(Monitoring Officer) To discuss changes made to the Councillor Code of Conduct and action to be taken by Local Council’s to adopt the new code.
Minutes:
The Committee received a report from the Deputy Monitoring Officer (EFDC) regarding revisions to the Code of Member Conduct. He advised that the Epping Forest District Standards Committee had looked at the Code of Conduct earlier in the year, as part of an overall review of the Council’s Constitution. They had agreed two areas of change to the Code which Epping Forest District Council would like all of the Town and Parish Councils to adopt so that the whole District was covered by the same code.
The two areas highlighted and in need of revision were:
(a) Dealing with Non-pecuniary interests; and
(b) Revisions to the Nolan principles.
Dealing with Non-Pecuniary Interests
A recent Investigators report on a Standards complaint case highlighted that the Code did not take effect unless there was a pecuniary interest and remained silent on predetermination in non-pecuniary interest cases. Having rechecked with the Public Law Partnership a later version of their Model Code has the following provision:
“Public Perception
If you have an interest which a member of the public with knowledge of the relevant facts would reasonably regard as so significant that it was likely to prejudice your judgement in the public interest and you are present at a meeting of the Authority at which such business was to be considered or was being considered you should:
(i) Disclose the existence and nature of the interest; and
(ii) Withdraw from the room or chamber where the meeting considering the business was being held”.
This addition gives guidance on non-pecuniary interests and deals with the subjective assessment that each Councillor must make on items where they may be open to accusations that they are predetermined.
This wording has been included in our new code at Paragraph 11.2 of the Council’s Constitution.
The Nolan Principles
Since the last review of the code, the Government had published a further report of the Committee on Standards in Public Life. That report reviewed the principles that the Nolan Committee originally put forward. There were suggested minor wording changes as a result of their review, which left the headings unchanged but the descriptions had changed.
Within their report the Committee highlighted the following reasons for the changes.
RESOLVED:
(1) That the changes implemented by the Epping Forest Standards Committee to the Councillors Code of Conduct be noted; and
(2) That the Council adopts the new Code of Conduct accordingly.
Supporting documents: