Agenda item

To receive a verbal update regarding the National Standards Forum.

The Chair and Monitoring Officer had attended the second National Standards Forum held on 30 June 2023.  The Chair highlighted the following key points –

·       notes would be circulated to Standards Committees and be publicly available

·       a training session on chairing Standards Committees would be arranged by the Welsh Local Government Association

·       a talk by Professor Mark Philp on his role as a member of the Chair of the Committee on Standards in Public Life Research Advisory Board

·       a talk by Michelle Morris, Public Services Ombudsman for Wales (PSOW) on her annual report for 2022/23

·       a discussion on promoting high standards, the Group Leaders Duty and duty of the Standards Committee to comment on the Group Leaders’ compliance.  It was confirmed that leaders should meet with the full Standards Committee

·       supporting Town and Community Councils; the Deputy Monitoring Officer advised that some councils in Denbighshire had adopted a local resolution process whereas others had not; the Chair suggested reference to that topic could also be included in the generic feedback following attendance at meetings

·       resourcing Standards Committees was a challenge, with greater responsibilities on Standards Committees and heavier workloads for Monitoring Officers

·       an update on the Penn Review with the responses to the consultation being analysed and the results published in the autumn; depending on the results it may require secondary legislation followed by a 12-week consultation period

·       Monitoring Officers were seeking to introduce £25 as the minimum value for gifts and hospitality which was usual amongst most councils (including Denbighshire)

·       future items for consideration included local resolution protocols and Corporate Joint Committees and Joint Standards Committees.

The Chair advised that the meeting had been extremely useful and reiterated that the notes of future meetings would be shared with the Standards Committee.

Members highlighted that only 35 of the 280 complaints made to the PSOW (relating to the Code of Conduct) had been investigated and discussed the potential reasoning for the low number, which could include a high number of lower-level issues, frivolous and vexatious complaints and/or too stringent an application of the public interest test.  It was noted that the process for submitting complaints to the PSOW was clear and straightforward.  Members accepted that the PSOW had limited resources and choices to make in terms of investigations and balancing the seriousness of the issues brought forward, with clinical negligence used as an example.  However, it was considered that the high number of complaints not investigated could risk disillusionment and the loss of public support and trust in the process, and the Standards Committee could only carry out its work by way of reference from the PSOW.  The other mechanism for involvement of the Standards Committee was via the informal complaints protocol, but the general view was that action would prejudice the Committee’s judgement in the event the complaint was subsequently referred to the Standards Committee by the PSOW.  At the close of debate, members agreed that a letter be sent to the PSOW detailing the Committee’s observations regarding the high number of complaints which did not pass the public interest test, and reference to the PSOW’s powers to refer matters to the Standards Committee at their own volition for local resolution.

RESOLVED that –

(a)      the verbal report on the meeting of the National Standards Forum held on 30 June 2023 be received and noted, and

(b)      the Deputy Monitoring Officer draft a letter to the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales (PSOW), for consideration by the Standards Committee, setting out the Committee’s observations regarding the high number of complaints which did not pass the public interest test and referencing the powers of the PSOW to refer matters to the Standards Committee for local resolution.

At this juncture (11.55 am) the meeting adjourned for a comfort break.