The Mayor and Group Leaders recognise the need to have high-quality public debate in Council meetings that respects different viewpoints and individuals, and that upholds democratic principles.
Following positive meetings, since the November Council meeting, between the Mayor, Group Leaders and key officers, it has been recognised that at that Council meeting in November there was a risk that if the legal advice provided by the monitoring officer, which was ultimately accepted, had not been followed then the Council would have been acting unconstitutionally.
To address this for future meetings, the following positive actions have been agreed:
- Training for the current Mayor around chairing, the constitution and the role of the monitoring officer.
- Training for incoming Mayors around chairing, the constitution and the role of the monitoring officer.
- Training for all Councillors as part of their induction around the types of meeting debates, the constitution and the role of the monitoring officer.
