Issue - meetings

This report has been produced at the request of the Cabinet Member for Corporate Services and presents recommendations for changes to Council rules 8 and 9 in the Constitution which relate to questions from the public and Members at Council meetings.

Discussion:

This report which had been produced at the request of the Cabinet Member for Corporate Services, presented recommendations for changes to Council rules 8 and 9 in the Constitution which relate to questions from the public and Members at Council meetings.

A Diversity Impact Assessment on the proposals was tabled at the meeting (Appendix B to the report).

The Portfolio Holder for Corporate Services, Councillor Mackness, supported by Councillor Chishti, proposed the recommendations set out in the report.

Councillor Maple, supported by Councillor Godwin, proposed the following amendment:

“Delete everything after “The Council is recommended…” in paragraph 9.1 of item 14 on the Council agenda and substitute:

“to add the following sentence to Council Rules 8.6 and 9.1:

“The time allowed for answers to each question at Council meetings shall not exceed 3 minutes”.”

On being put to the vote, the amendment was lost.

In accordance with rule 12.4 of the Council Rules a recorded vote on the substantive motion was taken.

For – Councillors Avey, Bhutia, Brake, Carr, Mrs Diane Chambers, Rodney Chambers OBE, Chishti, Chitty, Clarke, Doe, Etheridge, Fearn, Filmer, Franklin, Griffin, Gulvin, Hicks, Howard, Iles, Jarrett, The Worshipful The Mayor of Medway, Councillor Kemp, Mackness, O’Brien, Opara, Potter, Purdy, Royle, Saroy, Tejan, Tolhurst, Tranter, Turpin, Wicks and Williams (34)

Against – Councillors Bowler, Brown-Reckless, Cooper, Freshwater, Godwin, Johnson, Joy, Khan, Maple, McDonald, Murray, Osborne, Pendergast, Price, Shaw and Stamp (16)

Decision:

The Council approved revisions to Council Rule 8 (Questions by the Public) and Council Rule 9 (Questions by Members) as set out in Appendix A to the report which give effect to the following changes:

a)    Closer alignment of the rules for questions at Council meetings from the public and Members (but with the retention of 30 minutes for public questions and 20 minutes for questions from Members);

b)    removal of a facility for second and supplementary questions;

c)    limiting any person, organisation or Member to no more than one question at each Council meeting

d)    discontinuation of the practice of allowing substitutes to ask questions if a questioner cannot be present with a written answer to be supplied after the meeting instead;

e)    introduction of a rule which limits the time allowed for answers provided to questions at Council minutes to three minutes;

f)     amendment of Council rule 8.3 so that the final sentence reads “Any questions that have not received a response within the times limits will receive a written reply after the meeting”, as a response to the suggestion of the Independent Person under the Councillor Conduct regime.

This report has been produced at the request of the Cabinet Member for Corporate Services and presents recommendations for changes to Council rules 8 and 9 in the Constitution which relate to questions from the public and Members at Council meetings.

Please note that Paragraph 16.2 (Amendment to Council Rules) of Part 1, Chapter 4 of the Constitution states that any motion to add to, change or withdraw these Council Rules, will when proposed and seconded, be taken forward without discussion to the next ordinary meeting of the Council (15 October 2015).

Discussion:

This report had been produced at the request of the Portfolio Holder for Corporate Services and presented recommendations for changes to Council rules 8 and 9 in the Constitution which related to questions from the public and Members at Council meetings.

The Portfolio Holder for Corporate Services, Councillor Mackness, supported by Councillor Tejan proposed the recommendations set out in the report as follows:

The Council is recommended by the Cabinet Member for Corporate Services

to approve revisions to Council Rule 8 (Questions by the Public) and Council

Rule 9 (Questions by Members) as set out in Appendix A to the report which

give effect to the following changes:

a)            Closer alignment of the rules for questions at Council meetings from the public and Members (but with the retention of 30 minutes for public questions and 20 minutes for questions from Members);

b)            removal of a facility for second and supplementary questions’

c)            limiting any person, organisation or Member to no more than one question at each Council meeting;

d)            discontinuation of the practice of allowing substitutes to ask questions if a questioner cannot be present with a written answer to be supplied after the meeting instead;

e)            introduction of a rule which limits the time allowed for answers provided to questions at Council minutes to three minutes; and

f)             amendment of Council rule 8.3 so that the final sentence reads “Any questions that have not received a response within the times limits will receive a written reply after the meeting”, as a response to the suggestion of the Independent Person under the Councillor Conduct regime.

In accordance with Council Rule 16.2, the Mayor stated that this proposal would now be taken forward without discussion to the next ordinary meeting of the Council as it involved making changes to the Council Rules in Medway Council’s Constitution.