Agenda and minutes

Members and officers must declare any pecuniary or personalinterest in any business on the agenda. They should also make declarations at any stage such an interest becomes apparent during the meeting. Consideration should be given to leaving the meeting if the nature of the interest warrants it. If in doubt please contact Democratic Services before the meeting.

9.1        None declared.

The Committee is asked to agree the minutes of the meeting held on 26 June 2023 (cream paper).

10.1     Resolved – That the minutes of the meeting held on 26 June 2023 be approved as a correct record and that they be signed by the Chairman.

Report by the Director of Law and Assurance.

Each February, the County Council considers its overarching strategy document and budget for the forthcoming year. This item is always a major and lengthy debate. Following a request at its last meeting, the Committee is asked to consider options for managing these annual debates.

11.1     Following a request at its last meeting, the Committee considered a report by the Director of Law and Assurance on options for managing the annual County Council debate on the Council Plan and budget (copy appended to the signed minutes).

11.2     The Director commented that the first recommendation was a specific proposal to change what is included in the business for the February budget meeting, on the basis of recent practice, so that non-urgent matters will not normally be included in the agenda. The second asks the Committee to consider whether to adopt any of the options in paragraph 2.2 of the report for the overall length of the session or the length of speeches.

11.3     Cllr Oxlade commented that overall the budget meetings are well run but it is hard to make time for everyone who wishes to speak, particularly if the introduction to the debate is very long. He therefore put forward a proposal for the introduction of time limits for speeches at Council budget meetings, as set out below. The proposal was seconded by Cllr Lord.

·         30 minutes for the proposer with 15 minutes for a right of reply

·         10 minutes for the mover of an amendment and the seconder

·         7 minutes for other members

·         10 minutes for any summing up

11.4     Cllr Waight was of the view that, if members are given a limit of time, some will use all of that time which, with the usual numbers of speakers, could lengthen the meeting rather than shorten it. Without set time limits he felt it is easier for the Chairman to exercise judgment without members having cause to object.

11.5     The Leader expressed his support for taking just the budget item at the February Council meeting. He felt that the current arrangements, as set out in paragraph 2.2(c), allow the Chairman to step in and ask a speaker to keep to relevant matters. It should be for the Chairman and the Leader to encourage cabinet members to make sure their contributions are as succinct and relevant as possible. If time limits were to be applied and the Chairman then attempted to manage the length of speeches over and above those limits, it could lead to complaints from members about their time being cut short. The budget Council day is the most significant event in the Council calendar and all members should be given the opportunity to have their say.

11.6     Whilst accepting that the Question Time item had not been taken at the budget meeting in recent years, Cllr Lord expressed concern over its removal from the budget meeting agenda. She proposed that it should be left on the agenda and taken if time allowed. This would also avoid a long gap between reporting on Cabinet business should the following Council meeting be cancelled as happened in 2023. The proposal was seconded by Cllr O’Kelly.

11.7     In terms of the options set out in paragraph 2.2 of the report, Cllr Lord expressed support for option  ...  view the full minutes text for item 11.

Report by the Director of Law and Assurance.

The Committee is asked to consider endorsing minor updates to the core membership of the Corporate Parenting Panel for recommendation to the County Council.

12.1     The Committee considered a report by the Director of Law and Assurance on minor updates to the terms of reference and to the core membership of the Corporate Parenting Panel for recommendation to the County Council (copy appended to the signed minutes).

12.2     Members were reassured that, although there will be no specific requirement for a Foster Panel member to be a member of the CPP, there will be wider liaison with all the Foster Panel members who will also be invited to attend meetings of the CPP for relevant items.

12.3     The Committee noted some minor text corrections which would be made before the report was submitted to full Council for approval.

12.4     Resolved – That the revised terms of reference for the Corporate Parenting Panel, as set out in the Constitution (attached at Appendix 1 to the report, subject to the minor corrections), be endorsed for recommendation to the County Council for approval.

The Committee is asked to consider a number of changes to the terms of reference of the Regulation, Audit and Accounts Committee (RAAC) for recommendation to the County Council. The changes include the formalisation of a referral process, changes to ensure the terms of reference more accurately reflect RAAC’s duties and an increase in the number of independent co-opted members.

13.1     The Committee considered a report by the Director of Law and Assurance on a number of changes to the terms of reference of the Regulation, Audit and Accounts Committee (RAAC) for recommendation to the County Council (copy appended to the signed minutes). The changes included the formalisation of a referral process, changes to ensure the terms of reference more accurately reflect RAAC’s duties and an increase in the number of independent co-opted members.

13.2     Resolved – That the proposed changes to the terms of reference of the Regulation, Audit and Accounts Committee, as set out at Appendix 1 to the report, be endorsed for recommendation to the County Council.

Report by the Director of Law and Assurance.

The Committee is asked to review the effectiveness of the Executive-Scrutiny Protocol which was introduced in September 2022. The aim of the Protocol is to enhance scrutiny by describing the relationship between scrutiny and the Executive (the Cabinet) and providing a framework for how they may work together most effectively.

14.1     The Committee considered a report by the Director of Law and Assurance on a review of the effectiveness of the Executive-Scrutiny Protocol which was introduced in September 2022 (copy appended to the signed minutes). The aim of the Protocol is to enhance scrutiny by describing the relationship between scrutiny and the Executive (the Cabinet) and providing a framework for how they may work together most effectively.

14.2     The Head of Democratic Services reminded members that the development of the Protocol had been via a member workshop and consideration by both the Performance and Finance Scrutiny Committee and the Governance Committee. Cabinet members and scrutiny chairmen are happy with the way the Protocol is working as are the officer leadership team. The Protocol was a practical approach to scrutiny, aiming to strike a balance between decision preview and monitoring. It had led to more consistent cabinet member input into the scrutiny process. The feedback from the officer Leadership Group in paragraph 4.3 of the report which related to scrutiny would be forwarded to scrutiny committee chairmen for consideration.

14.3     Members welcomed the report and felt that the Protocol was a very useful document and had been well received. In terms of the response from senior officers and the final bullet point of paragraph 4.3, a note of caution was raised that, although there was a value in pre-meetings, care needed to be taken to ensure that important issues were still fully scrutinised in public. Concern was also raised that, when scrutiny committees run out of time to fully consider questions, there is a tendency to deal with them outside the meeting and it was suggested consideration should be given to ways of making that part of the public record.

14.4     The Head of Democratic Services agreed that informal work can be useful but stressed it is important for Business Planning Groups to concentrate on overseeing the capacity and priority of the work of scrutiny committees and not stray into scrutiny which should be carried out in public.

14.5     The Leader agreed that it is important to make sure pre-meetings do not stray into debating issues but felt that they are important in helping members to prepare for meetings and be fully briefed. Pre-meetings also allow preparation of the key questions and the prioritisation of issues to be explored to make best use of the time of the public debate.

14.6     The Chairman suggested it might be helpful for the Member Development Group to look at how best to help new members prepare for meetings and consider if any specific training is required. There was support for the suggestion in the sixth bullet point of paragraph 4.3 that further training might be helpful for co-opted members.

14.7     Cllr Lord suggested that the Governance Committee should carry out a further review of the Protocol in a year’s time to see if any issues need to be addressed. The Head of Democratic Services suggested that, as the Performance and Finance Scrutiny Committee  ...  view the full minutes text for item 14.

The next meeting of the Committee will be held at 2.15 pm on 6 November 2023 at County Hall, Chichester.

Members are invited to discuss and agree plans for the business of future meetings of the Committee. Planned agenda items include:

·         Update to Financial Regulations

·         Staff Appeals Panel Annual Report

·         Report of the Member Development Group

15.1     The next meeting of the Committee will be held at 2.15 pm on 6 November 2023 at County Hall, Chichester. Planned agenda items include:

·        Update to Financial Regulations

·        Staff Appeals Panel Annual Report

·        Report of the Member Development Group