Issue - items at meetings - Constitutional Matters - Policy & Resources Committee

Report of the Head of Legal & Democratic Services (copy attached).

2.1         The Committee considered a report of the Head of Legal & Democratic Services in relation to Constitutional Matters. The report sought to provide the Committee with information on the terms of reference of the Committee, and asked the Committee to establish an Urgency Sub-Committee and the Personnel Appeals Panel.

2.2         Councillor G. Theobald noted that the Conservative Group had a working practice to abstain from serving on Personnel Appeals Panels involving grievances; they would however sit on dismissal panels. The Head of Law clarified that any change to the Terms of Reference of the Panel, to remove the function to hear grievances, would require a resolution of the Committee.

2.3         In response to Councillor Wealls the Head of Law confirmed that where powers of Committees overlapped, particularly in the case of the new Neighbourhood, Communities & Equalities Committee, each Committee would have concurrent delegations. Officers would ensure there was consistency in terms of the information that went to each Committee, and it was highlighted there was no legal requirement that required powers to Committees to be exclusive.

2.4         The Chair then put the recommendations to the vote.

2.5         RESOLVED:

1)        That the Committee’s terms of reference, as set out in Appendix A to this report, be noted.

2)        That the Committee establish an Urgency Sub-Committee (the membership of such Urgency Sub-Committee shall consist of the Chair of the Committee, and two other Members nominated by the Group Leader or Leaders as appropriate to meet the requirements for the allocation of seats between political groups) to exercise its powers in relation to matters of urgency, on which it is necessary to make a decision before the next ordinary meeting of the Committee be approved.

3)        That the Committee establish the Personnel Appeals Panel (the membership of such Personnel Appeals Panel shall consist of a minimum of three and maximum of four Members from the pool of trained Members, any Member will be able to sit on an appeals panel and substitute for any designated member of the Panel) to deal with appeals in accordance with agreed personnel procedures, the Terms of Reference are set out at Appendix B to this report.

4)        That the Committee note Full Council agreed to disapply the proportionality rules so far as the Personnel Appeals Panel is concerned in accordance with the Local Government (Committees and Political Groups) Regulations 1990.