Meeting documents

1

DECLARATION OF INTEREST

No declaration of interest submitted by either a Member or Officer in respect of any item on the Agenda.

2

MINUTES

Minutes of the meeting of the Standards Committee meeting held on 14 December 2005 were confirmed and signed as a true record of the meeting. (Council Volume 02.03.2006, pages 50 - 52)

3

COMPLAINT AGAINST A COMMUNITY COUNCILLOR

The Chair introduced this item by reminding those present that this was a full hearing held under Regulation 9 of the relevant regulation and followed a preliminary hearing held under Regulation 7 on 14 December 2005. That hearing followed a decision of the Ombudsman to accept a complaint by Mr and Mrs Pritchard alleging that Mr Bernard Summerfield, whilst he was a Member of the Llanfaelog Community Council, breached the Code of conduct as adopted by the Llanfaelog Community Council. The decision of the Standards Committee held on 14 December 2005 followed a detailed investigation of the matter by the Solicitor to the Monitoring Officer for Anglesey County Council. At the preliminary hearing, the Standards Committee agreed that, in its opinion, there was sufficient evidence on which to proceed to a full Hearing.

At the end of the Hearing, the Committee would retire to determine whether it upholds the complaint that Mr Summerfield failed to comply with the Code of Conduct. Should it decide not to uphold the complaint, that would be the end of the matter. However, should the Committee uphold the complaint, it would announce that decision and give its reasons. It would then ask whether there were any matters which the Committee should take into account in mitigation and with regard to any possible sanction.

The Chair outlined the procedure to be followed for the Hearing and confirmed that MrSummerfield was present together with his legal representative, Mr. Alwyn Jones.

The Chair invited Mr Meirion Jones, as the Investigating Officer and Solicitor to the Monitoring Officer, to present his report to the Committee. Mr Jones stated that whilst he did not intend to deal with each and every aspect of his report he wished to make it clear that all the contents, including appendices, should be considered evidence. As part of the papers submitted to the Committee, the Investigating Officer had included copies of :-

Mr and Mrs Pritchard's form alleging the breach of the Code of Conduct;

Correspondence from the Ombudsman;

Witness Statement by Mr and Mrs Pritchard;

Location Plan and Definitive Path Plan;

Minutes of the Llanfaelog Community Council meeting held on 22 January 1997 and 23rd July 1997;

Copy of Estate Agents details;

Correspondence from H.Jenkins & Hughes Solicitors and Carys Hughes, Solicitor;

Investigation Report regarding application to delete public footpath 4A prepared by J. Clark and A.G.Evans;

Minutes of Llanfaelog Community Council meeting held on 23 October 2002 and 28th May 2003;

Order Decision in respect of modification to Definitive Map and Statement for the deletion of Footpath 4A, Llanfaelog;

Letter from Emyr Parry, Clwyd Jones & Lloyd, Solicitors;

Code of Conduct adopted by the Llanfaelog community Council on 28 November 2001

together with an undertaking to comply by the Code signed by Mr Summerfield;

Response to the allegations by Mr Summerfield prepared and amended by the Investigating Officer, Mr Meirion Jones;

Minutes of the Community Council meeting held on 27 November 2002;

Letter from Mr Summerfield to Mr Meirion Jones dated 9 December 2005;

Letter from Mr Summerfield to the Public Footpaths Officer dated 6 June 2003;

Memorandum from Public Footpaths Officer to Mr Meirion Jones dated 9 January 2006;

Extract from "Rights of Way" Document;

Document relating to "Damages caused by Mr Summerfield's various claims including a footpath from 2000 onwards" and "Effect and damage that a footpath 4A would have made if it had been established by Mr Summerfield"

Letter from Clerk to the Llanfaelog Community Council dated 16 January 2006;

Letter from Mr Meirion Jones to Mr Summerfield dated 5 January 2006;

Letter from Mr Summerfield to Mr Meirion Jones dated 24 January 2006;

Notes regarding the functions of the Standards Committee/Procedure & Powers;

Mr Jones referred to the long standing dispute between Mr Summerfield and the complainants,  Mr and Mrs Pritchard, but did not elaborate on this issue. However, Mr Jones took that view that having regard to the existing dispute, Mr Summerfield should have taken particular care with regard to his conduct at Community Council meetings and given serious consideration as to whether he should declare an interest and not take further part in the proceedings.

Mr Jones drew attention to the primary aspects of the complaint. Firstly, the relevant period in this matter is 28 November 2001 to 28 May 2003. The Code of Conduct was signed by the Llanfaelog Community Council on 28 November 2001 and Mr Summerfield retired as a Member of that Community Council on 28 May 2003.

A meeting of the Community Council was held on 23rd October 2002. The minutes for that meeting show Mr Summerfield as being present. The minutes also state: "Mr Arwel Evans, the Public Rights of Way Officer attended the meeting. The main topic of discussion was the proposed deletion of the spur on path number 4A at Tyn Pwll Bach, Rhosneigr ...."

The minutes state that Mr Summerfield objected to the proposed deletion of the path whilst Mr Pritchard had written a letter supporting the proposal - this letter was read out to the Council.

Mr Jones took the view that whether or not Mr Summerfield had declared an interest or not was to a certain extent irrelevant, clearly he had stayed at the meeting and had taken part in the discussion.

Mr Jones drew the Committee's attention to the minutes of the Community Council meeting held on 27 November 2002 and to the Clerk's hand written notes. The minutes show Mr Summerfield as being present. No reference is made to the minutes of the previous meeting, however, the Clerk's written notes show "MINUTES - OK". There is no correction to the minutes, neither is there any reference made to a correction in the matters arising section of the minutes therefore one must

presume that the minutes were accepted as correct.

Part III of the Code of Conduct (which Mr Summerfield undertook to abide by on 28 November 2001) refers to Disclosure and Registration of Interests.Mr Jones referred in particular to paragraphs 10, 11, 13(f) and 16(3). Paragraph 10 states "Members must in all matters consider whether they have a personal interest, and whether this Code of Conduct requires them to disclose that interest".

Paragraph 11 states "a member has a personal interest in a matter if that member anticipates that a decision upon it may reasonably be regarded as likely to benefit or disadvantage:

(a)    the member, one of the members family or a friend, or any person with whom the member has a close personal relationship, or

(b)    a body which employs those persons, or for which those persons have any degree of ownership, control or management, to a greater extent than other council tax payers, rate payers or inhabitants of the authority's area.

Paragraph 13(f) states "any land in which the member or a member of the member's family has a beneficial interest and which is in the area of the authority."  A memorandum from the Footpaths Officer to the Investigating Officer states "....I don't believe it would have been of significant use to Mr Summerfield.....There may have been a small benefit.....  The dispute between landowners in this case essentially appears to be a private right of way dispute..."

Paragraph 16 and in particular 16 (3) states "a member who has a personal interest in a matter which is not specified in paragraphs 12, 13 or 14 above, and who attends a meeting of the authority at which the matter is discussed must disclose the existence and nature of the interest at the commencement of that discussion or when the interest becomes apparent. If that personal interest is such that a member of the public might reasonably conclude that it would significantly affect the member's ability to act purely on the merits of the case and in the public interest if that member were to take part in the discussion of that matter, the member must also withdraw from consideration of the matter at that meeting unless granted a dispensation by the authority's Standards Committee."  In view of the long standing dispute between Mr Summerfield and Mr and Mrs Pritchard, Mr Summerfield shown have declared an interest at the Council meeting.

In conclusion, Mr Jones drew the Committee's attention to the fact that Mr Summerfield, in his letter of 6 June 2003 to the Public Footpaths Officer wrote :  "I did state in the Council meeting with you, covering all the footpaths in Llanfaelog, that footpath Spur 4A was used on occasions...." Mr Jones felt this to be a clear admission by Mr Summerfield that not only did he participate in the Council meeting but he specifically referred to the footpath which was the subject matter of the neighbours dispute between him and Mr Pritchard namely footpath spur 4A. Mr Jones submitted that the documentation provided by the Complainants and  produced as part of the report to Committee presented a seemingly irrefutable case against Mr Summerfield but that Mr Summerfield, by his own admission in his letter of 6th June 2003 had made the case conclusive.

Mr Alwyn Jones, acting on behalf of Mr Summerfield was given the opportunity to clarify comments made by Mr Meirion Jones.

Mr Meirion Jones confirmed :

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the time table of events;

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that Mr Summerfield had been informed of the date of the December meeting of the Standards Committee;

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he had not take statements from two other members of the Community Council who it was maintained had declared an interest/from the Footpaths Officer nor from the Clerk to the Community Council as the minutes clearly reflected what had taken place;

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he had not questioned the Clerk as to whether he interpreted Mr Summerfield's statement that he objected to the proposed deletion of the path as being a declaration of interest nor whether Mr Summerfield had taken any further part in any discussion at the meeting;

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that if Mr Summerfield had concerns regarding the above issues and considered it important he could have dealt with any enquiries as he thought fit;

Mr Alwyn Jones stated that at the meeting of the Community Council in 1997 a discussion had taken place regarding all footpaths in the Community. Mr Alwyn Jones therefore maintained that in Mr Summerfield's letter of 6 June 2003 to the Public Footpaths Officer that Mr Summerfield was referring to the 1997 meeting of the Community Council and not to the 23 October 2002 meeting.

Mr Alwyn Jones drew attention to the fact that Community Councils have no decision making powers in respect of Public Footpaths and Mr Summerfield had not made any comments regarding the footpath to the Inspector appointed by the National Assembly for Wales to consider the Modification Order to delete Footpath 4A.

Mr Gwynfor Jones of the Standards Committee questioned Mr Meirion Jones as to whether, in light of Mr Alwyn Jones' interpretation that Mr Summerfield did declare an interest at the October meeting of the Community Council by virtue of his comments and the fact he took no further part in the discussion,  but also bearing in mind the contents of Mr Summerfield's letter of 6th June 2003 to the Footpaths Officer, whether Mr Jones remained of the opinion as to which Committee Mr Summerfield was referring to. Mr Meirion Jones conceded he may not be as one hundred per cent sure but drew attention to the fact that the 1997 meeting had been held many years ago whilst the October 2002 meeting had only been held 5 months prior to the allegation. He stated he still believed it was the October 2002 meeting to which Mr Summerfield was referring to. Mr Meirion Jones also confirmed that had  Mr Sumerfield was present at the November 2002 meeting of the Community Council and that had he been in disagreement with the minutes of the October meeting then Mr Jones would have expected to have seen a note of that disagreement minuted as part of the minutes of the November meeting. Mr Jones also confirmed that in the Investigation Report regarding the application to delete Public Footpath 4A prepared by J.Clark and A.G.Evans of the Council's Highways, Transportation & Property Section, Para 4.6.3 states "Mr B.J.Summerfield of Ty Hen, Rhosneigr (Community Councillor) who opposes the deletion of footpath 4A supplied names and addresses ......" which makes it evident that Mr Summerfield had put forward objections to the Highways Department.

The Chair invited Mr Alwyn Jones, the Solicitor representing Mr Summerfield to present Mr Summerfield's case to the Committee.

Mr Alwyn Jones expressed concern at the length of time the complaint had taken to be dealt with as this made it more difficult to recall precise details.

He again emphasised the Community Councils have no duties or powers to delete or modify footpaths. Neither does the County Council. For this reason he did not accept that Mr Summerfield could have influenced any discussion or debate. The County Council had taken the decision to make an Order to the Inspector appointed by the National Assembly for Wales to modify the Definitive Map and Statement for the area by deleting Footpath 4A at Llanfaelog. He referred to the memorandum dated 10 January 2006 from the Footpaths Officer to Mr Meirion Jones in which he states "...this dispute between Landowners in this case essentially appears to be a private right of way dispute and the highway authority was dragged into it."  Mr Alwyn Jones agreed with this statement and confirmed the private dispute, and the bad feeling and vindictiveness between the parties involved in this issue.

Mr Alwyn Jones reiterated that Mr Summerfield had, by virtue of having stated only that he objected to the deletion of the proposed path, declared an interest at the October meeting of the Community Council and this, Mr Alwyn Jones conceeded, was verified by virtue of the fact that Mr Summerfield had taken no further part in the discussion. Mr Summerfield was not aware of the need to leave the meeting during the discussion. He further reiterated that the letter to the Footpaths Officer referred to the 1997 Community Council meeting when all footpaths were discussed. He emphasised there should be no assumptions or doubts regarding which meeting was being referred to and that Mr Meirion Jones had conceeded there was an element of doubt in his mind having heard Mr Summerfield's response.

The Chair thanked Mr Alwyn Jones for his representations and invited the Standards Committee members to respond and ask questions for clarification purposes. A Standards Committee Member stated that whilst he accepted the Community Council had no decision making powers, it should be taken into consideration that Mr Summerfield had taken the opportunity at the October meeting to express his objection and that this may have influenced the Footpaths Officer when he prepared his report. Mr Alwyn Jones took the view that this depended on the capacity in which the Officer was present at the meeting - and that it appeared from the minutes of the meeting that it was a general discussion on footpaths and not merely to discuss footpath spur 4A.

A Member of the Standards Committee drew attention to a letter Mr Summerfield had sent to Elizabeth Thomas at the Ombudsman's Office and referred in particular to where Mr Summerfield had written :  "On the subject concerned I stated very clearly that I was opposed to the closure of this footpath spur and as such must declare an interest and take no further part in the proceedings."  The Standards Committee Member did not accept that voicing an opinion and subsequently declaring an interest was  the right and proper way to declare an interest.

In summarising, Mr Meirion Jones noted that whilst Mr Alwyn Jones had stated Mr Summerfield had taken no further part in the 23 October meeting, the minutes show that Mr Summerfield had later on in the discussion, made comments to the Footpaths Officer regarding the footpath at Ty Hen.  Mr Meirion Jones maintained that Mr Summerfield was referring to the October meeting of the Community Council in his letter of 6 June 2003 to the Footpaths Officer.

Mr Alwyn Jones summarised by reminding Members of the Standards Committee that they had to make a decision on the balance of probability and contended Mr Summerfield had declared an interest at the October meeting. In his letter of 14 June to Elizabeth Thomas, Mr Summerfield had written: "My pet subject was declaring an interest however small the possible connection."

Mr Summerfield had been a Councillor for a number of years and was aware of situations where he may need to declare an interest. Mr Alwyn Jones took the view that declaring an interest was appropriate only when there was financial gain or where the individual was part of the decision making process. He did not accept Mr Summerfield had attempted to influence anyone by the comment he had made at the October meeting.  He reminded the Committee that there are no precise guidelines available as to when to declare an interest.

Mr Alwyn Jones drew attention to the element of doubt as to which meeting Mr Summerfield's letter of 6 June referred to and reminded the Committee that a discussion regarding footpaths had taken place at the Community Council meetings both in 1997 and 2002 and that Mr Summerfield was referring to the 1997 meeting in his letter of 6 June 2003.

In closing, Mr Alwyn Jones again stated Mr Summerfield had been a Community Councillor for a period of eighteen years having retired as a Councillor three years ago. Mr Summerfield had never attended any form of tribunal but had felt it necessary to attend this Hearing to defend the allegation made against him. He asked the Committee to consider the element of doubt and not to take the matter any further.

Having heard submissions by both parties, the Committee retired to private session to consider whether Mr Summerfield had breached Paragraphs 10, 11a, 13(f) and 16(3) of the Code of Conduct.

The Committee returned to Public Session and announced their decision based on findings of fact:-

The Committee unanimously agree that Mr Summerfield is in breach of paragraphs 10, 11a, 13(f) and 16(3) of the Code of Conduct.

The Committee unanimously agree that Mr.Summerfield had an interest to declare on the grounds that :-

(a)     From the submitted evidence, the Committee concluded that there was a long standing dispute between Councillor Summerfield and Mr and Mrs Pritchard in respect of Footpath Spur 4A;

(b)     Mr Summerfield's objection to the deletion could have resulted in a potential benefit to him;

(c)     Had the objection been upheld, it would have been a disadvantage to Mr and Mrs Pritchard;

On a balance of probabilities, the Committee unanimously resolved that Mr Summerfield did not declare an interest since:

(i)     the declaration of an interest is not recorded in the minutes;

(ii)     at the next meeting of the Community Council there was no correction to the minutes with regard to declarations of interest;

(iii)     by Mr Summerfield's own admission, in writing in a letter to Elisabeth Thomas dated 14 June 2004, Mr Summerfield has stated that he  was opposed to the closure of the Footpath Spur 4A;

(iv)     If, as Mr Summerfield asserts he then declared an interest, this, given the prior objection, is not considered to be right and proper as he should not have taken part in any discussion concerning Spur 4A. The Disclosure of Interest should have been made at the latest as soon as discussions on Spur 4A commenced;

Finally, the Committee wishes to reinforce the point that Councillors are subject to the requirements of the Code of Conduct whenever they are acting as Councillors. This includes any discussion or debate and not simply the final decision making process.

DECISION TAKEN WITH REGARD TO SANCTION HAVING LISTENED TO MITIGATION ON MR SUMMERFIELD'S BEHALF.

The Committee unanimously agree that :-

(i)     no further action is appropriate in this particular instance;

(ii)     we have taken into account Mr Summerfield's length of service as a Community Councillor;

(iii)     the Committee also took into account the fact that Mr Summerfield is no longer a serving Councillor.

DR GWYNETH ROBERTS

CHAIR