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RESOLVED that the Undertaking be withdrawn and that the Monitoring Officer is instructed to submit the Committee’s recommendations to full Council for approval.
RESOLVED: to note the report.
RESOLVED to: 1. Agreed that refresher training on the Members’ Code of Conduct should be provided for all Members and Co-Opted Members of Cardiff Council 2. Agreed that refresher training on the Members’ Code of Conduct should be provided for Chairpersons. 3. Agreed the suggested topics for the refresher training as outlined in paragraph 6 of the report. 4. Agreed the training should be delivered both online and in person, 5. Agree that the refresher training on the Members’ Code of Conduct should be discretionary. However, Cllr Brown Reckless did express her view that the training should be recommended by Group Leaders to their group members.
RESOLVED – That the report be noted.
RESOLVED to: • Note the information set out in the report and its appendices and identify any appropriate topics that could be raised at future meetings of the National Standards Committee Chairs Forum. Note the current position regarding Community Councils in Cardiff signing up to the Civility Pledge.
RESOLVED: 1. To note the work programme report To note that an additional report on the Local Dispute Resolution Protocol be brought to the next meeting
The Chairperson welcomed Ruth Davies, the newly appointed Independent Member to the Committee. Apologies had been received from Cllr Cunnah and Rashpal Singh.
None received.
Cllr Brown Reckless referred to the Chairperson wanting to limit each member to five minutes when speaking. She considered that five minutes would not enable her to make the points she wishes to make in relation to the Cardiff Undertaking item. She considered that it's a policy that is fundamentally flawed, stating that doesn’t think there's anything in the constitution which limits Members to five minutes and if Members have got substantive points to make there should be ample time allowed, especially when she is the only representative from a political party. The Chairperson stated that allowing extra and lengthy time can be problematic but he would see if time allows as the meeting goes on. Discussing the minutes the Chairperson sought agreement that they were a correct record of the meeting. Cllr Brown Reckless asked that the wording be changed to specifically say that she called for the Ombudsman to resign. This was agreed. The Minutes were agreed as a correct record subject to the slight change in wording above, and signed by the Chairperson.
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RESOLVED that the Undertaking be withdrawn and that the Monitoring Officer is instructed to submit the Committee’s recommendations to full Council for approval.
The Chair introduced the item which gave Members of the Committee an opportunity to consider the Cardiff Undertaking, whether it is fit for purpose and whether it should remain or be withdrawn. If a decision is made to retain this, what changes, if any, should be considered. For this scrutiny, the Chair welcomed Debbie Marles - Director Governance & Legal Services, who explained that the report regarding this matter was very comprehensive . An overview of the contents and was provided: • Key legal documents are in place. • Members code of conduct is included and has been amended and developed over time. • Cardiff Undertaking is an additional document that was introduced in 2004. It was mentioned that this item has been before this committee previously, and the report includes comments from the Monitoring Officer who does not have a contrary view to those of her predecessor on this matter, and noted that they did have concerns about the language used in the Cardiff Undertaking as it differed from the Code of Conduct and there were some overlaps, so could cause confusion and be open to different interpretation. It was noted that the Cardiff Undertaking is not enforceable, whereas the Code of Conduct is, which raises questions over if this could cause confusion around requirements for Elected Members. Concerns had also been raised previously, which had led to this matter being considered by the committee, and that 29 Council Members did not sign the Cardiff Undertaking at (or following) the last Annual Council Meeting. Views had been sought from all Council political Group Leaders and responses recorded in the report. The Chairperson invited questions and comments from Members. Members asked what the situation was in 2004 that required governance arrangements to be put in place that required the Cardiff Undertaking to be created, what was perceived to be wrong and if we are in that situation now. Also, if other Councils have versions of this in place. It was noted that the Council is very different to how it was in 2004 and that various issues had meant that a Corporate Governance Commission was established. Reassurance was given that the same issues are not apparent now and that there was no knowledge that other Local Authorities in Wales have a similar arrangement in place. Cllr Brown Reckless said that she agreed with the comments from the Independent Group. It was mentioned that comments from the Conservative Group had not made it into this report and that the comments made in July were still relevant to this matter. Members were assured that requests for comments had been sent to all Group Leaders and reminder emails sent so they were satisfied that this has happened. It was agreed that the full text in relating to the Undertaking, from the letter written by the Conservative Group Leader would be included in the minutes, as follows; ‘we are concerned that councillors are annually requested to sign the “Cardiff Undertaking”, and that this is presented to councillors as being to raise standards, and something that they should do, with Monitoring Officer staff chasing up councillors who do not sign, particularly given few councillors are lawyers and they are not independently legally advised. We question provisions in the Undertaking that councillors are to “have proper regard to the advice and guidance issued by the Standards & Ethics Committee” and “adhere to and respect the provisions of any Local Resolution Protocol”, as it is not on its face clear what this extends to, and we do not wish to see councillors through this provision bound by documents which are not directly referenced and which they may not be aware they are becoming bound by, and please would you inform us at the upcoming SEC meeting if the Undertaking is used or has previously been relied upon to assert councillors are bound by guidance, or the Constitution, or other rules or documents. We also do not consider this should be included under the heading “Duty to uphold the law” as these are not law and that additional legal authority should not be implied. Councillors are elected to represent their constituents in their ward. Yet the Cardiff Undertaking brings in councillor obligation to give priority to the interests of Cardiff Council, Cardiff and the people of Cardiff, and we are not comfortable that this becomes constitutionally acceptable simply by adding the proviso that this is subject to any other overriding legal duties, or wording about balancing, and we question why this is included within the Undertaking.’ Members raised concerns about the process of consulting with Group Leaders only about this process and were advised that as it is part of the Constitution, this cannot be changed at the stage, only advised upon by Committee with a Report on the matter to be taken to a future Council Meeting However, feedback from the Chief Legal officer and members of this committee are welcomed and considered. Views in Paragraph 13 of the report stated that the Cardiff Undertaking may cause confusion. Members pointed out that full understanding of the Code of Conduct is necessary, so Members understand what is required for their full term in office, and that discussion regarding training on this was on the agenda. This was particularly relevant in relation to previous comments regarding the legal aspects. Cllr Brown Reckless commented that confusion caused by the Cardiff Undertaking could cause a lot of time to be lost and that the Code of Conduct should be amended to include elements of the Cardiff Undertaking rather than amending the Cardiff Undertaking. Cllr Brown Reckless also made the point that there are numerous documents relating to this which cause confusion, and could they be combined into one. It was agreed that this is an area of concern and consideration should be given to focussing on what is needed from a Legal point of view. Cllr Brown Reckless asked about the name – Cardiff Undertaking – and the implication that it is legally binding. It was also asked what is included in the Ethical Code referenced in this document, and reference to Safeguarding within the Cardiff Undertaking and whether this differs from duties elsewhere. It was explained that there are legal duties placed on Elected Members and there are Corporate Parenting legal duties and agreed that the Code of Conduct and Cardiff Undertaking cover different aspects of this. The Chairperson asked for a show of hands as to whether Members agreed that the Cardiff Undertaking should be removed. RESOLVED that the Undertaking be withdrawn and that the Monitoring Officer is instructed to submit the Committee’s recommendations to full Council for approval.
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RESOLVED: to note the report.
The Chairperson advised Committee Members that this report provided them with an update in respect of the Quarter 4 code of conduct complaints information. The Monitoring Officer introduced the report and advised Committee that no further complaints had been received through the Ombudsman in quarter four. Committee were advised that there is still one live matter with the Ombudsman, which the Ombudsman did indicate was going to be the subject of an investigation, but nothing further had been heard. The Monitoring Officer also noted that paragraph 8 included an update on the issue discussed at the Committee’s January meeting regarding the Ombudsman’s approach to informing members who are the subject of a complaint. Specifically, the discussion focused on whether members would be notified at the time a complaint is received, when an investigation is initiated, or only once a decision has been made. Since that meeting, the Ombudsman’s office has provided feedback indicating that, following responses received from across Wales, they will revert to their previous practice of notifying members at the point a complaint is received. The Chairperson asked Committee for any questions or observations on the report, there were none. RESOLVED: to note the report.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED to: 1. Agreed that refresher training on the Members’ Code of Conduct should be provided for all Members and Co-Opted Members of Cardiff Council 2. Agreed that refresher training on the Members’ Code of Conduct should be provided for Chairpersons. 3. Agreed the suggested topics for the refresher training as outlined in paragraph 6 of the report. 4. Agreed the training should be delivered both online and in person, 5. Agree that the refresher training on the Members’ Code of Conduct should be discretionary. However, Cllr Brown Reckless did express her view that the training should be recommended by Group Leaders to their group members.
The Committee considered the arrangements to be made for Members’ Code of Conduct refresher training sessions to be delivered by the Director of Governance & Legal Services and Monitoring Officer. Members asked questions and sought clarification on the following: Ruth Davies supported the general idea of refresher training but felt the report lacked detail about how the training would be delivered and the associated costs. The Monitoring Officer explained this would be delivered within existing budgets with no requirement for additional funding, though she could not provide a specific figure at this stage. Training could be provided in various ways such as individual groups or individually depending on the requirements of the topic, an external trainer could be used to share further insight. Ruth Davies noted the option of face-to-face sessions for Members and Co-Opted Members and considered those who had other jobs may have difficulty attending and suggested making recordings of sessions available online for them to access in their own time, and the potential of developing an online quiz around the training topic. The Monitoring Officer welcomed the suggestions. Julia Charles noted that sessions being retained online enabled attendees to attend when convenient and also to more easily refer back to previous training when something relevant to it came up. Julia Charles asked how often Code of Conduct of training would be required. The Monitoring Officer explained that the recommendation of the Independent Review of the Ethical Standards Framework was for a refresher session to be offered halfway through a term of office. This was not set in law but having considered the comments coming back from the behaviour survey it was considered that it would be timely to have a refresher training session during Municipal Year 2025/26. Cllr Brown-Reckless highlighted the value of written resources, for example the clear, concise handouts which she had received after a training session on safeguarding, which she often referred back to. She also suggested that the Code of Conduct could sometimes be hard to find, as there were many different ones online where only parts applied to Cardiff Council, so this could be made clearer to Members, with date / version numbers added. Discussing mandatory training, Cllr Brown-Reckless indicated that she generally did not agree with training being mandatory and would prefer it was recommended, potentially with Group Leaders recommending it to their Groups. She considered that there are many reasons why a Member or Co-Opted Member might not be able to attend training sessions, whether they are in-person, online, during the day or evening. She further added that clarity was needed around what was mandatory and what was guidance in relation to training. Louise Evans considered that there should be refresher training available to Members and Co-opted Members. She did not have any particular view on whether it should be mandatory or recommended. Louise Evans did consider the training should cover the areas outlined in the report and in addition at the end of the training, Members should be asked if there is anything further from the Code of Conduct that they feel they need training on. Having considered the report, the Committee RESOLVED to: 1. Agreed that refresher training on the Members’ Code of Conduct should be provided for all Members and Co-Opted Members of Cardiff Council 2. Agreed that refresher training on the Members’ Code of Conduct should be provided for Chairpersons. 3. Agreed the suggested topics for the refresher training as outlined in paragraph 6 of the report. 4. Agreed the training should be delivered both online and in person, 5. Agree that the refresher training on the Members’ Code of Conduct should be discretionary. However, Cllr Brown Reckless did express her view that the training should be recommended by Group Leaders to their group members.
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RESOLVED – That the report be noted.
Members received a report providing the Committee with an opportunity to consider the gifts and hospitality received by Members and which have been registered in accordance with rules set under the Members’ Code of Conduct. Members were invited to make comments or recommendations as appropriate. Louise Evans noted that the 28-day registration period for registration of hospitality and gifts also applied to the Register of Interests generally. She asked whether the wording of the code of conduct should be amended in order to remind Members that they should update their Register of Interests when their circumstances change. The Monitoring Officer stated that there is a legal requirement to refresh the register of interest within 28 day of any changes. Within Wales best practice has been adopted to remind members on an annual basis that any changes should be made. The Monitoring Officer agreed to revisit the wording of the code of conduct in this regard. Ruth Davies noted that a number of Councillors had received tickets for performances at the Sherman Theatre on a regular basis. She also noted that the Sherman Theatre was a licenced premises which had received funding from the Council and requested a further explanation on this. The Monitoring Officer stated that, following an earlier email exchange, the Head of Democratic Services had made further enquiries on the matter. The Monitoring Officer was reassured that receipt of those gifts would not put any Members in an improper position. Whilst there are partnership arrangements between the Council and the Sherman Theatre, there are no contractual arrangements in place and the Sherman Theatre last received funding from the authority in 2016. Ruth Davies raised a further query in relation to a dinner provided by an Investment company prior to a committee meeting, asking if this was usual practice. The Monitoring Officer agreed to look at this after the meeting and share any further information with the Committee. RESOLVED – That the report be noted.
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RESOLVED to: • Note the information set out in the report and its appendices and identify any appropriate topics that could be raised at future meetings of the National Standards Committee Chairs Forum. Note the current position regarding Community Councils in Cardiff signing up to the Civility Pledge.
The Chairperson advised Committee that this report provides the committee with an update in respect of the January 2025 meeting of the National Standards Committee Chairs Forum. There were no questions in respect of this item. RESOLVED to: • Note the information set out in the report and its appendices and identify any appropriate topics that could be raised at future meetings of the National Standards Committee Chairs Forum. Note the current position regarding Community Councils in Cardiff signing up to the Civility Pledge.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED: 1. To note the work programme report To note that an additional report on the Local Dispute Resolution Protocol be brought to the next meeting
The Committee were advised that this item allowed them to consider the Committee’s Work Programme and agree the items for consideration by the Standards and Ethics Committee in 2024/25 and 2025/26. The Monitoring Officer explained that in addition to the listed items there would be one additional report to add to the agenda for the next meeting – The review of the local resolution protocol. The monitoring Officer considered that is due for a review and that she could share with committee comments which are coming through from the Ombudsman's office and also from discussions from the All Wales group. The Chairperson asked Committee Members if they had any questions on this item. Cllr Brown Reckless stated that she made the point in the last meeting about, having an opportunity within the work programme to raise concerns about the standards regime or make general comments about standards matters throughout the year. She felt that a restrictive work programme doesn’t allow for this to happen. The Monitoring Officer advised that the purpose of the report is to hear from members if there are other particular reports that they would like to receive. Members have previously asked for report to be brought but this hasn’t always been seconded. It is a decision of the committee, and following due process, to allow for this. This report is brought so that members do have that opportunity to debate and discuss what is proposed to come to future meetings. Councillor Brown Reckless sought clarification on the local resolution protocol report and asked if that something which was binding, whether it was a group leader matter and asked in general terms, what is that local resolution protocol. The Monitoring Officer explained that whilst she did not want to pre-empt the discussion on it, it is a document which is within the Constitution relating to complaints. There are various stages to it, as it currently stands, there's a mediation stage and then a hearing stage before a panel of members. The Monitoring Officer considered it can be a missed opportunity, particularly if the mediation stage isn't fully explored and it would be useful for Committee to discuss when all members have the opportunity of seeing the report and focusing in on it. RESOLVED: 1. To note the work programme report To note that an additional report on the Local Dispute Resolution Protocol be brought to the next meeting
None received.
To be confirmed at the Annual Meeting of Council on 22 May 2025.
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