Flintshire Committee to Adopt Procedure for Dealing with Code of Conduct Breaches

A FLINTSHIRE committee will look to adopt a procedure for dealing with reports of Code of Conduct breaches by members.
The Standards Committee will meet on Monday, December 4, and are recommended to adopt the procedure as there currently isn’t one in place.
The Standards Committee is responsible for dealing with reports that are referred to the council’s Monitoring Officer by the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales.
A referral is made after the Ombudsman has carried out an investigation into, and concluded there is evidence of, an alleged breach of the authority’s code of conduct for members.
The recommended procedure covers the initial determination, subject member’s response, arrangements prior to the hearing, requirement for training, pre-hearing review, notice of hearing, legal support, access to information, failure of a party to attend a hearing, the hearing, written decision, appeals, and report of the outcome of the investigation.
On the proposed procedure, the report said: “It makes provision for the member who is the subject of a report to receive a fair hearing and for an allegation to be comprehensively and reasonably considered by the Standards Committee.
“It covers all practical details that will need to be addressed in dealing with a report from the Ombudsman.”
The committee is set to make a decision on adopting the procedure at it’s meeting next week.

By Emily Ash – Local Democracy Reporter