Agenda and minutes

Councillor Botten paid tribute to Councillor Pursehouse for his work as Chair during the previous two years. Councillor Pursehouse responded by thanking all concerned for the support he received during his two years in office.

The Council proceeded with the election of a Chair for 2020/21. Councillor Morrow was nominated by Councillor Botten and seconded by Councillor Black. There were no other nominations. 

          R E S O L V E D – that Councillor Morrow be elected Chair of the Council for 2021/22.

Councillor Morrow then took the Chair and thanked Members for appointing him.

The Council proceeded with the election of a Vice-Chair for 2021/22. Councillor Wren was nominated by Councillor Pursehouse and seconded by Councillor Jones. There were no other nominations.

          R E S O L V E D – that Councillor Wren be elected Vice-Chair of the Council for 2021/22.

The Chair welcomed the new Members who had joined the Council following the district elections on the 6^th May (namely Councillors Mike Crane, Phil Flower,

Jenny Gaffney, Mick Gillman, Matthew Groves, Liam Hammond, Taylor O’Driscoll, Carole North, Keith Prew and Deb Shiner).

The Chair advised that his charities for the year would be the Caterham Food Bank and the Robert Bouffler Music Trust.

The Chair also confirmed his wish to host a Civic Service at All Saints Church, Warlingham.

The minutes of the Council meeting held on the 22^nd April 2021 were confirmed and signed by the Chair.

The report of the Planning Committee meeting held on the 29^th April 2021 was received.

As the ‘Coronavirus Regulations 2020’ ceased to apply from the 6^th May 2021, local authorities were no longer permitted to conduct virtual meetings. A report was therefore submitted with proposed amendments to the Constitution, namely:

·                     deletion of references to virtual meetings throughout Standing Orders; and

·                     removal of the remote meetings protocol.

While acknowledging the need to amend Standing Orders in accordance with the current legislation, some Members expressed regret that virtual meetings (at least as far as Members with voting rights were concerned) could no longer continue.

            R E S O L V E D – that:

A.            the Council’s Standing Orders for meetings (Part B of the Constitution)                              be amended in accordance with the track changes at Appendix A;                                                and

B.            the Protocol for Members and Officers attending remote meetings be                                 removed from Part F of the Constitution.  

The proposed memberships of the respective Committees will be circulated prior to the meeting.

The Council considered a report to enable it to appoint its Committees and

            Sub-Committees for the 2021/22 Municipal Year, including the allocation of seats in accordance with political balance requirements.

            Following consultation with Group Leaders, it was not deemed necessary to continue the previous year’s practice of appointing a second vice-chair for each committee.

            A change to the Council’s call-in procedure was recommended so that no single political group could trigger the process. This was in light of the proposed increase in the size of the Audit & Scrutiny Committee and would require five members of that committee (as opposed to three) to ‘call-in’ a relevant policy committee decision. Arguments for and against this amendment were debated.

            Given the current political balance of the Council, it was also considered appropriate to require officers to consult the three largest political groups on key matters referred to within the constitution. The process for such consultation was governed by Standing Order 46 which identified political groups comprising ten or more Councillors as those having to be consulted (when, as at present, the Council is in a state of no overall control). An amendment to that Standing Order was therefore recommended whereby the size of such groups would be reduced to eight or more Councillors.

          R E S O L V E D – that:

A.        the Council’s Committees for 2021/22, and the number of seats allocated to each Committee, be as per Appendix B;

B.        the Council’s Sub-Committees for 2021/22, and the number of seats allocated to each Sub-Committee, be as per Appendix C;

C.        one chair and vice-chair be appointed by each Committee and

          Sub-Committee for 2021/22;

D.        the number of Councillors on the Audit & Scrutiny Committee who can, collectively, trigger the call-in process be increased from three to five Councillors and that paragraph 4.1 of the Council’s call-in procedure be amended accordingly; and

E.        Standing Order 46 (Requirements for Officers to consult with Members) be amended to require officers to undertake relevant consultation with political groups comprising eight (as opposed to ten) or more Councillors, i.e.:

          “Throughout Financial Regulations, the Scheme of Delegation and the Planning Protocol (parts C, E and F of the Constitution) requirements for officers having to consult Members shall be interpreted as follows:

(i)         if the Council is in a state of no overall control (i.e. where no single political group or a coalition of groups has an absolute majority of seats) such consultation shall be with the Leaders, or their nominated representatives, of political groups comprising ten eight or more Councillors; or

(ii)       if a single political group or a coalition of groups forming the Administration has an absolute majority of seats, such consultation shall be solely with the Leader(s) of the Council or his / her / their nominated representative(s).

The Council was invited to confirm the calendar of meetings attached at Appendix D.

Councillor Botten, seconded by Councillor Caulcott, proposed an amendment whereby the calendar would be reviewed by the Strategy & Resources Committee in the 5^th October. This was in light of suggestions that the dates of certain policy committee meetings should be more evenly spread to avoid the need for two committees having to meet in the same week. Arguments for and against the amendment were debated. Upon being put to the vote, the amendment was carried.

          R E S O L V E D – that the Strategy & Resources Committee formally review the calendar of meetings at its meeting on 5th October 2021, so as to make an appropriate recommendation to the subsequent Full Council meeting.

A list of proposed appointments, agreed as far as possible by the Group Leaders, will be circulated prior to the meeting.

A list of proposed appointments to outside bodies was considered.

Votes were taken in respect of:

·           the Tandridge Community Safety Partnership as both Councillors Gillman and O’Driscoll had been nominated for the single vacancy – the vote was in favour of Councillor Gillman;

·           the Tandridge Health & Wellbeing Board as Councillors Botten, Duck and Swann had been nominated for the two vacancies – the vote was in favour of Councillors Botten and Swann;

·           Tandridge Voluntary Action as both Councillors Flower and Mansfield had been nominated for the single vacancy – the vote was in favour of Councillor Mansfield.

                 R E S O L V E D – that the appointments to outside bodies, attached at Appendix E, be agreed.

One spokesperson from each of the other political groups will have the right of reply.

In accordance with Standing Order No 6 (2), Councillor Sayer, in her capacity as Leader of the Independents and OLRG Alliance minority administration, made a Policy Statement covering the 2021/22 Municipal Year.

Councillors Elias, Botten, and Allen responded as Leaders of the Conservative, Liberal Democrat, and Independent Groups respectively.

In accordance with Standing Order 13(4) Councillor Cooper requested that support for Councillor Sayer’s policy statement be the subject of a recorded vote. This was supported by the requisite number of Councillors as required by Standing Order 13(4). The result of the vote was as follows:

For

Councillors Allen, Blackwell, Bourne, Davies, Farr, Gillman, Langton, Lockwood, Mills, Pursehouse, Sayer, Shiner, Stamp, Swann, C.White, N.White and Wren (17)

                 Against

                 Councillor Connolly (1)

                 Abstain

                 Councillors Black, Botten, Caulcott, Cooper, Duck, Elias, Flower, Gaffney, Gray,          Groves, Hammond, Jones, Lee, Mansfield, Morrow, North, O’Driscoll, Prew, Ridge             and Steeds (20)