Agenda item

To undertake a review of the Complaints Procedure and recommend any changes to Full Council for adoption.

The Committee gave consideration to a report of the Monitoring Officer (A.2) in relation to undertakinga review of the Complaints Procedure and to recommend any changes to Full Council for adoption.

The Committee was aware that the Standards Framework included the Complaints Procedure (contained within the Members’ Constitution Booklet).  The Council’s statutory duty  was to promote and maintain high standards of conduct and building public confidence by demonstrating a commitment to maintaining positive behaviours in relation to all seven principles of public life.

The current Procedure, which was attached as Appendix A to the Monitoring Officer’s report,  had been initially adopted by full Council in November 2013 and subsequently amended in 2017 following a review and recommended changes from the Standards Committee.

Delegation was given to the Monitoring Officer throughout the Procedure to undertake key elements of the complaints process to maximise independence from the political process.

The Monitoring Officer explained that the Local Government Ombudsman had looked at  this Council’s (TDC’s) Complaints Procedure on a couple of occasions when a complainant who  had been dissatisfied with the outcome of a complaint had gone to the Ombudsman for a further review.  In all instances the Ombudsman had said that  TDC’s procedures  were robust and if followed correctly - they would not look into the  outcome of the complaint if the procedure has been correctly.  The aim was to make the Procedure as clear as possible to anyone using it.

Through a recent referral to Essex Police, regarding an alleged Disclosable Pecuniary Interest offence under the Localism Act 2011, the Monitoring Officer  had been requested to confirm the Legal Jurisdiction Criteria Test had been evaluated and met prior to referring the complaint to the Police.  The Monitoring Officer  had been requested to provide assurance that the following had been applied prior to further Police involvement:

(a)  The alleged conduct took place after the commencement of Section 34 of the Localism Act 2011.

(b)  The Subject Member was a member of the Council at the time of the alleged conduct.

(c)   The Subject Member was acting in an official capacity as a Councillor at the time of the alleged conduct.

(d)  The Subject Member was not acting as a member of another authority at the time of the alleged conduct.

(e)  If the facts are capable of establishment as a matter of evidence, the alleged conduct could be capable of a breach of the Code of Conduct.

(f)    That the complaint is not about dissatisfaction with the Council’s decisions, policies and priorities.

In the event, the above assurances  were given, the Police  would consider commencing a criminal investigation, if crucially part (e)  could be established regarding actual evidence, which the Monitoring Officer  might be asked to provide.

The test and evaluation  was undertaken implicitly by the Monitoring Officer however it  was not expressly referred to within the Complaints Procedure.  Consequently, it was being recommended that paragraph  4.5 of the Complaints Procedure  be amended to state:     

“If your complaint identifies criminal conduct or breach of other regulation by any person, the Monitoring Officer has the power and obligation to notify or refer to the Police or other regulatory agencies, subject to the necessary Legal Jurisdiction Criteria Test being applied”.

No other changes to the Complaints Procedure were recommended by the Monitoring Officer.

Having considered and discussed the information provided in the Monitoring Officer’s report

It was moved by Councillor Turner, seconded by Councillor Steady and:-

RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL that paragraph 4.5 of the Complaints Procedure contained within Part 6 of the Constitution  be amended to include the additional text “subject to the necessary Legal Jurisdiction Criteria Test being applied”.