Issue - meetings

[To consider a report on a review of the Member-Officer Protocol.]

Further to Minute 49/08 of the meeting of the Standards Committee held on 11th December 2008, the Committee considered a report which asked whether a recommendation should be made to full Council that the Member-Officer Protocol be reviewed.

The Monitoring Officer advised that the views of the Group Leaders as to the operation and effectiveness of the Protocol had been sought and that the Leaders felt the Protocol to have been well used, with this having been referred to on a frequent basis, and that they would be reluctant to lose this as they were satisfied that the current process worked well.  Officer feedback on the Protocol had also been positive, with it being deemed an example of good practice for such a protocol to be in place.

It was noted that some general references in the Protocol were out of date and that officers would therefore need to make a few minor amendments to this.

RESOLVED:

(a)       that, whilst noting some minor amendments were required to the Member-Officer Protocol, no recommendation be made to full Council that the Protocol be reviewed; and

(b)       that the Protocol be looked at by the Standards Committee again in twelve months' time.