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The decisions as the council's minutes record them. A plain-language summary follows once it has been written.
RESOLVED that the report be received.
RESOLVED that dispensation be granted under Regulations 2(2)(d), 2(2)(f) and 2(2)(g) of the Standards Committees (Grant of Dispensation) (Wales) Regulations 2001 to Councillor Alex Evans to speak and make written representations but NOT vote on business at meetings of the County Council and Llanelli Rural Council regarding matters pertaining to Ysgol Pontiets or Ysgol Pum Heol and the dispensation be valid until 31st December 2026.
RESOLVED that dispensation be granted under Regulations 2(2)(d) and 2(2)(e) of the Standards Committees (Grant of Dispensation) (Wales) Regulations 2001 to Councillors Charlotte Morgan, Geraint Price, Kate Glanville, Gordon Kilby, Katie Rees, Charlote Walker to speak, make written representations and vote on business at meetings of the Llandeilo Town Council regarding proposals for a bypass for the town of Llandeilo and the dispensation be valid until the end of the current electoral term.
RESOLVED that the Legal Services Manager consult with the Group leaders about amending the protocol to address - The protocol for complaints by one unaffiliated member about another unaffiliated member. - The protocol for complaints by one group leader about another group leader. - The protocol for dealing with persistent low-level breaches. And that the protocol be amended and a revised draft submitted to the next meeting of the Committee for consideration.
RESOLVED that 8.1 The changes to the document be agreed. 8.2 The duty for Group Leaders to resolve low-level complaints be added. 8.3 The arrangements for Group Leaders to meet with the Committee to discuss those reports be provisionally agreed as the Committee Meeting on 1st June 2026 and that arrangements be made for an informal meeting early in 2026 with the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Committee. 8.4 The deadline for Group Leaders to deliver their annual reports be set for two weeks prior to the meeting
Apologies for absence were received from independent members Siwan Davies and Frank Phillips.
There were no declarations of personal interest.
UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting of the Standards Committee held on the 1st September 2025 be signed as a correct record.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED that the report be received.
The Committee received a report detailing the progress achieved in relation to the actions, requests or referrals that had come from previous meetings. It was noted in relation to action DPSC-237/1, that after his letter the Legal Services Manager and Standards Committee chair had met with Cwmamman Community Council and had been given reasons for two of the three years of non-submission. This was due to an unexpected change of clerk, and illness of the clerk. He advised that the other year the Community Council believed it had been submitted. The Committee was advised that in addition to the letters sent to all other councils that had failed to respond, the process followed by Media and Marketing would be checked to make sure there was no technical reason for submitted responses to be lost. The Committee was also advised in relation to action DPSC-237/2, that the letter regarding Civility and Respect pledge had been sent out to all councils and that two councils had confirmed that they had signed up, and that there had been around a dozen expressions of interest and requests for more information. UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that the report be received.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED that dispensation be granted under Regulations 2(2)(d), 2(2)(f) and 2(2)(g) of the Standards Committees (Grant of Dispensation) (Wales) Regulations 2001 to Councillor Alex Evans to speak and make written representations but NOT vote on business at meetings of the County Council and Llanelli Rural Council regarding matters pertaining to Ysgol Pontiets or Ysgol Pum Heol and the dispensation be valid until 31st December 2026.
The Committee considered an application submitted by County Councillor and Llanelli Rural Community Councillor Alex Evans for the grant of a dispensation under the provisions of the Standards Committees (Grant of Dispensations) (Wales) Regulations to speak, vote and make written representations in relation to council business relating to or likely to affect Ysgol Pontiets or Ysgol Pum Heol and in particular any council business regarding the proposed closure of Ysgol Pontiets. The Committee was advised that Councillor Evans is a Governor of both schools and therefore would have a personal interest in any council business relating to them by virtue of paragraphs 10(2)(a) (viii) and (ix)(aa) of the code. A member of the public, knowing of this connection might reasonably conclude that it would influence Cllr Evans’s judgement when considering such council business. It was reported that a dispensation was sought by Councillor Evans by virtue of several grounds in the Standards Committees (Grant of Dispensations) (Wales) Regulations 2001, namely: 1. That his participation would not damage public confidence. 2. That his participation in the business is justified by his particular role or expertise 3. That the business is to be considered by an overview and scrutiny committee. The Committee was advised that if it was minded to grant Councillor Evans’ request it would also need to determine the duration of that dispensation. The Legal Services Manager noted that the dispensation was being sought despite the usual exemption for school governors because Councillor Evans is a governor of two schools. Any council business relating to the closure of Ysgol Pontiets would impact both schools, but the exemption would only cover the school he had been nominated for by the County Council at its meetings, and the Llanelli Rural Council at its meetings. Following a discussion, it was UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that dispensation be granted under Regulations 2(2)(d), 2(2)(f) and 2(2)(g) of the Standards Committees (Grant of Dispensation) (Wales) Regulations 2001 to Councillor Alex Evans to speak and make written representations but NOT vote on business at meetings of the County Council and Llanelli Rural Council regarding matters pertaining to Ysgol Pontiets or Ysgol Pum Heol and the dispensation be valid until 31st December 2026.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED that dispensation be granted under Regulations 2(2)(d) and 2(2)(e) of the Standards Committees (Grant of Dispensation) (Wales) Regulations 2001 to Councillors Charlotte Morgan, Geraint Price, Kate Glanville, Gordon Kilby, Katie Rees, Charlote Walker to speak, make written representations and vote on business at meetings of the Llandeilo Town Council regarding proposals for a bypass for the town of Llandeilo and the dispensation be valid until the end of the current electoral term.
The Committee considered an application submitted by the clerk to Llandeilo Town Council on behalf of 6 members of that authority for the grant of dispensation to speak, vote and make written representations in relation to council business regarding proposals for a bypass for the town of Llandeilo. The Committee was advised that the homes and/or business interests of the Councillors in question would potentially be affected by the proposals and the supporting statement to the application contains further information regarding this. The Councillors would therefore have a personal interest in any council business relating to this issue by virtue of paragraphs 10(2)(a) (i) and (vi) and 10(2)(c)(i) and (ii) of the code. A member of the public, knowing of this connection might reasonably conclude that it would influence their judgement when considering such council business. It was reported that dispensation was sought on several grounds in the Standards Committees (Grant of Dispensations) (Wales) Regulations 2001, namely: 1. That their participation would not damage public confidence. 2. That the interest is common to them and a significant proportion of the general public In addition, as 6 out of 12 council members have such an interest in this business, the additional ground that “at least half of the members considering the business has an interest” also applies. The Committee was advised that if it was minded to grant the dispensation request, its duration would also need to be determined. Following a discussion, it was UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that dispensation be granted under Regulations 2(2)(d) and 2(2)(e) of the Standards Committees (Grant of Dispensation) (Wales) Regulations 2001 to Councillors Charlotte Morgan, Geraint Price, Kate Glanville, Gordon Kilby, Katie Rees, Charlote Walker to speak, make written representations and vote on business at meetings of the Llandeilo Town Council regarding proposals for a bypass for the town of Llandeilo and the dispensation be valid until the end of the current electoral term.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED that the Legal Services Manager consult with the Group leaders about amending the protocol to address - The protocol for complaints by one unaffiliated member about another unaffiliated member. - The protocol for complaints by one group leader about another group leader. - The protocol for dealing with persistent low-level breaches. And that the protocol be amended and a revised draft submitted to the next meeting of the Committee for consideration.
The Committee received a report on the protocol for dealing with low level complaints between members. The Committee was advised that The Public Services Ombudsman for Wales expects local authorities to adopt a protocol for the resolution of low level complains between members with the aim of reducing the number of low-level member vs member code complaints being referred to the Ombudsman. Given the disparity between authorities on this issue Monitoring Officers in Wales established a working group to review the various approaches and to try and agreed a more unified model protocol. However, during its deliberations, the group concluded that it would not be possible to develop a single model protocol and instead recommended that each council review its own protocol in light of the views expressed by the Ombudsman and confidential legal advice made available to Monitoring Officers. Group Leaders were consulted about the current protocol by the (then) Chair and Vice-Chair of the Standards Committee early in 2025. There was no appetite amongst the Group Leaders for any change to the current protocol, which would require political approval by the wider Council in any event. The Committee had the following questions or comments: - It was requested that the protocol for complaints from one unaffiliated member about another unaffiliated member be clarified, and that a protocol for complaints by one group leader about another group leader be added. - The Legal Services Manager clarified the process for reporting persistent breaches of the code to the Ombudsman, advising that any of the complainant, group leader or monitoring officer could do this. He also advised that he would be hesitant to make this a duty of the monitoring officer, as this may impact their perceived ability to deal with the complaint impartially at a later stage. UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that the Legal Services Manager consult with the Group leaders about amending the protocol to address - The protocol for complaints by one unaffiliated member about another unaffiliated member. - The protocol for complaints by one group leader about another group leader. - The protocol for dealing with persistent low-level breaches. And that the protocol be amended and a revised draft submitted to the next meeting of the Committee for consideration.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED that 8.1 The changes to the document be agreed. 8.2 The duty for Group Leaders to resolve low-level complaints be added. 8.3 The arrangements for Group Leaders to meet with the Committee to discuss those reports be provisionally agreed as the Committee Meeting on 1st June 2026 and that arrangements be made for an informal meeting early in 2026 with the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Committee. 8.4 The deadline for Group Leaders to deliver their annual reports be set for two weeks prior to the meeting
The Committee received a report on the Group Leaders reporting template and any additional advice or guidance to be given to Group Leaders in the preparation of their annual reports. The Committee was advised that The Local Government and Elections (Wales) Act 2021 places duties on Standards Committees and political group leaders regarding the promotion of compliance with the code of conduct. One of the duties requires Group Leaders to report annually to the Committee. To facilitate this the committee has adopted pro forma report template, copy of which was included in the agenda pack. The committee has also adopted criteria against which the performance of the Group Leaders is measured. A copy of these criteria was also included. The Legal Services Manager clarified that the assessment threshold document would be sent out at the same time as the report on compliance with Group Leaders duty, so the former could be used to inform the latter. UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that 8.1 The changes to the document be agreed. 8.2 The duty for Group Leaders to resolve low-level complaints be added. 8.3 The arrangements for Group Leaders to meet with the Committee to discuss those reports be provisionally agreed as the Committee Meeting on 1st June 2026 and that arrangements be made for an informal meeting early in 2026 with the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Committee. 8.4 The deadline for Group Leaders to deliver their annual reports be set for two weeks prior to the meeting
UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED pursuant to the Local Government Act 1972, as amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) (Wales) Order 2007 that the following item was not for publication as the report contained exempt information as defined in Paragraph 12 of Part 4 of Schedule 12A to the Act.
There were no items of urgent business.
Councillors must say when they have a personal link to something being discussed, such as a job, a property or a family member. A prejudicial interest is one strong enough that the councillor usually leaves the room and takes no part.
Declarations are read from the minutes once they are published.
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