Agenda item

This report provides the Governance and Audit Committee with an opportunity to consider proposed amendments to the Council’s Constitution and make any recommendations to Full Council for approval.

The Cabinet Member for Corporate Governance and Licensing presented the report to the Committee. He withdrew recommendation 2 as outlined within the report as there was already a mechanism within the Constitution for a Committee to deal with these policies. 

The Committee was only dealing with the recommendations contained at recommendation 1 which was split into three: 

a)    Provision of a public open forum at meetings of Cabinet.

b)    Provision of Member questions at meetings of Cabinet.

c)     Provision of Member questions at the annual meeting of Full Council.

The recommendations introduced further measures to allow Members and the public to question the Leader and the Cabinet in a formal meeting.  Currently there was a public forum at the beginning of Full Council to allow the public to ask questions.  However, due to the length of recent Full Council meetings Members open questions, where there was an opportunity to ask questions of the Leader and Cabinet Members, had not been able to take place.  The Cabinet Member for Corporate Governance and Licensing felt that it was an important right of Members to be able to question the Leader and other Cabinet Members and ask questions about their communities and also the business of the Cabinet.

During the last few months, the Leader had given Members the opportunity to ask questions at Cabinet meetings and it was now proposed that this became a right of Members to be able to ask questions at Cabinet meetings and that this be added to the Constitution.  It was also proposed that this right be extended to the public and that a public open forum be held at the start of Cabinet meetings, the rules of which would be included within the Constitution and follow the rules already in place for public speaking at other meetings.

A further proposal was that the Constitution was amended to allow for Members Open questions to be included on the agenda at the Council AGM. 

Members welcomed the proposals put forward.  Comments were made in respect of when questions could be asked and it was stated that the Members Open Questions proposed at Cabinet was in addition to Members being able to ask questions on particular agenda items.  Further comments were made in respect of the submission of written questions and timeframes and it was stated that having questions in advance, allowed for a more informative response to be given.  The Leader stated that questions could be asked of the Leader and Cabinet at any time, not just in the public domain via the Council’s meetings.

Further comments were made about time and the length of Full Council meetings and the timing of Lincolnshire County Council meetings.  It was commented that the agenda for Full Council meetings at South Kesteven were often “heavy” however, the length of time was not helped by some Members taking too long to make their point on an agenda item.  Questions in advance of any meeting were always better as a more informative response could be given.

The recommendations as outlined within the report at recommendation 1 were proposed, seconded and unanimously AGREED.

Decision

That the Governance and Audit Committee recommends the followingconstitutional amendments to Full Council:

a) Provision of a public open forum at meetings of Cabinet.

b) Provision of Member questions at meetings of Cabinet.

c) Provision of Member questions at the annual meeting of Full Council