

§         finalise the 2nd Inter-Authority Agreement for signing by the constituent authorities;

§         circulate the finalised agreement to the Monitoring Officers of all five Authorities;

§         take into account the views of all constituent Authorities and to refer back to the Joint Committee for approval any material departures from the agreed principles.

(c)        To agree to sign the 2nd Inter-Authority Agreement once it has been finalised in accordance with the above procedure.