Agenda and minutes

To consider any appeals in accordance with Procedure Rule 15,2 of the Access to Information Procedure Rules. (in the event of an Appeal the press and public will be excluded)

(*In accordance with Procedure Rule 15.2, written notice of an appeal must be received by the Head of Governance Services at least 24 hours before the meeting.)

There were no appeals against refusal of inspection of documents.

There were no resolutions to exclude the public.

There were no late items submitted to the agenda for consideration.

To disclose or draw attention to any disclosable pecuniary interests for the purposes of Section 31 of the Localism Act 2011 and paragraphs 13-16 of the Members’ Code of Conduct. 

There were no declarations of interest.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors J Taylor and S Arif.

To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 1^st March 2019.

RESOLVED - That the minutes of the meeting held on 1^st March 2019 be approved as an accurate record.

To consider the report of the City Solicitor that provides an update on the last municipal year’s member development work, and sets out an overview of the induction programme undertaken since May 2019 along with the planned development activity for the coming year.

The City Solicitor submitted a report that provided an update on the last municipal year’s member development work, and sets out an overview of the induction programme undertaken since May 2019, along with the planned development activity for the coming year.

Members discussed a number of matters, including:

·  Members expressed an interest in training for unconscious bias in regards to decision making, and requested that this be considered for the 2020/21 Member training programme.

·  There was some discussion around the cost savings and flexibility of webinar training modules, as opposed to Members attending structured training sessions, particularly for those who have childcare commitments and/or other occupations. However, it was noted that class-based training sessions were preferred by some Members, particularly as this form of training allows for sharing of ideas between Members, and that therefore a range of training options should be available.

·  Other suggestions included introducing an annual or biannual training day for all Members, and scheduling training sessions for the morning prior to Full Council meetings.

The Head of Governance and Scrutiny highlighted the opportunity for review of the Member Development Strategy (2011), and suggested that comments reflecting on technological developments and working arrangements be incorporated to ensure that Members are supported appropriately to fulfil their roles.

The Chair sought nominations for the membership of the Member Development and ICT Working Group. A number of Members expressed an interest and it was agreed that the membership would be flexible to allow other Members to join should they so wish.

The Member Development Officer would liaise directly with Members in respect of arrangements for this working group.

RESOLVED –

a)  That the current plans for Member Development activity in 2019/20 be noted;

b)  That the Member Development Strategy be reviewed during 2019/20;

c)  That the Terms of Reference for the Member Development and ICT Working Group be agreed.

Councillor D Cohen arrived at the meeting at 10:10 am.

To consider the report of the City Solicitor that presents an update to Member Management Committee following previous reports to this Committee in November 2018 and March 2019, looking at options to reduce the cost of printed agenda distribution and the associated environmental impact.

Further to minute 29 of the meeting held on 1st March 2019, the City Solicitor submitted a report presenting an update to Member Management Committee following previous reports to this Committee in November 2018 and March 2019 looking at options to reduce the cost of printed agenda distribution and the associated environmental impact.

Members noted the positive work that had taken place to date particularly with regard to the reduction in the number of paper agendas produced for both full Council meetings and the other Committees, Boards and Panels.

Members discussed a number of matters, including:

·  The meeting room infrastructure (particularly charging positions);

·  The suitability of the current ICT offer, and potential for future developments of the Modern.gov app;

·  The need for officers to support Members where appropriate to access the papers in a manner that they were most comfortable with;

·  The need for training to be available to Members.

Members also recognised and supported:

·  The benefits of the Member Development & ICT Working Group looking at the current ICT equipment offer for Members and assessing whether this supported Members to access their committee papers electronically.

·  The benefits of training on the Modern.gov app becoming an essential feature of the Member Development Strategy for newly elected members the benefits of offering refresher training on the Modern.gov app to existing Members as part of the Member Development Strategy.

·  The work carried out to date to ensure that the numbering was consistent between both paper and electronic copies of an agenda.

RESOLVED –

a)  That the progress made to date in supporting this Committees long term ambition to move towards paper free distribution of Committee agendas, in line with the recommendations made by this Committee in both November 2018 and March 2019, be noted.

b)  That updates to this Committee be requested as appropriate.

Cllr P Wray left the meeting during discussion of this item at 10:40 am.

To consider the report of the Director of Resources and Housing that provides a summary of the work undertaken to improve the personal security arrangements for Elected Members and the further work planned.

The Director of Resources and Housing submitted a report that provided a summary of the work undertaken to improve the personal security arrangements for Elected Members and the further work planned.

Members discussed a number of matters, including:

·  The need for a clearer understanding of the legal support available within the Council, as well as from West Yorkshire Police, in relation to cases of verbal or physical abuse towards Elected Members;

·  The requirement for Elected Members addresses to be published on the website was discussed, and there was a query as to whether Members addressed could be requested, as opposed to readily available on the Council’s website. Members were informed that there may be potential for an internal audit to review this matter and other issues raised by Members in regards to their safety.

Members felt that the concerns raised required further discussion with representatives of West Yorkshire Police and the relevant senior council officers, and therefore requested that a working group be held to discuss these matters, prior to the meeting of the Committee in February 2020.

RESOLVED –

a) That the contents of the report be noted;

b) That a working group be arranged to discuss this matter in more  detail.

Cllr J Lewis left the meeting during discussion of this item at 11 am.

To consider the report of the City Solicitor that sets out a schedule for approval detailing those organisations that the Council will continue to make an appointment to. The report also seeks approval of nominations to those organisations which fall to this Committee to make an appointment to.

The City Solicitor submitted a report that set out a schedule for approval detailing those organisations that the Council will continue to make an appointment to. The report also sought approval of nominations to those organisations which fall to this Committee to make an appointment to.

Following despatch of the agenda for the meeting, several nominations had been submitted and an updated schedule of appointments was provided for the Committee to consider. In respect of nominations provided by the Liberal Democrat Group, discussion focussed on the revised Outside Bodies Procedure Rules, which had been agreed by Annual Council on 22nd May 2019, with Members noting the decision that one Group cannot cede a place to another Group and that any reallocation of a place should stay with this Committee.

The report included a matter referred to this Committee by the Inner North West Community Committee (INWCC), seeking determination of a request for INWCC representation on Leeds Bradford Airport Consultative Committee (LBACC). The Committee noted the Authority’s current representation on various Airport boards and; having regard to the flightpaths operating over Leeds; supported the request and suggested that Outer North West CC as well as Inner North West CC should be included within the request for appointments to LBACC.

RESOLVED –

a)  That the Appointments to Outside Bodies Procedure Rules at Appendix 1 be noted;

b)  That the schedule at Appendix 2 (including the revised version provided to Members prior to the meeting) be noted, and the appointments set out in the appendix be agreed, with the exception of one appointment to Voluntary Action Leeds;

c)  That the schedule at Appendix 3 be noted and the delegation of the appointment of these to the Community Committees be agreed;

d)  That representatives of the Leeds Bradford Airport Consultative Committee (LBACC) be contacted to see if additional Leeds City Council Representatives could be secured on that Committee in order that both the Inner North West and Outer North West Community Committees had a representative;

e)  That the designation of Local Care Partnerships as Community and Local Engagement and therefore the relevant Community Committee being the appointing body be noted;

f)  That the changes to the Outside Bodies schedule as outlined in paragraph 3.14 of the report be noted.

The next meeting will take place on Friday 28^th February 2020 at 10:30am.

The next meeting will take place 28^th February 2020 at 10:30 am.