Venue: Ystafell Gwyrfai - Council Offices
Contact: Eirian Roberts 01286 679018
No. | Item |
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APOLOGIES To receive any apologies for absence. Minutes: Apology:- Councillor Lesley Day |
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DECLARATION OF PERSONAL INTEREST To receive any declaration of personal interest. Minutes: No declarations of interest were received from any members present.
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URGENT ITEMS To note any items that
are a matter of urgency in the view of the Chairman for consideration. |
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The Chairman shall
propose that the minutes of the previous meeting of this committee held on 29 June, 2015 be signed as a true record (attached). Minutes: The Chair signed the minutes of the previous
meeting of this committee held on 29 June, 2015 as a true record. |
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THE COMMITTEE'S MEMBERSHIP To submit the verbal report of the Monitoring Officer. Minutes: With
sadness, the Monitoring Officer noted that medical confirmation was awaited
regarding Linda Byrne's situation and that it therefore appeared that there
would be an empty seat on the committee. He would make a statement and arrange
for that to be formalised in the coming weeks and he would advertise for a new
independent member on the committee in due course. |
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APPLICATIONS FOR DISPENSATIONS PDF 6 KB To submit the report of the Monitoring Officer (attached). Additional documents: Minutes: Submitted – the report of the Monitoring Officer requesting that the
committee considered and made a decision on two applications for dispensation
from members of Bethesda Community Council in relation to discussions regarding
the transfer of local halls from the ownership of Gwynedd Council to the
ownership of the Community Council (or other community body). Details were given on the applications individually, namely:- ·
An application from Councillor
Godfrey Northam, who was the Committee Chairman of Canolfan Rachub and a member of
the Committee of Canolfan Cefnfaes,
for permission to speak only when the matter would be discussed. ·
An application from Councillor
Walter Watkin Williams, who was a member of the Committee of Canolfan Cefnfaes, for permission
to speak and vote when the matter would be discussed. The Monitoring Officer noted further:- ·
That neither of the members had been
appointed on the committees in question by the Community Council. ·
That the Standards Committee was
entitled to grant a dispensation provided that the situation fell under one (or
more) of the grounds listed in the relevant regulations and that there was no
reason to believe that the two applications in question did not meet the final
ground on the list, namely "the
business relates to the finances or property of a voluntary organisation of
whose management committee or board I am a member and I have no other
interest.” ·
That the fact that the applications
met this ground did not mean that the dispensation would be granted automatically
and the committee had to consider whether or not there was a public interest
from allowing the members to participate, despite the fact that the Code of
Conduct made provisions that they should not be able to do so. ·
That it was unclear in both cases why
these two specific members needed to speak on the matter. Councillor Northam felt that he had to participate in order to ensure
that the Community Council fully understood the situation regarding the village
hall; however, someone else could explain that. Councillor Northam
had also noted on his form that 4 out of 13 members on the Community Council
had to declare an interest in the matter; however, that would not affect
quorum. ·
Should these applications be
approved then the committee would have to approve other similar applications in
the future, and without any information regarding why the need to speak
justified the granting of a dispensation, it was difficult to know what
precedent was being created. The members agreed with the observations of the Monitoring Officer and
noted that the information was patchy and vague and that the committee was
unaware of the exact reasons why these applications had been submitted. It was noted further that this committee could be inundated with similar applications as many community councils were currently discussing the transfer of assets and it was suggested that it would be beneficial to prepare and advice note for the clerks that provided an outline of the expectations. The Monitoring Officer replied that ... view the full minutes text for item 6. |
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GWYNEDD COUNCIL'S GOVERNANCE FRAMEWORK PDF 115 KB To submit the report of the Senior Manager Revenues and Risk (attached). Additional documents: Minutes: Submitted - the report of the Senior Manager - Revenue and Risk
explaining:- ·
How the Governance Framework had
been developed; ·
The procedure for reviewing the
framework and reporting on the results; ·
The role of the Standards Committee
within the framework. Members raised questions regarding the Integrated Well-being, Health and
Social Care Act. The Senior Manager responded to those questions and explained
that the new requirements introduced by the Act would be considered in the
context of the Governance Framework, but that it was not expected for many new
elements to be added as the Framework had been designed to encompass all
Council activities. RESOLVED to approve
the report and welcome the progress in the Standards Committee’s efficiency
score. |
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ALLEGATIONS AGAINST MEMBERS PDF 7 KB To submit the report of the Monitoring Officer (attached). Minutes: Submitted for information – the report of the Monitoring Officer on
formal complaints made against members. Further to the report, the Senior Solicitor noted that the Ombudsman had
now decided not to investigate complaint 2.3 of Case 201503255, and therefore,
he was unaware of any complaint made against Gwynedd councillors that was
currently open. RESOLVED to note the
report. |
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THE OMBUDSMAN'S ANNUAL REPORT PDF 5 KB To submit the report of the Monitoring Officer (attached). Additional documents: Minutes: Submitted for information – the report of the Monitoring Officer
appending a copy of those parts of the Ombudsman's Annual Report 2014-15
relevant to code of conduct complaints. The Ombudsman’s intention to take a firmer stance in future when
referring back ‘lowest level’ complaints to monitoring officers to be dealt
with locally, was welcomed. RESOLVED to note the
report. |
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OBSERVING MEETINGS To receive verbal feedback from the independent members following observation of Gwynedd Council/town and community council meetings. Minutes: Independent members were invited to provide feedback following their
experience of observing the meetings of Gwynedd Council or town/community
councils. A member noted that no list of community council meetings was available
anywhere. The Senior Solicitor replied and noted that the Council had a list of
the community councils’ clerks and that they had to be contacted individually.
It was also suggested that the members could observe the webcasts of Gwynedd
Council meetings. Miss Margaret Jones submitted feedback after she had observed a meeting
of Llanystumdwy Community Council and she noted:- ·
That the Community Council met in
various locations, which was to be welcomed in terms of being inclusive and
considerate of the entire community. ·
That there was a good range of
people from the community in attendance, with the age-range between 20 and 80,
and that women were present. ·
That the clerk was very effective,
explained everything and followed everything up. ·
That the meeting was organised and
very comprehensive. ·
That the agenda was varied, with 12
items, including one exempt item, being considered. ·
That the clerk had informed members
about the training provided for them by the Monitoring Officer. ·
That the Community Council reported
monthly to the papur bro and that this was a good way of
raising awareness of the Community Council's activity. Some associated matters were discussed, namely:- ·
The role of a member who witnessed a
breach in the Code of Conduct. The Monitoring Officer noted that a member could
ask the clerk to give guidance on the matter or contact him as the Standards
Committee had a duty to promote high standards of conduct in this Council and
in the community and town councils. However, it was emphasised that it
was a member’s own responsibility to adhere to the Code. ·
Public access to Council meetings.
The Monitoring Officer replied noting that there was no procedure in place for
the purpose of preventing public access; however, both practically and in terms
of health and safety, it was not possible to have a situation where the
Council's buildings were completely open. |