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1 / APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCEThere were no formal apologies received.
2 / DECLARATION BY MEMBERS OF ANY PERSONAL OR PREJUDICIAL INTERESTS
All Local Authority Members present declared that they had a personal interest regarding any matters that related to or were likely to affect their own Constituent Authorities.
All Committee Members present declared a personal interest in relation to Agenda Item Number 5.
The Clerk/Monitoring Officer advised that a Committee Member could also declare an interest in any matters arising at a point where it became apparent during the meeting.
3 / CHAIR’S ANOUNCEMENTS/PERSONAL MATTERS
The Chair informed Members that Councillor J Curtice was currently recovering following a recent operation and requested that the Committee’s best wishes for a speedy recovery be conveyed to Councillor Curtice.
4 / TO RECEIVE AND CONSIDER THE MINUTES OF THE STANDARDS COMMITTEE HELD ON 20 JUNE 2016
The minutes of the meeting held on 20 June 2016 were approved as a true and accurate record of proceedings.
Matters Arising
The Clerk/Monitoring Officer provided Members with an update on the completed actions from the meeting of the 20 June 2016.
Page 2, Item 5, Paragraph 4 – The Clerk / Monitoring Officer reported that the Finance department had confirmed that travelling mileage at a rate of 45p per mile was paid separately to the passenger allowance of 5p per mile. It was further clarified that the passenger allowance was not subject to Tax or National Insurance deductions.
Page 4, Item 9, Paragraph 3 - The Clerk / Monitoring Officer confirmed that the Committee’s feedback regarding the Standards Conference Wales 2015 had been conveyed to the Lawyers in Local Government Group ( LLG Group ) and that any suggestions for future conference agenda items could be put forth to the LLG Group via the Clerk.
Page 6, Item 11, Paragraph 2 - The Clerk / Monitoring Officer reported when the issue was raised at the recent LLG group meeting, that of the Council’s attending, four Authorities in Wales, namely Wrexham, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Gwynedd and Carmarthen, had indicated that they registered and required declarations regarding a gift that had been offered and declined by Members and Co-opted Members.
Page 7, Item 14, Paragraph 1 – The Clerk / Monitoring Officer reported that the training Standards Committee training session arranged for Cllr W Evans for 5 December 2016 would be re-scheduled to a mutually convenient date.
5 / TO RECEIVE AND NOTE THE FINAL ANNUAL REPORT OF THE INDEPENDENT REMUNERATION PANEL FOR WALES 2016/17.
The Clerk/Monitoring Officer presented the Draft Annual Report of the Independent Remuneration Panel for Wales (IRPW) relating to the payments to be made in 2017/18 to Members and Co-opted Members of the Fire Authority.
Committee were informed that the IRPW had requested that it receive individual comments/representations regarding the IRPW Report directly by 28th November 2016, and that this request had been relayed electronically to all Members and co-opted Members of the Fire Authority, and also in a report to the Resource Management Committee.
Consideration was given to the determinations of the IRPW in respect of Fire and Rescue Authorities and it was noted that there would be no changes to the payments for Co-opted Members. It was reported that an increase of £15 on the basic salary for Members of Fire and Rescue Authorities would be provided from the date of the Authority’s Annual General Meeting.
The Clerk/Monitoring Officer highlighted to the Committee that the Resource Management Committee, at its meeting on 14 November 2016, had resolved to recommend to the Fire Authority that senior salaries for Committee Chairs be adopted and that the senior salary for the Deputy Chair of the Fire Authority’s be reinstated to reflect the significant and sustained responsibility attached to those roles.
RESOLUTION
It was RESOLVED that the report be noted.
6 / TO RECEIVE THE CODE OF CONDUCT CASEBOOK ISSUES 8, 9 & 10
The Clerk/Monitoring Officer provided the Committee with an overview of the Ombudsman’s Casebook Issues 8, 9 & 10 which were attached to the report as Appendices 1, 2 and 3. The Casebooks set out cases involving breaches of Members Code of Conduct dealt with by the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales (PSOW). The Clerk/Monitoring Officer reported that there was an overall increase in the number of complaints received by the PSOW, despite the introduction of local resolution of complaints over the last two years for county councils, where low level councillor against councillor complaints were referred to the Authority’s Monitoring Officer in the first instance.
The Committee was provided with an overview of the relevant cases contained within the Appendices and it was reported by the Clerk/Monitoring Officer that it was pleasing to note that there had been no breaches found or reported against Members of the Fire Authority for Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service. In discussing the casebooks, the Committee highlighted the importance of declaring
any personal and prejudicial interests during any discussions with members of the public and urged Members to err on the side of caution in this regard.
The Chair highlighted that the Committee considered the case summaries by way of a hard copy report, and as such stated that it would be useful for the PSOW to provide the link reference URL within the document to allow Members to access further information, if required. The Clerk / Monitoring Officer agreed to make a request to the PSOW in this regard.
A discussion ensued regarding the importance of Members having an understanding of the Model Code of Conduct, in order to avoid potential breaches and complaints being made to the Ombudsman. The Chair and Councillor W Evans referred to the proactive measures taken within Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire County Councils to provide relevant training to all Community and Town Councils in this regard, which was welcomed by the Committee.
RESOLUTION
It was RESOLVED that the report be noted.
7 / TO RECEIVE THE OMBUDSMAN’S CASEBOOK (MALADMINISTRATION) ISSUES 25 AND 26
Mr M Jehu declared a personal interest in any matter relating to Cwm Taf Health Board by virtue of his membership on the Board.
Cllr Wynne Evans declared a personal interest by way of his representation on the Hywell Dda Community Health Council.
The Clerk/Monitoring Officer presented the report on the Ombudsman’s Casebook Issues 25 and 26 which were attached to the report as Appendix 1 and 2 respectively, and which dealt with general maladministration issues.
The Clerk/Monitoring Officer stated that there were no cases relating to the Fire Service or Fire Authority in the casebooks and that the majority of cases within the casebooks related to Health Boards and Unitary Authorities. Committee were interested to note that the PSOW had the jurisdiction to investigate cases relating to private healthcare.
A discussion ensued regarding data protection issues within the healthcare sector in respect of the possibility of Health Boards disclosing patient records to other organisations such as PPI companies. Councillor W Evans agreed to make further enquiries through the Community Health Council and report back to the Standards Committee at its next meeting.
The Chair thanked the Clerk/Monitoring Officer for the update provided which was useful in keeping Committee abreast of pertinent cases of maladministration and learning outcomes from the Ombudsman which would strengthen high standards of conduct in public office.
RESOLUTION
It was RESOLVED that the Committee note the report.
8 / TO RECEIVE AND APPROVE THE STANDARDS COMMITTEE ANNUAL REPORT 2015/16
The Chair introduced the Standards Committee Annual Report for 2015/16 which set out the work undertaken by the Committee during the reporting period.
The Clerk/Monitoring Officer confirmed that the report had been updated to reflect the comments made by the Standards Committee at its meeting on 20 June 2016. Members were informed that the Chair of the Standards Committee would present the final report to the Fire Authority meeting at its meeting on 12 December 2016.
It was RESOLVED that the Committee approve the report, for recommendation to the Fire Authority.
9 / TO RECEIVE AND APPROVE A REPORT ON THE WHISTLEBLOWING PROCEDURE
The Corporate Head of Operational Support and Improvement joined the meeting to present the Whistleblowing Policy which aimed to encourage employees to raise issues of wrongdoing without fear of receiving detrimental treatment following disclosure. Members were reminded that the Procedure had been last considered by the Standards Committee in December 2013 in order to incorporate the amended provisions of the Employment Rights Act 1996 following the introduction of ss.17-20 of the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013.
The Corporate Head of Operational Support and Improvement drew Members’ attention to the Whistleblowing Procedure set out at Appendix 1 to the report and confirmed that no significant changes had been made to the document since that time, other than its re-formatting recently as a Procedural Guidance Document, and any necessary amendment of job titles.
Upon consideration of the Procedure, a discussion ensued regarding the term ‘whistle blowing’ which the Deputy Chair considered to be very emotive and, as such, could discourage employees from reporting sensitive complaints within the workplace. It was generally felt that a revised title for the Procedure would be favoured by the Committee, and the Chair suggested that Officers consider an appropriate title which could be considered at the Standards Conference 2017.
Mr M Jehu drew attention to Section 3 of the Procedure and was pleased to note that reference had been made to malicious or vexatious allegations.
The Committee commended the Whistleblowing Procedure within the Service which provided a means of reporting wrongdoings within the workplace, and emphasised the importance of dealing with issues which had been reported in a prompt, efficient manner.
RESOLUTION
It was RESOLVED that the current version of the Whistleblowing Procedure be recommended for approval by the Fire Authority, for inclusion within the Fire Authority’s Constitution.
10 / TO RECEIVE A VERBAL UPDATE ON RELEVANT LEGISLATIVE STANDARDS ISSUES
The Clerk/Monitoring Officer provided a synopsis of the relevant legislative Standards Issues which had emanated from the Lawyers in Local Government (LLG) meeting attended on 2 December 2016. The Committee noted the update which had been provided by the Ombudsman’s Office in terms of their drive towards increased electronic communications and the progress made on the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales Bill which would provide statutory power for the Ombudsman to initiate complaints when deemed appropriate. The Committee were also made aware of a possible establishment of a monitoring body to review how Standards Committees dealt with complaints. Furthermore, it was noted that the remit of the Ombudsman could be extended to include the investigation of maladministration into private healthcare.
The Clerk/Monitoring Officer reported that the Ombudsman’s Office had indicated that the number of complaints reported to the Ombudsman was likely to increase in the run up to the Local Authority Elections which would take place in May 2017.
In response to a query raised by Mr M Jehu, the Clerk / Monitoring Officer emphasised that the Authority fully endorsed the nature of joint training opportunities as a means of sharing knowledge and reducing costs.
Mr M Jehu and the Deputy Chair expressed an interest in attending any future, relevant training sessions and it was agreed that Standards Committee Members would be invited to attend the training provided to Fire Authority Members on the Code of Conduct following their appointment on to the Fire Authority in June 2017.
TO CONSIDER ANY OTHER ITEMS OF BUSINESS THAT BY REASON OF SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES THE CHAIR DECIDES SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AS A MATTER OF URGENCY PURSUANT TO SECTION 100(4)(B) OF THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT 1972.
There were no items of urgent business.
The meeting closed at 11:45
ACTION LIST – STANDARDS COMMITTEE – 5 DECEMBER 2016
The action list is provided for Officers and Members to enable them to be aware of the main actions from the meeting, together with individual requests from Fire Authority Members
Agenda Item / Action / Responsible Officer / Progress3 / Send letter to Cllr Curtice wishing her a speedy recovery / Clerk/Monitoring Officer / Democratic Services Officer / Complete
4 / To reschedule standards committee training for Cllr Wynne Evans / Democratic Services Officer / No longer required as Cllr Evans has indicated that he will be leaving the Fire Authority on 16.02.17
6 / The Chair highlighted that the Committee considered the case summaries by way of a hard copy report, and as such stated that it would be useful for the PSOW to provide the link reference URL within the document to allow Members to access further information, if required. The Clerk / Monitoring Officer agreed to make a request to the PSOW in this regard. / Clerk/Monitoring Officer
7 / A discussion ensued regarding data protection issues within the healthcare sector in respect of the possibility of Health Boards disclosing patient records to other organisations such as PPI companies. Councillor W Evans agreed to make further enquiries through the Community Health Council and report back to the Standards Committee at its next meeting. / Cllr W Evans
9 / Officers to consider a revised title for the Procedure which could be considered at the Standards Conference 2017. / Corporate Head of OSI
9 / The current version of the Whistleblowing Procedure to be recommended for approval by the Fire Authority, for inclusion within the Fire Authority’s Constitution. / Corporate Head of OSI
10 / Standards Committee Members to be invited to attend the training provided to Fire Authority Members on the Code of Conduct following their appointment on to the Fire Authority in June 2017. / Clerk/Monitoring Officer and Democratic Services Officer
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