Agenda and minutes

To report the appointment of any substitute members for the meeting.

The Committee noted the following substitutions reported at the meeting:

(1)             Councillor Brookes had been appointed as substitute for Councillor W Kauffman, and

(2)             Councillor Burrows had been appointed as substitute for Councillor Parsons.

To declare interests in any item on the agenda.

In considering whether to declare a pecuniary or a non-pecuniary interest under the Council’s Code of Conduct, Members are requested to pay particular attention to paragraph (11) of the Code in addition to the more familiar requirements.

This requires the declaration of a non-pecuniary interest in any matter before Overview & Scrutiny which relates to a decision of or action by another Committee or Sub-Committee of the Council, a Joint Committee or Joint Sub-Committee in which the Council is involved and of which the Councillor is also a Member.

Paragraph (11) of the Code of Conduct does not refer to Cabinet decisions or attendance at an Overview & Scrutiny meeting purely for the purpose of answering questions or providing information on such a matter.

Pursuant to the Council’s Members’ Code of Conduct, Councillor Murray declared a non-pecuniary interest in item 5, development of draft budget proposals 2025/26 as a former Trustee of Citizens Advice.

Exclusion

To consider whether, under Section 100(A)(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public and press should be excluded from the meeting for the items of business set out below on grounds that they will involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in the following paragraph(s) of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act (as amended) or are confidential under Section 100(A)(2):

The Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) Order 2006, which came into effect on 1 March 2006, requires the Council to consider whether maintaining the exemption listed above outweighs the potential public interest in disclosing the information. Any member who considers that this test should be applied to any currently exempted matter on this agenda should contact the proper officer at least 24 hours prior to the meeting.

Background Papers 

Article 17 - Access to Information, Procedure Rules of the Constitution define background papers as being documents relating to the subject matter of the report which in the Proper Officer's opinion:

(a)        disclose any facts or matters on which the report or an important part of the report is based;  and

(b)        have been relied on to a material extent in preparing the report and does not include published works or those which disclose exempt or confidential information and in respect of executive reports, the advice of any political advisor.

The Council will make available for public inspection for four years after the date of the meeting one copy of each of the documents on the list of background papers.

Resolved:

That in accordance with Section 100(A)(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public and press should be excluded from the meeting for the items of business set out below on grounds that they will involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in the following paragraph(s) of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act (as amended) or are confidential under Section 100(A)(2):

To consider and comment on the development of the draft budget proposals 2025/26.

Councillor H Whitbread, Finance and Economic Development Portfolio Holder, provided an overview of the budget position and proposals, additional details and advice was provided by Andrew Small, Strategic Director and Section 151 Officer. The Committee, and other members present, discussed the range options presented and made recommendations to Cabinet.

Resolved:

That the Committee considered and commented on the draft budget proposals.