AGENDA ITEM NO.
REPORT TO: Council
REPORT NO: CLDSO / 104 / 09
DATE: 23 September 2009
REPORTING OFFICER: Chief Legal & Democratic Services Officer
CONTACT OFFICER: Keith Lea (Tel 01978 292257)
SUBJECT: Crime Disorder (Overview & Scrutiny) Regulations 2009 – Changes to Constitution
WARD: N/A
1. PURPOSE OF THE REPORT
· To inform Members of the main provisions and requirements of the above regulations
· To highlight the issues raised by the regulations and the required changes to the Constitution
2. INFORMATION
2.1 Sections 19 and 20 of the Police Justice Act 2006 (as amended) require every County and County Borough in Wales to ensure it has an Overview and Scrutiny Committee with power to:-
· Review or scrutinise decisions made or action taken in connection with the discharge by the Responsible Authorities of their crime and disorder functions
· Make reports or recommendations to the local authority in connection with the discharge of these functions in which case it must supply a copy to each Responsible Authority and Co-operating person or body.
2.2 This means that the designated scrutiny committee will have power to scrutinise the crime and disorder and substance misuse strategies that the Responsible Authorities are required to formulate and implement under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998.
2.3 The Responsible Authorities in Wrexham are :
· North Wales Fire Service
· North Wales Police Authority
· North Wales Police - Eastern Division
· Wrexham County Borough Council
· Wrexham Local Health Board
Together these Responsible Authorities form standing membership of the Community Safety Partnership.
2.4 There is one Co-operating body in Wrexham which is the Probation Service.
Regulations
2.5 The Regulations come into force in Wales on 1 October 2009. Additional guidance for the Scrutiny of Crime and Disorder Matters has subsequently been received outlining the main requirements and giving more detailed information:-
· The Scrutiny Committee must meet to consider crime and disorder functions as the committee considers appropriate, but no less than once per year;
· The Scrutiny Committee has the power to co-opt employees, officers or members of a Responsible Authority or a Co-operating persons or body, provided that any member appointed is not a member of this Council’s Executive.
· Co-opted members are not entitled to vote without the agreement of the Committee. The membership of a co-opted member may also be limited to a particular matter or type of matter. Their membership may be withdrawn at any time by the Committee.
· Responsible Authorities and Co-operating persons and bodies must provide information to the Committee when requested, within the timescales requested or as soon as reasonably possible.
· Such information would be de-personalised, unless identification is necessary or appropriate to enable the committee to exercise its powers. Information could be excluded where it is likely to prejudice legal proceedings current or future operations of the Responsible Authority or Co-operating person or body.
· The committee may require officers or employees of Responsible Authorities and Co-operating persons or bodies to attend meetings (with reasonable notice) in order to answer questions.
· When the Committee make a report or recommendation to a Responsible Authority or Co-operating person or body the responses shall be in writing and submitted within 28 days or as soon as reasonably possible.
Councillor Call for Action (CCfA)
2.6 The new legislation gives councillors a new right to raise matters of local concern relating to crime and disorder with the designated overview and scrutiny committee. The overview and scrutiny committee can then decide whether to investigate the issue, taking account of whether all other avenues for resolving the issues have been exhausted.
Protocols
2.7 In order to implement the new regulations protocols will need to be developed and agreed with the Responsible Authorities as to how the new arrangements will operate in practice.
Designation of Responsibility to a Scrutiny Committee
2.8 Two main options exist as to how to deal with this issue :
· To create an additional, dedicated Crime and Disorder Scrutiny Committee
· To allocate responsibility to one of the existing scrutiny committees
2.9 Community safety issues currently fall under the remit of the Corporate Governance & Policy Scrutiny Committee. At its meeting on 1 April 2009 this committee considered the draft regulations. Members agreed “it would not be necessary to recommend the establishment of a discreet Crime and Disorder Scrutiny Committee, in view of the terms of reference of this Committee”.
Changes to Constitution
2.10 Under section 3.38, (28) of the Council’s Constitution the Chief Legal & Democratic Services Officer has delegated authority to make the required amendments to the constitution.
RECOMMENDATIONS
1. That responsibility for the scrutiny of community safety issues under the Crime and Disorder (Overview and Scrutiny) Regulations 2009 be allocated to the Council’s Corporate Governance and Policy Scrutiny Committee.
2. The necessary protocols are developed and agreed with the Responsible Authorities.
3. The required changes to the Council’s constitution as detailed in Appendix 1 are agreed and any necessary changes are made by the Chief Legal & Democratic Services Officer using his existing delegations from Council.
BACKGROUND PAPERS
· The Crime and Disorder (Overview and Scrutiny) Regulations 2009 - Statutory Instrument No. 942
· Welsh Assembly Government Guidance for the Scrutiny of Crime and Disorder Matters
Website Information
BACKGROUND PAPERS / LOCATION / WEBSITE INFO.Sections 19 and 20 of the Police and Justice Act
Crime and Disorder (Overview and Scrutiny) Regulations 2009
Guidance for the Scrutiny of Crime and Disorder Matters / Office of Public Sector Information
Office of Public Sector Information
Welsh Assembly Government / http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2006/ukpga_20060048_en_1
www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2009/uksi_20090942_en_1
http://wales.gov.uk/topics/localgovernment/publications/guidance/?lang=en
Appendix 1
Proposed Changes to the Constitution
Page 2-25, Article 6.04 - Terms of Reference of each Scrutiny Committee
Scrutiny Committee /Main Areas of responsibility
/Corporate Governance and
Policy /
Services & Functions
· Corporate Strategies and Policies, i.e., those which impact on all or most Council service areas and which do not specifically fall under the remit of the other Scrutiny Committees· Local Service Board – Governance arrangements
· Human Resources inc. equal opportunities; staffing issues; health & safety.
· Information Systems & Telecommunications
· Legal inc. legal issues; member training & development; committee & mayoral services; registration & coroner’s services
· Corporate Governance arrangements in consultation with the Audit and Standards Committees
· Acting as the Crime & Disorder Committee as defined in Sections 19 & 20 of the Police & Justice Act 2006
Major Plans, & Strategies
Community Strategy; Improvement Plan; Crime & Disorder Reduction Strategy; Welsh language Scheme; Asset Management PlansPage 4-32 Scrutiny Procedure Rules - Section 3 Co-optees
3. Co-optees
Each scrutiny committee or sub-committee shall be entitled to recommend to Council the appointment of a number of people as non-voting co-optees.
In discharging its crime and disorder functions the Corporate Governance & Policy Scrutiny Committee may co-opt officers, employees or members of the Responsible Authorities or Co-operating Bodies (as defined in Section 5 of the Crime & Disorder Act 1998). Co-optees cannot be Members of the Council’s Executive Board and no co-optee is entitled to vote, unless the Committee allows it. Co-optees may be appointed for a particular matter or type of matter and membership may be withdrawn at any time by the Committee.
1