Agenda item

To submit the report of the Monitoring Officer  (to follow).

Submitted - the report of the Monitoring Officer inviting the committee to consider the contents of the Protocol for Virtual Meetings, prepared in response to introducing the Local Authority Regulations (Coronavirus) (Meetings) (Wales) 2020 on 22 April 2020.

During the discussion the following matters were raised:

·         Concern was expressed that some community councils were not convening as they should, and it had been given to understand that there were examples of community councils putting their own rules to one side, e.g., by allowing a member, who had declared an interest, to remain at the meeting.  It was noted that the protocol should be sent to town and community councils underlining the situation in terms of declaring interest and how to move members to the waiting room etc.  In response, it was explained that the protocol was already available to the public, as it was on the agenda for this meeting.  It was also explained, that although Zoom made it possible to move people to a waiting room etc., that not all bodies used Zoom.  Nevertheless, it was noted that the officers would be happy to provide good practice guidelines for the town and community councils, who met the spirit of the requirements, if not the letter.

·         It was suggested that matters where there was an interest could be moved to the end of the agenda as a practical way of solving the problem, as this then meant that any member with an interest would be able to leave the meeting altogether. 

·         It was noted that there was a need for town and community council members to have the opportunity to practise using the technology and to begin to return to the routine of holding regular meetings.  Also, it was possible that clerks might require more than the protocol, and that a step by step guide in the form of screenshots explaining how to set up a meeting, contribute, put people on mute, leave etc. would help with their confidence. 

·         It was suggested that the nature of the matters that the Standards Committee was required to consider could change if the procedure for holding town and community council meetings virtually were to continue in future.  In response, it was explained that the discussion was ongoing in terms of holding on to the best elements of the existing regulations and building them into more permanent regulations in the Local Government Bill.  It was also noted that virtual meetings made it easier for people who were working, etc., to participate.

·         The Democracy Service was thanked for its work in facilitating members' access to meetings, and the Council was thanked for providing Zoom as a way of continuing to hold bilingual meetings.

·         It was asked whether any unforeseen problems had arisen. In response, it was noted that the meetings had gone very well in terms of the procedure in general, and that everyone was working well together.  It was not possible to address every scenario, but rather to respond to whatever came up, as it occurred.  Some technical problems had arisen in terms of access to meetings, but the guidelines sought to resolve this, and there had also been some broadband problems. It was further noted, as the regulations did not require people to be visible during meetings, it was not possible to verify who exactly was in attendance at any time, and if their name appeared on the list of participants then it was assumed that it was that person who was present.  Also, as it was difficult to see who was present, members were asked to say when they were leaving the meeting.

·         It was noted that the protocol had worked well, and the members were receiving enough training before attending the formal meetings.

·         It was noted that virtual meetings were more tiring than meetings held in meeting rooms, and it was important to take a break during long meetings.