Agenda item

(Support Services Portfolio Holder) To consider the attached report (C-062-2013/14).

(1)        That the revision of the dates for the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, as advised by the Chairman of the Committee, be noted; and

(2)        That, as attached at Appendix 1 of the report, the draft Calendar of Council Meetings for 2014/15 be recommended to the Council for adoption, subject to the following amendments:

            (a)        the revision of the meeting dates for the Overview and Scrutiny       Committee, referred to above;

            (b)        the Cabinet meeting scheduled for 12 May 2015 being revised to 19            May 2014; and

            (c)        the addition of a provisional meeting of the Council on 16 June 2014.

The Portfolio Holder for Support Services presented a report on the proposed Calendar of Council Meetings for 2014/15.

The Portfolio Holder reminded the Cabinet that it considered the proposed Calendar of Council Meetings each year prior to its final approval by the Council. The Calendar had developed over time to meet the changing needs of the authority and, where possible, meetings of a Committee had been standardised on a particular night of the week. Within the current Democratic Services Business Plan, there was an item to review the Calendar of Council Meetings, and especially the frequency of meetings. The only changes proposed for the Calendar this year were:

·                     an extra meeting of the Cabinet  and Overview & Scrutiny in the autumn;

·                     Overview & Scrutiny Committee meetings rescheduled to allow Members more time to study the Cabinet agenda; and

·                     an additional week after the Local Elections kept free from meetings of Area          Planning Sub-Committees to allow training in the Planning Protocol for any        new Members elected to the Council.

The Portfolio Holder reported that an additional Cabinet meeting had also been scheduled for 12 May 2014, to consider the letting of the new Waste Management Contract. An additional Council meeting had also been scheduled for 16 June 2014 for the same reason. One change made last year was the scheduling of a monthly evening meeting of the Licensing Sub-Committee, as this was one of the recommendations put forward by the Licensing Review Task & Finish Panel. This had been retained for 2014/15, but if the forthcoming review of these arrangements proposed a return to daytime meetings for the Licensing Sub-Committee then these meetings would be cancelled or re-scheduled as necessary.

The Portfolio Holder explained that a schedule of dates had not been set for the Local Highways Panel as the Panel agreed its own dates, usually at the previous meeting. In addition, the Council Housebuilding Cabinet Committee met only when there was a potential site to evaluate, therefore no meetings had been scheduled at the moment.

The Portfolio Holder requested the Cabinet to consider the proposed Calendar of Meetings for 2014/15 and whether any further changes were required. However, it was highlighted that the current Calendar was very congested and the organisation of any additional meetings should be given very careful consideration. The Calendar would be considered by the Council on 17 December 2013 for final approval.

The Environment Portfolio Holder drew the attention of the Cabinet to a revised date of 19 May 2014 for the special meeting of the Cabinet to consider the award of the new Waste Management Contract, not 12 May 2014 as listed in the report.

It was highlighted that a number of the revised dates listed for the Overview & Scrutiny Committee clashed with meetings of the Theydon Bois Parish Council, who traditionally held their meetings on the last Thursday of each month. The Democratic Services Officer reassured the Cabinet that the proposed dates for the Overview & Scrutiny would be revised following the discussion at its meeting last week and the comments by the Chairman of Overview & Scrutiny Committee earlier in the meeting. A number of other Members felt that there would be further clashes between the meetings of the Area Planning Sub-Committees and various Town or Parish Councils. The Leader of the Council commented that this was sometimes the difficulty with being a dual hatted Councillor, but the Democratic Services Officer undertook to conduct a quick poll of Town and Parish Councils to ascertain whether any had yet to set their meeting dates for 2014/15.

Decision:

(1)        That the revision of the dates for the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, as advised by the Chairman of the Committee, be noted; and

(2)        That, as attached at Appendix 1 of the report, the draft Calendar of Council Meetings for 2014/15 be recommended to the Council for adoption, subject to the following amendments:

            (a)        the revision of the meeting dates for the Overview and Scrutiny       Committee, referred to above;

            (b)        the Cabinet meeting scheduled for 12 May 2015 being revised to 19            May 2014; and

            (c)        the addition of a provisional meeting of the Council on 16 June 2014.

Reasons for Decision:

The drafting of the Calendar of Council Meetings for next year was an item for action within the Democratic Services Business Plan for 2012/13 & 2013/14.

Other Options Considered and Rejected:

Individual frequencies of meetings could be varied. In practice additional meetings were added as and when issues dictated. Similarly, meetings could be cancelled if there was a lack of business.