Issue - meetings

To submit a report by the Director of Function (Council Business)/Monitoring Officer and the Director of Function (Resources)/Section 151 Officer.

It was resolved to recommend the following to the Full Council –

·      That the Concerns and Complaints Policy and Contract Procedure Rules are removed from the Council’s Constitution and authority delegated to the Monitoring Officer to make any consequential amendments arising from these decisions.

·      That the Concerns and Complaints Policy and the Contract Procedure Rules (together with all supporting documents relevant to each) shall be readily available on the Council’s website.

·      That any future amendments to the Concerns and Complaints Policy and the Contract Procedure Rules shall no longer be matters reserved to Full Council and shall instead, be approved by the Executive or by the Monitoring Officer under existing delegation where those changes do not provide for any local choice or where changes are minor. Any changes to the Contract Procedure Rules shall always be subject to consultation with the Director of Function (Resources)/Section 151 Officer

The report of the Director of Function (Council Business)/Monitoring Officer and the Director of Function (Resources)/Section 151 Officer seeking the Executive’s views on proposed changes to the Council’s Constitution with regard to the Concerns and Complaints Policy (CPP) and Contract Procedure Rules (CPRs) for recommendation to the Full Council.

The report was presented by Councillor Carwyn Jones, Portfolio Member for Corporate Business and Customer Experience who outlined the changes being proposed and the relevant factors for consideration as set out in the report. The proposal is that both the CPP and the CPRs be removed from the Constitution and all material future changes to them be approved by the Executive. The CPP and CPRs along with supporting documents shall appear in a prominent position on the Council’s website. The changes would enable more timely review and amendment and would introduce a more flexible and responsive process. Publishing the CPP/CPRs and documentation prominently on the Council’s website will ensure transparency as well as clarity and accessibility for the public when they wish to pursue the complaints process and for contractors/businesses wishing to bid for Council contracts. There is no legal requirement to include the CCP/CPRs in the Constitution nor expectation to do so from the Council’s regulators. There are no risks or disadvantages to the proposal.

It was resolved to recommend the following to the Full Council –

• That the Concerns and Complaints Policy and Contract Procedure Rules are removed from the Council’s Constitution and authority delegated to the Monitoring Officer to make any consequential amendments arising from these decisions.
• That the Concerns and Complaints Policy and the Contract Procedure Rules (together with all supporting documents relevant to each) shall be readily available on the Council’s website.
• That any future amendments to the Concerns and Complaints Policy and the Contract Procedure Rules shall no longer be matters reserved to Full Council and shall instead, be approved by the Executive or by the Monitoring Officer under existing delegation where those changes do not provide for any local choice or where changes are minor. Any changes to the Contract Procedure Rules shall always be subject to consultation with the Director of Function (Resources)/Section 151 Officer.