Decision status: Recommendations Approved
Is Key decision?: No
Is subject to call in?: No
The Committee received for information a report which fulfilled the Council’s commitment to complying with one of the recommendations of the Committee on Standards in Public Life to report annually on complaints about councillors.
Members noted that dealing with issues relating to Standards was one of the Committee’s key functions of governance.
Members were assured that data was anonymised prior to publication on the Council’s website unless a Hearing had directed that it was in the public interest to name the councillor against whom a complaint had been made and it had been found that a breach had taken place.
The Committee was advised that five complaints had been received for 2023/24. Of these, two were closed after initial consideration by the Monitoring Officer, three were still open and in progress. Officers confirmed that the case which the Committee had agreed previously to refer for investigation was at the draft report stage and if need be would return to them for further consideration. Officers reported that an informal resolution was the hoped for outcome of another open complaint and the third was at the assessment stage in consultation with the Council’s appointed Independent person.
Members were pleased that there had been no hearings in 2023/24 and no outstanding cases from 2022/23.
Officers reported a compliment from 2023/24 from one person about two councillors for their assistance with a housing related issue. It was thought that councillors did tend to underreport positive feedback from the public.
With regard to the Independent Person, Members were advised that he continued to play an invaluable role assisting colleagues in Legal considering complaints. Officers confirmed in the report that it was planned to recruit a second independent person in the autumn.
The report was duly noted.
Report author: Clare Pinnock
Publication date: 02/08/2024
Date of decision: 17/07/2024
Decided at meeting: 17/07/2024 - Standards and Audit Committee
Accompanying Documents: