Agenda and minutes

None

The Minutes from 22 October were accepted as a true record subject to the following:

Item 4 Annual Report of the Democratic Services Committee

The initial for Councillor M Evans and C Evans being excluded. In addition, Councillor M Evans asked that the sentence be changed to ‘He’ commented instead of ‘they’.

Councillor K Thomas made reference to the role we make and wanted the sentence removed on page 6, second para.  To clarify, Councillor K Thomas asked why council business was being conducted differently not why councillors were not doing their role.

Matters Arising

Item 4 Annual Report of the Democratic Services Committee

The Committee queried paragraph 2, page 4 and whether the positions had been filled.  The Democratic Services Manager and one Scrutiny Advisor post was being re-advertised.  The closing date was at the end of February 2021 and shortlisting would take place in due course.

Item 6 Any Issues for Discussion with the IRP

The Committee as that regarding page 8, the Head of Law and Regulation feedback that a more in depth look at barriers for people becoming a councillor was addressed.  It was advised that it would be noted to feed back to the IRP however this was not minuted for action by the Democratic Services Committee.

The Chair raised this point and the Independent Remuneration Panel (IRP) had listened to this point on a statutory basis and the Welsh Model was envied by England and Scotland who were using the Model as an exemplar.

The Chair mentioned that the issue loomed large on a recent Zoom meeting and the IRP were hoping to mentor those councillors and that some councils mentored candidates.

Councillor Hughes suggested that some of the older councillors should be mentors and that newer councillors should be buddied up with new councillors.

Councillor Whitcutt agreed with the above point which he considered should fit into the New Wales Local Government Act and that this should be feed into the discussion as well as being a separate discussion.

Councillor K Thomas considered that this would be addressed in the guidance of the new Act and councillors would give thought to this at induction.

Councillor Hourahine, met with Democratic Services Officers at the Welsh Government regarding feedback on Councillor training, which they said was quite good, however Councillors never received overall feedback on this.

Councillors J Hughes suggested there was scope to look into this and it was right that the Council include this as part of the democratic process to attract the right calibre of candidates particularly in such a diverse city.

The Head of Law and Regulation advised that the existing legislation in the Wales Measure (2011), provisions were in place to encourage more people to come forward.  Part of this discussion was informing people what it was to be a councillor and the responsibilities.  The political groups and parties also had a responsibility to attract the right calibre of candidates.

Councillor C Evans agreed with the Head of Law and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 2.

Council meeting on 26January 2021 resolved that Democratic Services Committee

reviewed both the impacts of the Local Government and Elections (Wales) Act 2021, and

any proposed changes to the Standing Orders together in line with the work plan of the

said committee within their normal reporting to full Council. 

Councillor P Hourahine considered it was a two-part report, ie that the Motion and Local Government (LG) Act Wales 2021, were entirely separate things.

The Chair asked was the Committee content with the Question Time period and linking it with the LG Act framework or should it be changed at local level.

Councillor M Evans, considered it should be changed at local level to allow back benchers to ask questions as well as including public participation as this was encouraging democracy, therefore it was ideal to make a recommendation at this meeting.

Councillor Whitcutt advised that there was a need to look at the resolution, which advised that Committee reviewed the intention of the resolution, therefore they should be reviewed together in the same piece of work and at the same time.

Councillor T Watkins agreed with Councillor Whitcutt that the Committee look at both the LG Act 2021 and Questions to Leader.

The Head of Law and Regulation advised that the New Act would come into force in stages and would receive guidance on various aspects as it was indicated.  There was a need to review the standing orders generally because of the changes coming.   As a result of legislation, the Committee could meet more frequently to discuss these changes in legislation, therefore it was confirmed that this needed to be looked as a round.

Councillor C Evans thought that it was a great opportunity to reform and that it would not take long and have a positive impact.  It therefore needed to be integrated properly in the Standing Orders in a matter of months.

Councillor Hughes considered it was more than just a singular issue and that the Committee needed to know how it worked in the bigger picture and looked at properly in depth and with the changes that were happening anyway.  This could also enhance democracy in Newport. 

Councillor Hourahine reflected on the present Questions process and advised that there were ample opportunities for councillors to use the open questions forum.  Guiding principles to chairing meetings was to be more succinct.  Extending questions therefore did nothing to enhance the meeting. 

On a separate note, regarding the New Act and remote attendance, Councillor Hourahine could see how it would work in rural areas but geographically, it was not appropriate for Newport and considered that remote meetings were de-humanising to councils.

The Chair agreed with the last comments regarding the virtual meetings, especially in the current climate.

Councillor M Evans referred to the extension of 15 minutes to Questions to the Leader and considered that it would be ideal to make a recommendation to change this at today’s meeting.  Councillor M Evans was however disappointed that this issue  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.

The WLGA issued revised drafts of the updated competency framework for

councillors and the new induction curriculum for members following the May 2022 local

elections.  Both were updated since they were last revised in 2017 to reflect the

changes in members’ roles and new legislative requirements. The draft documents were

presented at a meeting of the Lead Members and Officers for Member Support and

Development Network on 2February 2021, which was attended by the Chair of the

Democratic Services Committee and Governance Support officers. The Committee was

asked to consider the draft documents and formulate any comments or suggested

revisions.

The WLGA were looking to deliver this via e-modules, further information would be put to the committee when it was developed. 

Following the network meeting, the Chair considered that the framework was thorough and sensibly put.

Councillor K Thomas commented that framework was extremely comprehensive from a councillor’s perspective and had generally improved considerably, with more effort and constructive thought being put into the document which was a move in the right direction.

Councillor Hughes echoed the above comments adding that it was useful for potential candidates to see the framework.  As a new councillor, the most important role was that of Democratic Services itself and the important work and support that they gave.  With regard to e-Learning, there might be councillors that need to be facilitated, as they may not have devices, or have disabilities, such as a visual impairment.

Councillor M Evans, agreed that the e-Learning platforms should be relatively simply designed for Councillors.  There was an incredible amount of information and if councillors were to be encouraged to access these, modules could be streamlined.  There were 37 modules, which was far too many and these should be streamlined.  Councillor M Evans also preferred attending the Civic to meet with councillors at training sessions. 

Councillor T Watkins echoed the comments above and mentioned connectivity issues in various areas of Newport.  The volume of training was substantial and suggested that existing councillors buddy up with new councillors to give support.

The Chair mentioned that IT literacy should not be a requirement, as some people might not use computers but were still eloquent and worked hard for their community.

Councillor C Evans considered that the role should not be restrictive and that some councillors had good networks, even those that could not read or write. Councillor therefore did not want to see this being mandatory and felt that face to face contact was also important adding that people that choose not to use IT should not be excluded.  It was therefore up to the electorate to vote these people into the council.

Councillor Whitcutt suggested reducing the modules to core modules along with undertaking an assessment to identify the basics that were required to be a competent councillor, followed by best practice to undertake further modules.

The Head of Law and Regulation advised that the reasons for the modules was not to be being onerous. Not all modules were  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

For information, the WLGA had identified an opportunity to revisit all of the existing guidance on local democracy produced by the Welsh Government, with the aim to form a Democracy Handbook. As councils operated in different ways, WLGA information was supplemented at local level.  The requirement in the New Act was for a summary guide to the constitution and how the handbook could fit into this.  A simplistic guide would be useful on how the internal governance worked.

Events were taking place over February and March to highlight the guidance.

The Head of Law and Regulation advised that the work programme covered broadly the next 12 months corresponding with the New Act.  Remote meetings was more about providing access to dial in remotely if councillors could not attend.  This would be addressed by hybrid meetings where members could attend the council chamber and/or attend remotely.

There was a Digital Democracy Fund from the WG and the council would put in a bid for approximately £50K to develop the hybrid meetings.

Councillor Hourahine considered that the protocol was a priority for those present and those who attended remotely to be invited to speak fairly.

Councillor K Thomas referred to the serious issues she had experienced with her broadband and appreciated any IT advice.

Councillor T Watkins mentioned that everyone was experiencing technical issues with remote meetings referring to Holyrood Parliament, which had it’s own problems.

Councillor C Evans suggested that the council pay for broadband.  The Head of Law and regulation mentioned that council broadband was removed as some home owners broadband was more than sufficient for members to carry out their work.

Councillor Whitcutt mentioned standby telephone number to help with joining.  This would be provided through Democratic Services, the Digital Team and SRS for Full Council and other committee meetings.

29 April 2021 at 10am

29 April 2021 at 10am

Democratic Services Committee, 18 February 2021 - YouTube