Agenda and minutes

The Minutes of the meeting held on 8 April 2010 were taken as read and signed as a correct record.

RESOLVED:  That the Council be recommended

1)     to appoint Councillor Polhill as Leader of the Council for the 2010/2011 Municipal Year; and

2)     to appoint Councillor Wharton as Deputy Leader of the Council for the 2010/2011 Municipal Year.

The Board considered a report of the Strategic Director – Resources regarding appointments to the Council’s Boards, Committees, Appeals Panel, Working Party and Scrutiny Co-ordinator and the appointment of a Police Authority non voting co-optee to the Safer Halton Policy and Performance Board for the forthcoming Municipal Year. A list of Committee Memberships was tabled at the meeting for information.

            RESOLVED: That Council be recommended to

1)     agree the appointments to the Council’s Boards, Committees, Appeals Panel and Working Party for the 2010/2011 Municipal Year with the representation put forward by each of the political groups;

2)     agree the number of Members on the Local Development Framework Working Party as 15;

3)     approve the Liberal Democrat nomination of Councillor M Ratcliffe as the Scrutiny Co-ordinator for the Municipal Year 2010/2011; and

4)     agree the appointment of the Police Authority representative, Mr Bob Hodson, as non-voting co-optee to the Safer Halton Policy and Performance Board.

The Board considered a report of the Strategic Director, Resources which sought the approval of the Council to a number of changes to the Constitution.

            Members had received a revised version of the Constitution, and were advised that this amended version picked up the changes to the Council’s working arrangements that had taken place during the year, as well as other changes which were intended to assist the Council to operate more effectively.

            The proposals for change had been considered by the Chief Executive and the Executive Board Member for Resources in accordance with Article 16.02. It was reported that apart from the purely technical changes, the proposed amendments that were considered to be of particular significance were listed as an appendix to the report.

            The Board were informed of one addition to the list contained in Appendix C at the end of the section on Standing Orders Relating to the Duties of Proper Officers and Delegation to Officers, as follows:

            Sunbeds (Regulation) Act 2010

            RESOLVED: That Council be recommended to

1)  approve the changes to the Constitution as set out in Appendix 1, subject to the removal of the proposed changes to the Call-in Procedure;

2) approve the addition of the following legislation to the list at Appendix C on page 342:-

Sunbeds (Regulation) Act 2010

3)     approve the changes to the Policy and Performance Board arrangements as circulated at the meeting; and

FURTHER RESOLVED :

1)     to establish a cross party Constitution Working

Group;

2)     the political proportionality of the Working Group 

      be 6:2:1;

3)     the Working Group give consideration to the proposals submitted by the Liberal Democrat Group and the Conservative Group to revise the Council Constitution;

4)     the Working Group make recommendations to Executive Board on the proposals submitted by the Liberal Democrat Group and the Conservative Group to revise the Council Constitution; and

5)     after due consideration of the recommendations of the Working Group, the Executive Board make recommendations to the Council on any changes to the Council Constitution it might consider appropriate.

The Board considered:

(1)       whether Members of the press and public should be excluded from the meeting of the Board during consideration of the following item of business in accordance with Sub-Section 4 of Section 100A of the Local Government Act 1972 because it was likely that, in view of the nature of the business to be considered, exempt information would be disclosed, being information defined in Section 100 (1) and paragraph 2 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972; and

(2)       whether the disclosure of information was in the public interest, whether any relevant exemptions were applicable and whether, when applying the public interest test and exemptions, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighed that in disclosing the information.

            RESOLVED: That as, in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information, members of the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following item of business in accordance with Sub-Section 4 of Section 100A of the Local Government Act 1972 because it is likely that, in view of the nature of the business, exempt information will be disclosed, being information defined in Section 100 (1) and paragraph 3 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972.

            The Board considered a report of the Strategic Director, Resources, on the appointment of Independent Members of the Standards Committee.

            RESOLVED: That the Council be recommended to

1)                 increase the number of Independent Members from three to four;

2)                 appoint the following three applicants to serve as Independent Members of the Standards Committee for a four year period commencing with the Municipal Year 2010/11:-

            Mr W Badrock, Mr A Luxton and Mrs A Morris; and

3)                 note the Parish Council nominee, Mr Bernie Allen, to fill the Parish Councillor vacancy on the Committee.

MINUTES ISSUED: 21 May 2010

CALL IN: 27 May 2010

Any matter decided by the Executive Board may be called in no later than 27 May 2010