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Agenda item
Overview & Scrutiny Select Committees - Membership 2020/21
To consider the attached report and schedule of nominations (to be circulated) for appointment to membership of the Select Committees for the current municipal year and to make appointments to the position of Chairman and Vice-Chairman for each of the Select Committees.
Minutes:
The Democratic & Electoral Services Officer presented a report on the membership of the Overview & Scrutiny Select Committees for the municipal year 2020/21.
The Committee was reminded that the Overview and Scrutiny rules set out within Article 6 of the Council’s Constitution required the Committee to determine the number of Select Committees and review whether they should continue in being, at its firstmeeting of each municipal year. Additionally, the membership, Chairmanship and Vice-Chairmanship of the Select Committees were to be approved by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee at the first meeting each year, as such appointments were reserved to the Committee and not made by the Council at its annual meeting.
The Committee was advised that no request for membership of a Select Committee was made by a Councillor that was not a member of a political group. Therefore, it had been proposed to retain each Select Committee at eleven members with membership on a pro rata basis between the different political groups. It was also highlighted that any member of the Audit & Governance Committee was not permitted to be a member of the Stronger Council Select Committee, under Article 11 of the Constitution.
Cllr S Murray was concerned that all four of the Council’s Scrutiny Committees could be chaired by a member of the Conservative group, who also controlled the Cabinet. The Councillor felt that at least one of the Scrutiny Committees should be chaired by a member from a different political group, as this was an important point of Scrutiny and would also aid the transparency of the Council. It was highlighted that numerous other Councils followed this process and maybe this Council should consider it for the next municipal year. Cllr J H Whitehouse supported the principle outlined by Cllr S Murray and agreed that not all of the chairmanships of the Scrutiny Committees should go to the majority party.
Resolved:
(1) That the continuation of the following three Select Committees be agreed for the 2020/21 municipal year:
(a) Stronger Communities Select Committee;
(b) Stronger Council Select Committee; and
(c) Stronger Place Select Committee;
(2) That the membership of each Select Committee p be agreed as eleven members for 2020/21;
(3) That the following nominations for membership of each Select Committee for 2020/21 be agreed:
(a) Stronger Communities Select Committee:
· Cllr A Beales;
· Cllr I Hadley;
· Cllr J Lea;
· Cllr J McIvor;
· Cllr A Mitchell;
· Cllr D Plummer;
· Cllr S Rackham;
· Cllr J Share-Bernia;
· Cllr D Sunger;
· Cllr J H Whitehouse; and
· Cllr D Wixley;
(b) Stronger Council Select Committee:
· Cllr R Bassett;
· Cllr P Bolton;
· Cllr H Brady;
· Cllr R Brookes;
· Cllr D Dorrell;
· Cllr H Kane;
· Cllr S Neville;
· Cllr M Owen;
· Cllr S Rackham;
· Cllr D Stocker; and
· Cllr J M Whitehouse;
(c) Stronger Place Select Committee:
· Cllr L Burrows;
· Cllr I Hadley;
· Cllr S Heap;
· Cllr S Heather;
· Cllr J Jennings;
· Cllr S Jones;
· Cllr H Kauffman;
· Cllr C McCredie;
· Cllr J McIvor;
· Cllr R Morgan; and
· Cllr R Bassett;
(4) That the following appointments to Chairman and Vice-Chairman for each Select Committee be agreed:
(a) Stronger Communities Select Committee:
· Cllr D Sunger as Chairman; and
· Cllr J McIvor as Vice-Chairman;
(b) Stronger Council Select Committee:
· Cllr P Bolton as Chairman; and
· Cllr D Stocker as Vice-Chairman; and
(c) Stronger Place Select Committee:
· Cllr R Bassett as Chairman; and
· Cllr S Heather as Vice-Chairman.
Supporting documents: