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Report to: |
Governance Committee
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Date: |
29 June 2021
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By: |
Assistant Chief Executive
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Title: |
Coronavirus (Covid-19) temporary arrangements
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Purpose: |
To review temporary measures in relation to Council meetings agreed by the County Council in 2020 as a result of Covid-19 disruption and to consider whether to adopt more flexible decision making arrangements. |
RECOMMENDATIONS
The Governance Committee is recommended to recommend the County Council to:
1) approve the approach in relation to Lead Member decisions being made virtually on an ongoing basis, subject to the discretion of the Lead Member, as set out in paragraph 2.9;
2) agree to permit virtual participation in meetings permanently as set out in paragraph 2.10 of the report.
3) agree that Member non-attendance related to Covid-19 continue to be considered as an absence approved by the Council and that this be reviewed by the Council in March 2022 or as soon as practicable thereafter;
4) agree that authority be delegated to the Governance Committee to re-establish any of the Covid temporary measures set out at paragraph 1.2 should the Governance Committee consider this appropriate due to Covid-19 restrictions (including Government guidance) being put in place; and
5) that the Constitution be amended to give effect to 1 and 2 above.
1. Background
1.1 In May 2020 the County Council agreed recommendations from the Committee in relation to a number of temporary measures to help enable the County Council’s business to be conducted efficiently throughout the period of disruption due to Covid-19. In October 2020 Council agreed, on recommendation from the Committee, that these measures would be extended in light of ongoing Covid-19 restrictions and reviewed again at the July 2021 meeting of the Council.
1.2 The temporary measures approved by the Council were:
· to approve the approach in relation to Lead Member decisions being made virtually and to its continuation;
· to agree that the Leader will assume all the powers of the Cabinet where required;
· to agree delegations to officers in relation to the functions of the Planning, Pensions and Governance Committees and the Discretionary Transport Appeal Panel;
· to agree that Member non-attendance related to Covid-19 be considered as an absence approved by the Council; and
· to agree that the Chief Executive (or in her absence the Assistant Chief Executive) be authorised to cancel or postpone meetings, in consultation with the relevant Chair or Cabinet Member.
1.3 In July 2020 the Council agreed, on recommendation from the Committee, supplementary Standing Orders in relation to virtual meetings held during the pandemic under temporary national Regulations (The Local Authorities and Police and Crime Panels (Coronavirus) (Flexibility of Local Authority Police and Crime Panel Meetings) (England and Wales) Regulations 2020) which came into effect on 4 April 2020 and expired on 7 May 2021 (‘the Regulations’). In March 2021, given uncertainty at that time as to whether or not virtual committee and Council meetings would be permitted from 7 May, Council agreed to continue the virtual meetings Standing Orders and for these to be reviewed by the Council in July 2021.
2. Supporting Information
Covid-19 temporary measures
2.1 Alongside the agreement of the temporary measures by Council in May 2020, arrangements were rapidly introduced to hold meetings virtually under the national Regulations. These arrangements were in place up until the expiry of the Regulations on 7 May 2021, enabling Council business to continue largely as normal during the pandemic. Since physical meetings have, in most cases, been required from 7 May, arrangements have been put in place to hold these in line with national Covid guidance on the use of public buildings and local Public Health advice and risk assessment, again enabling essential Council business to continue. As a result, there has been no need to rely on or use the delegations to officers set out in paragraph 1.2 above or the Leader’s role in relation to powers of the Cabinet.
2.2 Although Covid-19 currently continues to have an impact on normal ways of working, the lifting of remaining national restrictions is now planned for 19 July or sooner. In addition, arrangements to hold meetings either physically (with appropriate safeguards), or virtually where permitted, are now well established. The delegations to officers and Leader’s extended role in relation to the powers of the Cabinet are therefore no longer required and are not recommended for renewal.
2.3 However, there remains a risk of individual Member attendance being affected by Covid-19 through illness, required self-isolation or due to individual health concerns which may limit attendance. In light of this, it is recommended that Member non-attendance related to Covid-19 continue to be considered as an absence approved by the Council.
2.4 It is also difficult to predict the ongoing course of the pandemic. There remains a risk of further waves of Covid-19, and it is possible that any further restrictions introduced as a result of any future spikes in the virus could disrupt meeting arrangements, particularly since there is currently no ongoing provision for virtual Council and committee meetings. In light of this it is recommended that the Council delegates authority to the Governance Committee to re-establish any of the temporary measures previously agreed by Council (as set out at 1.2 above) should the Committee consider this to be appropriate at a future date as a result of disruption due to restrictions being put in place. Where the Governance Committee considers it necessary to re-establish these measures the arrangements will be reported to the next meeting of the Council where the arrangements will be reviewed. This would enable temporary measures to be put in place pending consideration by Council to allow essential Council business to continue.
Virtual participation in meetings
2.5 A large number of virtual meetings have been held under the temporary Regulations during the pandemic. In general, the holding of virtual meetings has been a success; councillor attendance at such meetings has been good and decision making has largely continued as normal. There have also been a number of benefits including a reduction in carbon emissions and cost, greater flexibility in organising meetings andreduced time spent travelling enabling councillors have more time for their other duties.
2.6 In October 2020, Council unanimously passed a motion stating that:
Since lockdown remote working has been shown to be a very effective way for the Council to conduct its business. Without specific permission from the Government to continue in this way we shall have to revert to face to face meetings after the next County Council elections.
This Council resolves to ask Central Government to change the rules
to enable Local Authorities to make their own decisions as to
whether to hold virtual and/or physical meetings from May
2021.
2.7 Although Government did not extend the Regulations beyond May 2021, there has been a national call for evidence on local authority experiences of virtual meetings to which ESCC submitted a response based on the Council’s position as expressed by the motion above. There remains a possibility that legislation may be brought forward by Government which would permit virtual Member attendance at meetings on a permanent basis.
2.8 Although the expiry of the Regulations has largely necessitated a return to pre-pandemic meeting arrangements, there are elements of virtual working that could be retained permanently by the Council under existing legislation. These would enable the benefits of virtual attendance identified by Members during the pandemic, such as increased flexibility, reduced travel costs and reduced carbon emissions, to be retained to a certain extent whilst awaiting the outcome of the national review which may enable further consideration by the Council of whether and how to make use of virtual working longer-term.
2.10 It is also recommended that virtual attendance be permitted in the following instances allowed under existing legislation and that the Constitution be amended accordingly:
· Cabinet – all Members of the Cabinet must attend in person. Officers and other councillors (including opposition spokespersons and local Members), petitioners etc to be allowed to attend and speak (with the agreement of the Chair) virtually.
· Full Council – All County Council Members must attend in person. Members of the public to be allowed to ask supplementary questions remotely (subject to existing Standing Orders governing public questions).
· Planning Committee – All members of the Committee must attend in person. Officers and members of the public or local Members making representations to be allowed to attend virtually.
· At the Council’s Panels and Committees (including Governance Committee, Pension Committee, Scrutiny Committees, Audit Committee and Health and Wellbeing Board) – Committee and Panel Members must be present in person (unless legally permitted to attend virtually). Other participants, including officers and advisors, may attend virtually.
· Pension Board – may be wholly virtual or a hybrid meeting with some members present physically and others virtually at the Chair’s discretion.
2.11 The supplementary Standing Orders adopted by the Council in 2020 to formalise the current approach to virtual meetings largely relate to the provisions in the Regulations which have now expired and to Council and Committee meetings which were covered by the Regulations. On this basis it is not recommended to renew the Standing Orders but instead to amend the constitution to facilitate the specific use of virtual participation in meetings as set out in paragraphs 2.9 and 2.10 above.
3. Conclusion and reasons for recommendations
3.1 The previous decisions of the Council in relation to temporary measures to support the continuation of Council business during Covid-19 disruption are due for review by Council in July 2021. In light of the imminent planned lifting of remaining Covid restrictions nationally, the well-established local arrangements for holding both virtual meetings and Covid-secure physical meetings, and the expiry of temporary national provision for virtual meetings most of these measures are no longer required. However, the Committee is recommended to recommend to Council that Member non-attendance related to Covid-19 continue to be considered as an absence approved by the Council, and that this be reviewed by the Council in March 2022 or as soon as practicable thereafter, and that authority be delegated to the Governance Committee to re-establish any of the temporary measures set out at para 1.2 above should the Committee consider this to be appropriate at a future date as a result of disruption due to restrictions being put in place.
3.2 There have been significant benefits from the introduction of virtual attendance at meetings. While some of this may be lost as a result of the Regulations that permitted virtual meetings not being extended, there is scope to incorporate some of the learning gained in the way that meetings are conducted going forward. It is therefore recommended to recommend to Council to approve the approach in relation to Lead Member decisions being made virtually on an ongoing basis, subject to the discretion of the Lead Member, and that virtual participation in meetings be permitted permanently in specific instances allowed under existing legislation as set out in the report, and that the Constitution be amended accordingly to give effect to this.
PHILIP BAKER
Assistant Chief Executive
Contact Officer: Claire Lee
Tel: 07523 930526
Email: Claire.lee@eastsussex.gov.uk
BACKGROUND DOCUMENTS
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