Issue - meetings

To receive a report from the Director of Law and Governance setting out changes to the Council constitution. 

This report is due to be considered by the Member and Democratic Services Group at a meeting to be held on 30 June 2020.  

Councillor Nesil Caliskan moved and Councillor Tim Leaver seconded the report of the Director of Law and Governance setting out proposals for a revised streamlined committee structure and for an enhancement of the Council’s scrutiny function.  

NOTED

1.            The report had been considered and agreed for recommendation to Council by the Member and Democratic Services Group at their meeting on 30 June 2020. 

2.            The Leader, Councillor Nesil Caliskan, presented the report highlighting the following: 

·         A review of the Council’s committee structure had been carried out and a revised streamlined structure proposed.

·         The Centre for Public Scrutiny had reviewed the scrutiny function and its findings were noted as part of the report.

·         Following the review, this was a proposal to enhance the Committee and Scrutiny Structure. The changes would enable councillors to dedicate more time and efforts to new and emerging priority areas, including Environment and Climate Change, Young People, Equalities and Economic Development, as well as vulnerable children as part of the work of the Fostering Panel.

·         The Environment Forum will include membership from local community environment groups.

·         The changes brought about are in response to calls to bolster and improve scrutiny and extra accountability and transparency in additional formal Committees of the Council. Enfield Council believes that the level of responsibility, work and scrutiny of these new key priorities are as important as the existing roles that have a Special Responsibility Allowance attached.

·         Councillors can only claim one Special Responsibility Allowance (SRA) and no Councillor has ever been forced to take either their basic allowance or their Special Responsibility Allowance that they are entitled to. It was down to individual Councillors to make a judgement on their own personal circumstances about whether they need to draw down their allowance. The report also proposed that there should be an additional associate cabinet member with a focus on young people. 

3.            Councillor Laban, the Leader of the Opposition, said that the Opposition although in favour of creating standing scrutiny panels, would not be supporting this report as they had concerns about the creation of a General Purposes Committee subsuming the work of the audit and electoral services, the proposal to merge the transport, green belt and conservation advisory committees into an Environment Forum and the creating of an additional Associate Cabinet Member post.  Many of the various stakeholders in these groups also had concerns about the propsosals. 

4.            The comments of Councillor Levy as a member of the Community First group who while not objecting to the proposed changes to the scrutiny structure, felt that the real problem was the culture of the organisation and the scrutiny function’s lack of integrity and independence.  This had caused reputational damage.  He was looking for assurances that the function was independent and impartial. 

5.            The comments from majority group members:

·         Welcome for the new structure and the view that it would help councillors play a greater role in shaping policy in areas such as housing. 

·         Support from the Chair of the Overview and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13

To receive a report from the Director of Law and Governance setting out changes to the Council constitution.  (Report No: 2)

This report was considered by the Member and Democratic Services Group and recommended to Council for approval, at a meeting held on 23 April 2019.  

Councillor Nesil Caliskan moved and Councillor Joanne Laban seconded the report of the Director of Law and Governance setting out changes to the Council Constitution.  (Report No: 2)

NOTED

1.            The report had been considered and agreed for recommendation to Council by the Member and Democratic Services Group at their meeting on 23 April 2019.

2.            The report put forward clear recommendations for changes to the timings for discussion of items at the Council meetings, the order of business and minor amendments to motions, questions and amendments.  Full details were in the report.

3.            Councillor Laban welcomed the change that would mean that more time could be spent discussing reports than motions. 

AGREED

1.            To approve the proposed amendments referred from Member and Democratic Services Group as set out in the report.

2.            To note that the revised Council rules of procedure would apply from the July Council meeting, and all other constitutional amendments within Phase 1 would take immediate effect.