Issue - meetings
Member attendance update 2020/21
Meeting: 01/07/2021 - Standards Advisory Committee (Item 5)
5 Member attendance update 2020/21 PDF 314 KB
Additional documents:
- Appendices 1 and 2 - Attendance stats, item 5 PDF 344 KB
- Webcast for Member attendance update 2020/21
Minutes:
Matthew Mannion, Head of Democratic Services, introduced the yearly Member Attendance information report. This set out Councillor and Co-optee attendance at formal Council Committees. He noted that attendance was generally very good and averaged over 90%. There had also been a near 10% increase in attendance since the previous year and it was thought this was at least in part due to the greater accessibility offered through virtual committee meetings.
The Committee discussed the report and noted a number of issues including:
· That the Council had responded to the Government’s consultation on expanding the ability of Council’s to hold virtual committee meetings.
· Currently, the 1972 Local Government Act currently prevented the Council from holding virtual meetings.
· That the group whip was aware of the lower attendance levels for some Members and that the Committee agreed it would like to highlight its own concerns where there were lower attendance levels.
· In respect of co-optees it was noted that there was no specific ‘whip’ but that it would be worth exploring what rules could be enforced around attendance at meetings. It was agreed to explore this idea.
RESOLVED
1. That the report be noted.
2. That officers write to the Chief Whip making him aware of their concern where lower attendance levels were noted by Councillors.