PART 5 - RULES OF PROCEDURE MEETINGS SECTION 1 COUNCIL MEETINGS

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1 PART 5 - RULES OF PROCEDURE MEETINGS 1.0 ANNUAL MEETING OF THE COUNCIL 1.1 Timing and Business In a year when there is an ordinary election of Councillors, the Annual Meeting will take place within 21 days of the retirement of the outgoing Councillors. In any other year, the Annual Meeting will take place in April or May. 1.2 The Annual Meeting will: elect a person to preside if the Chairman of the Council is not present, elect the Chairman of the Council on receiving not more than one nomination from each Political Group, elect the Vice-Chairman of the Council on receiving not more than one nomination from each Political Group, approve the Minutes of the last meeting, receive any Declarations of Interest from Members, receive any announcements from the Chairman, elect the Leader and the Cabinet and allocate portfolios to Cabinet Members, make appointments to the Overview Select Committee and Regulatory Committees, the Standards Committee and Outside Bodies, elect the Chairman and Vice-Chairman of Committees of the Council and consider any business set out in the notice convening the meeting. 2.0 ORDINARY MEETINGS 2.1 Ordinary meetings of the Council will take place in accordance with a programme decided at the Council s Annual Meeting. Ordinary meetings will: elect a person to preside if the Chairman and Vice-Chairman are not present, receive questions from the public pursuant to Rule 10, approve the Minutes of the last meeting, receive any Declarations of Interest from Members, receive any announcements from the Chairman, deal with business not otherwise specified in the Council summons which, in the opinion of the Chairman of the Council (in consultation with the Chief Executive) is business of such urgency as to require immediate attention by the Council, consider questions/statements from Members pursuant to Rule 11, deal with any business expressly required by statute to be done, deal with any business remaining from the last Council Meeting, receive reports and Minutes from the Cabinet and the Council s Overview Select Committee, Regulatory and Standards Committee, receive Minutes concerning the business of joint arrangements and external organisations, consider any other business specified in the summons to the meeting, including consideration of proposals from the Cabinet in relation to the Council s Budget and Policy Framework and reports of the Overview Select Committee for debate, PAGE 147 ISSUE 5 OCTOBER 2015

2 PART 5 - RULES OF PROCEDURE MEETINGS consider motions, receive and consider reports from officers of the Council, and debate petitions in accordance with the Council's Petitions Scheme as set out in Part 8 [Codes and Protocols: Section 8 The Petition Scheme]. 2.2 The order of business may be varied: by the Chairman at his/her discretion, or by a resolution passed on a motion which shall be moved, seconded and put without discussion. 3.0 SPECIAL MEETINGS 3.1 Special meetings of the Council may be called by the Chief Executive in consultation with the Chairman of the Council and Political Groups Leaders to debate issues affecting the District. At such meetings, the business items referred to at Rules (Election of Chairman/Vice-Chairman), (Questions from the Public), (Minutes of the last Meeting), (Declarations of Interest), (Announcements from the Chairman), (Urgent Business), (Business required by Statute), and (Other Business) shall be dealt with. 3.2 The following procedures shall then apply for the debate: An introduction shall be given by the Chairman Presentations shall be received from invited speakers and/or Council Officers Questions shall be put by: Members and other persons permitted to do so by the Chairman. The questions shall be responded to by the invited speakers and/or officers Statements may then be made by: Members and other persons permitted to do so by the Chairman A debate shall then take place upon any motions received in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 14, with written notice required of motions in accordance with Council Procedure Rule The Chairman shall conclude the debate. 3.3 The procedures for the debate may be amended by a motion passed by the Council. 4.0 EXTRAORDINARY MEETINGS Calling Extraordinary Meetings. 4.1 Those listed below may request the Chief Executive to call Council Meetings in addition to ordinary meetings:- the Council by resolution, the Chairman of the Council, the Monitoring Officer and any five Members of the Council if they have signed a requisition presented to the Chairman of the Council and he/she has refused to call a meeting or has failed to call a meeting within seven days of the presentation of the requisition. PAGE 148 ISSUE 5 REVISION 2 APRIL 2016

3 5.0 TIME AND PLACE OF MEETINGS PART 5 - RULES OF PROCEDURE MEETINGS Meetings of the Council shall be held at six o clock in the evening at the Council Chamber at the Arun Civic Centre, Littlehampton, or at such other time or place as the Chairman may direct. 6.0 NOTICE AND SUMMONS OF MEETINGS The Chief Executive will give notice to the public of the time and place of each meeting in accordance with the Access to Information Rules. At least five clear days before a meeting, the Chief Executive will send a summons by post to every Member of the Council or leave it at their usual place of residence. The summons will: give the date, time and place of the meeting, specify the business to be transacted and be accompanied by such reports as are available. 7.0 CANCELLATION, POSTPONEMENT, ADJOURNMENT OR DELAYING OF MEETINGS 7.1. The decision to cancel, postpone, adjourn or delay any meetings of the Council shall be made by the Chairman in consultation with the Chief Executive (or his representative). 8.0 CHAIRMAN OF THE MEETING 8.1 The person presiding at the meeting may exercise any power or duty of the Chairman. 8.2 Where these rules apply to Committee meetings, references to the Chairman also include the Chairman of a Committee. 9.0 QUORUM 9.1 The Quorum of a meeting is one-quarter of the whole number of Members. 9.2 If during any meeting of the Council the Chairman, after counting the number of Members present, declares that there is not a Quorum present, the meeting will adjourn immediately. 9.3 The consideration of any business not transacted shall be adjourned to a time and place fixed by the Chairman or, if he/she does not fix a time and place, to the next ordinary meeting of the Council QUESTIONS BY THE PUBLIC, MEMBERS WITH PREJUDICIAL INTERESTS AND PETITIONS 10.1 General Members of the public may ask questions of Members of the Cabinet or Overview Select Committee Chairman at meetings of the Council. Members of the public will be allowed a maximum of one minute for each question and the time for questions from the public will be limited to a total of 15 minutes save that the Chairman may extend the time at his discretion. Members of the public must give prior written notice of their questions, including details of the Member to whom they are to be addressed, by delivering their question to the Head of Democratic Services at least three clear days prior to the meeting. Clear days means days on which the Council offices are open for business and excluded both the day on which the question is received by the Head of Democratic Services and the day of the meeting at which the question is to be presented Members with a Prejudicial Interest may ask questions of Members of the Cabinet or of the Overview Select Committee Chairman at meetings of the Council. Members with a Prejudicial Interest will be allowed a maximum of one minute for each question and the time for questions from Members with a Prejudicial Interest will be limited to a total of 15 minutes, save that the Chairman may extend the time at his discretion. Written questions must be PAGE 149 ISSUE 5 OCTOBER 2015

4 PART 5 - RULES OF PROCEDURE MEETINGS delivered to the Head of Democratic Services at least three clear days prior to the meeting, including details of the Member to whom the question is to be addressed. Clear Days means days on which the Council Offices are open for business and excludes both the day on which the question is received by the Head of Democratic Services and the day the meeting at which the question is to be presented Order of Questions Written questions submitted within three clear working days of the meeting will be asked in the order in which they are received, but: the Chairman may group together similar questions and where the same or similar questions have been asked before and a written answer given to the questioner or any other member of the public, the Chairman may respond to the questioner by arranging for the relevant parts of the previously given written answer to be sent to the questioner a member of the public may only ask one question at a time. The questioner may also put a supplementary question in accordance with Paragraph Other members of the public will be invited to ask questions and only if there is sufficient time left remaining will the original questioner(s) be entitled to ask further questions Scope of Questions The Chief Executive and/or Chairman of the Council may reject a question if it: is not about a matter for which the Council has a responsibility or which affects the District, is, or in his/her opinion may be, defamatory, frivolous or offensive, is substantially the same as a question which has been put at a meeting of the Council in the past six months or would lead to the disclosure of Confidential or Exempt information Record of Questions The Head of Democratic Services will advise the Chairman prior to the commencement of a meeting of the Council of any question which a Member wishes to raise. Prior to the commencement of the meeting a copy of the question will also, where possible be provided to the member to whom the question will be directed at the meeting The Head of Democratic Services will retain a file which provides a note of questions and answers, which is open for public inspection on request Asking the Question at the Meeting The Chairman will invite the questioner to put the question. The Chairman may invite a Member other than that named or referred to in the question to respond to the question If a questioner who has submitted a written question is unable to be present, the Chairman may: ask the question on the questioner s behalf if the person presiding is of the view that it is in the public interest to do so, indicate that a written reply will be given, or decide that the question will not be dealt with PAGE 150 ISSUE 5 OCTOBER 2015

5 10.6 Supplementary Question PART 5 - RULES OF PROCEDURE MEETINGS A questioner who has put a question in person may also put one supplementary question without notice to the Member who has replied to his/her original question The Chairman may reject a supplementary question if it does not arise directly out of the original question or the reply or on any of the grounds in Rule Written Answers Any question which cannot be dealt with during public question time, either because of lack of time or because of the non-attendance of the Member to whom it was to be put, will be dealt with by a written answer Reference of Question to the Executive or a Committee Unless the Chairman decides otherwise, no discussion will take place on any question, but any Member may move that a matter raised by a question be referred to the Cabinet or the appropriate Committee. Once seconded, such a motion will be voted on without discussion Petitions Petitions from anyone living, working or studying in the Arun District may be presented and debated at a meeting of the Full Council, following Public Question Time, providing they have been received in accordance with the Council's Petitions Scheme as set out in Part 8 Codes and Protocols [Section 9 Petitions Scheme]. The arrangements for the debate and the response to be given to the petition organiser will be in accordance with Paragraph 5.0 of the Petitions Scheme QUESTIONS/STATEMENTS BY MEMBERS WHO DO NOT HAVE A PREJUDICIAL INTEREST 11.1 Questions on Reports Any Member of the Council may ask the Leader or a Cabinet Member or Chairman of a Committee any question upon an item of the report of the Cabinet or a Committee when that item is under consideration by the Council. Every such question shall be put and answered without discussion. The questioner will have the right to ask a supplementary question which must arise directly out of the original question or the reply. A written answer will be supplied if requested by the questioner Statements on Reports Any Member of the Council may make a statement upon an item of the report of the Cabinet or a Committee when that item is under consideration by the Council. Every such statement shall be put and the Leader, relevant Cabinet Member or Chairman of a Committee will have the right to reply. No statement or reply shall exceed 5 minutes in duration, except at the discretion of the Chairman. In the case of a statement made by the Chairman of a Committee or a Cabinet Member or the Leader a debate may ensue, at the discretion of the Chairman of the Council General Questions Thirty minutes will be allocated at each ordinary meeting of the Council for questions from Members pursuant to this Rule A Member of the Council may: if notice in writing, setting out detailed terms of the question, has been delivered at the office of the Head of Democratic Services by 12 Noon two days before the meeting of the Council, ask the Leader or a Cabinet Member or the Chairman of a Committee any question on any matter in relation to which the Council has powers or duties or which affects the District, PAGE 151 ISSUE 5 OCTOBER 2015

6 PART 5 - RULES OF PROCEDURE MEETINGS with the permission of the Chairman put to the Leader or a Cabinet Member or the Chairman of a Committee any question relating to urgent business, of which such notice has not been given. A copy of any such question shall, if possible, be delivered to the Head of Democratic Services not later than a.m. of the day of the meeting. Every such question falling within this Rule shall be put and answered without discussion. The questioner will have the right to ask a supplementary question Where the information sought by the question is contained in any of the Council s publications, it shall be deemed a sufficient reply if the publication containing the information is indicated Where the reply to any question cannot conveniently be given orally, a written answer shall be circulated to Leaders of the Political Groups within fourteen days. A written answer will be supplied if requested by the questioner A Member may ask one question at a time. Other Members will be invited to ask questions and only if there is sufficient time left remaining will the original questioner(s) be entitled to ask further questions. When three questions have been asked by each questioner, at the discretion of the Chairman and if there is time left, the questioners may ask further questions. The Chairman may also use his discretion to extend the time allowed for questions to sixty minutes if there is a need. At the discretion of the Chairman, he can refer complex or detailed questions for investigation to the Cabinet or the Overview Select Committee In the absence of the Member giving notice of a question, another Member or the Chairman may ask it on his behalf In the absence of a Cabinet Member, the Leader stands in his/her place for the purposes of this Rule MOTIONS ON NOTICE 12.1 Notice Except for motions which can be moved without notice under Rule 13, written notice of every motion signed by the Member(s) moving and seconding it must be delivered to the Chief Executive at least eight clear days prior to the meeting. Clear days mean days on which the Council Offices are open for business and excludes both the day on which the motion is received by the Chief Executive and the day of the meeting at which the motion is to be presented Notices of motions received by the Chief Executive will be dated, numbered in the order in which they were received and entered in a book open to public inspection Motions Set Out in Agenda The Chief Executive shall set out on the agenda for the meeting all motions of which notice has been duly given, in the order in which they have been received If all the Members who have given a particular notice of a motion withdraw it in writing, then it shall not be set out on the agenda If notice is given of a motion which, in the opinion of the Chief Executive is out of order, illegal, irregular or improper, he/she shall submit it to the Chairman, and shall not insert it in the summons without his/her agreement. In the event of the motion being considered unacceptable, the Chief Executive shall so inform the Member(s) giving the notice. PAGE 152 ISSUE 5 OCTOBER 2015

7 12.3 Scope PART 5 - RULES OF PROCEDURE MEETINGS Every motion must be relevant to some matter in relation to which the Council has powers or duties or which affects the District Mover and Seconder If a motion set out on the agenda is not moved and seconded, either by a Member who gave notice thereof or by some other Member on his/her behalf, it shall, unless postponed by consent of the Council, be treated as withdrawn and may not be moved without fresh notice Motions to be dealt with by the Council or referred to the Cabinet or a Committee Upon a motion being moved and seconded: if the subject of the motion is a matter that is in the province of the Council or it is an urgent matter or it relates to a district-wide issue or is a multi-ward matter, it shall be dealt with by Council at that Council meeting, if the subject of the motion comes within the province of the Cabinet or any Committee, it shall stand referred without discussion: - to the Cabinet or such Committee or - to such other Committee or Committees as the Council may determine for consideration and report. In the case of any doubt, the Cabinet shall consider the motion In exceptional circumstances, the Council may consider the suspension of this Rule pursuant to Rule so that there may be a discussion upon the matter in the Council meeting MOTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE The following motions may be moved without notice: 13.1 to appoint a Chairman of the meeting at which the motion is moved; 13.2 in relation to the accuracy of the minutes; 13.3 to change the order of business in the agenda; 13.4 to refer something to an appropriate body or individual; 13.5 to appoint a Committee or Member arising from an item on the summons for the meeting; 13.6 to receive reports or adopt recommendations of Committees or officers and any resolutions following from them; 13.7 to withdraw a motion; 13.8 to amend a motion; 13.9 to proceed to the next business; that the question be now put; to adjourn a debate; to adjourn a meeting; to suspend a particular Council procedure rule; to amend the Rules of Debate for Special Council Meetings in accordance with Rule 3.3; to exclude the public and press in accordance with the Access to Information Rules; to not hear further a Member named under Rule 21.2 and to give the consent of the Council where its consent is required by this Constitution. PAGE 153 ISSUE 5 OCTOBER 2015

8 14.0 RULES OF DEBATE 14.1 Motions and Amendments PART 5 - RULES OF PROCEDURE MEETINGS A motion or amendment shall not be debated unless: it has been proposed and seconded (although before it has been seconded the proposer may explain to the Council the purpose of the motion) and if required by the Chairman it has been put into writing Seconder s Speech A Member, when seconding a motion or amendment, may do so at the start of the debate upon it or may reserve a right to speak immediately before the persons referred to in Rule Only One Member to Speak at a Time A Member, when speaking, shall stand and address the Chairman. If two or more Members rise, the Chairman shall call on one to speak. The other or others shall then sit. While a Member is speaking the other Members shall remain seated, unless rising to a Point of Order or in personal explanation Contents and Length of Speeches A Member shall direct his/her speech to the question under discussion or to a personal explanation or to a Point of Order Except at the discretion of the Chairman, no speech shall exceed five minutes or, in the case of the mover of a motion or amendment, ten minutes. This Rule shall not apply to Committees or the Cabinet When a Member May Speak Again A Member who has spoken on any motion shall not speak again whilst it is the subject of debate, except:- to speak once on an amendment moved by another Member, if the motion has been amended since he/she last spoke, to move a further amendment, if his/her first speech was on an amendment moved by another Member, to speak on the main issue whether or not the amendment on which he/she spoke was carried, on a Point of Order and by way of personal explanation This Rule 14.5 shall not apply to Committees or Cabinet Amendments to Motions An amendment shall be relevant to the motion and shall be either:- to refer a subject to debate by the Cabinet or a Committee for consideration or re-consideration, to leave out words, to leave out words and insert or add words and to insert or add words but such omission, insertion or addition of words shall not have the effect of negating the motion before the Council, except in the case of a motion moved in pursuance of a recommendation of a Committee or the Cabinet. PAGE 154 ISSUE 5 OCTOBER 2015

9 PART 5 - RULES OF PROCEDURE MEETINGS Amendments shall be discussed and voted on in the order in which they are moved and a prior amendment must be disposed of before a subsequent amendment is considered. The Chairman may not permit two or more amendments to be received at the same time If an amendment be lost, other amendments may be moved on the original motion. If an amendment be carried, the motion as amended shall take the place of the original motion and shall become the motion upon which any further amendment may be moved Any amendment moved and seconded at a Council meeting which involves a variation in approved expenditure and of which no notice has been given and on which no financial report is available shall, at the discretion of the Chairman of the Council, after consultation with the Chief Executive, stand referred to the Cabinet for consideration Alteration of a Motion A Member may with the consent of the Council signified without discussion: alter a motion of which he/she has given notice or with the further consent of his/her seconder alter a motion which he/she has moved Only alterations which could be made as an amendment may be made Withdrawal of Motion A Motion or amendment may be withdrawn by the mover with the consent of : his/her seconder or of the Council, which shall be signified without discussion. No Member may speak upon it after the mover has asked permission for its withdrawal, unless such permission shall have been refused Right to Reply The mover of a motion has a right to reply at the end of the debate on the motion. He/she may exercise the right of reply and then: the Leader in respect of a matter referred to the Council by the Cabinet or otherwise the relevant Cabinet Member or Committee Chairman shall have the right to speak immediately before the vote is taken on the motion If an amendment is moved, the mover of the original motion has the right of reply at the close of the debate on the amendment, but may not otherwise speak on it The mover of the amendment has no right of reply to the debate on his or her amendment Motions Which May be Moved During Debate When a motion is under debate, no other motion shall be moved, except the following:- to withdraw the motion; to amend the motion; to adjourn the meeting; to adjourn the debate; to proceed to the next business; that the question be now put; PAGE 155 ISSUE 5 OCTOBER 2015

10 PART 5 - RULES OF PROCEDURE MEETINGS that a Member be not further heard and to exclude the public and press in accordance with the Access to Information Rules Closure Motions A Member may move without comment at the conclusion of a speech of another Member that the Council proceed to the next business, that the question be now put, that the debate be now adjourned, or that the Council do now adjourn, on the seconding of which the Chairman shall proceed as follows: On a motion to proceed to next business: unless in the Chairman s opinion the matter before the meeting has been insufficiently discussed, he/she shall first give the mover of the original motion a right of reply and then put to the vote the motion to proceed to next business; On a motion that the question be now put: unless in the Chairman s opinion the matter before the meeting has been insufficiently discussed, he/she shall first put to the vote the motion that the question be now put, and if it is passed then give the seconder a right to speak if he/she earlier reserved it and the mover and (1) Leader, or (2) Committee Chairman/Cabinet Member the Right of Reply pursuant to Rule 14.9.; On a motion to adjourn the debate or the meeting: if in his/her opinion the matter before the Committee has not been sufficiently discussed and cannot reasonably be sufficiently discussed on that occasion he/she shall put the adjournment motion to the vote without giving the mover of the original motion his/her right of reply on that occasion Points of Order A Member shall rise on a Point of Order or in personal explanation and shall be entitled to be heard forthwith A Member may raise a Point of Order at any time and the Chairman will hear the member immediately. A Point of Order may only relate to an alleged breach of the Council Rules of Procedure or the law. The Member must indicate the rule or law and the way in which he or she considers it has been broken. The Ruling of the Chairman on the matter will be final and shall not be open to discussion A Member may make a Personal Explanation at any time. A Personal Explanation may only relate to some material point of an earlier speech by the Member which may appear to have been misunderstood in the present debate, or to comply with a request from the Chairman under Rule The Ruling of the Chairman on the admissibility of the Personal Explanation will be final and shall not be open to discussion Respect for the Chairman Whenever the Chairman rises during a debate, all Members then standing shall resume their seats and the Council shall be silent PREVIOUS DECISIONS AND MOTIONS 15.1 A motion to rescind or which would effectively rescind any resolution passed within the preceding six months, and a motion or amendment to the same effect as one which has been rejected within the preceding six months, can only be proposed if a notice given in pursuance of Rule 12 bears the names of at least five Members of the Council When any such motion or amendment has been disposed of by the Council, it shall not be open to any Member to propose a similar motion within a further period of six months PAGE 156 ISSUE 5 OCTOBER 2015

11 PART 5 - RULES OF PROCEDURE MEETINGS 15.3 This Rule shall not apply to motions moved in pursuance of a recommendation of a Committee or the Cabinet VOTING 16.1 Any matter will be decided by a simple majority of those Members voting and present in the room at the time the question was put It shall be the normal practice to vote on a recommendation in its entirety. However, if the recommendation is made up of more than one constituent part, it shall be up to the discretion of the Chairman whether to take a vote on each constituent part separately Immediately after any vote is taken at a budget decision meeting, or where a precept is issued under the Local Government Finance Act 1992 Part 1, Chapter 4, there must be recorded in the Minutes the names of the individual Members who cast a vote for the decision, or against the decision, or who abstained from the voting Where there are more than two persons nominated for any position to be filled by the Council, and of the votes given there is not an overall majority in favour of one person, the name of the person having the least number of votes shall be struck off the list and a fresh vote taken, and so on until an overall majority of votes is given in favour of one person With the exception of the election of the Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the Council, which shall be by ballot, voting on all matters shall be by show of hands unless a majority of Members present and voting require a ballot to be taken. The vote as to whether a ballot is to be taken is to be by a show of hands In cases of equality in voting, the Chairman may have a second or casting vote A Member who requires that the vote on a particular matter be recorded shall ask for this to be done before the vote is taken. The request will be allowed unless the Chairman in his or her discretion considers the request frivolous or vexatious Where any Member requests it immediately after the vote is taken, their vote will be so recorded in the Minutes to show whether they voted for or against the motion or abstained from voting MINUTES 17.1 Once the Council Agenda has been circulated, any Minutes produced after this date will not be presented to the next meeting of the Council, but will be submitted to a subsequent available meeting of the Council, with the exception of matters which have been considered by the Cabinet, the Overview Select Committee or other Committees, that are considered urgent and cannot wait until the next meeting of the Full Council The Chairman shall put the question that the Minutes of the last meeting of the Council be approved as a correct record except in the case of extraordinary meetings No discussion shall take place upon the Minutes, except upon their accuracy, and any question of their accuracy shall be raised by motion. If no such question is raised, or if it is raised then as soon as it has been disposed of, the Chairman shall sign the Minutes Where in relation to any meeting, the next meeting for the purpose of signing the Minutes is a meeting called under paragraph 3 of Schedule 12 to the Local Government Act 1972 (an Extraordinary Meeting), then the next following meeting (being a meeting called otherwise than under that paragraph) will be treated as a suitable meeting for the purposes of paragraph 41(1) and (2) of Schedule 12 relating to signing the Minutes Minutes will contain all motions and amendments in the exact form and order the Chairman put them RECORD OF ATTENDANCES Every Member of the Council attending any official Council meeting of which he/she is a Member, shall sign his/her name in the Attendance Book provided for that purpose PAGE 157 ISSUE 5 REVISION 2 APRIL 2016

12 19.0 EXCLUSION OF THE PUBLIC PART 5 - RULES OF PROCEDURE MEETINGS Members of the public and press may only be excluded either: in accordance with the Access to Information Rules in Part 5 or Rule 21 (Disturbance by Public) MEMBERS CONDUCT 20.1 The Chairman shall, in his/her discretion, be able to request offensive and/or personal remarks made by Councillors to be withdrawn If at a meeting any Member of the Council, in the opinion of the Chairman of the Council, misconducts himself or herself by persistently disregarding the ruling of the Chairman, or by behaving irregularly, improperly, or offensively, or by wilfully obstructing the business of the Council, the Chairman or any other Member may move that the Member named be not further heard, and the motion if seconded shall be put and determined without discussion If the misconduct or obstruction is continued and in the opinion of the Chairman renders the due and orderly dispatch of business impossible, the Chairman in addition to any other powers vested in him/her may require the Member to withdraw from the meeting and take no further part. He/she may also without question put, adjourn to a time, date and place to be specified by him/her the sitting of the Council or suspend the sitting of the Council for such period as he/she in his/her discretion shall consider expedient Members will be expected to attend meetings of the Council dressed appropriately in keeping with the formality of the meeting and their office as Members of the Council DISTURBANCE BY PUBLIC 21.1 If a member of the public interrupts proceedings, the Chairman will warn the person concerned. If they continue to interrupt, the Chairman will order their removal from the meeting room Where the Chairman considers that a member of the public, whose behaviour has been disruptive or disorderly at a previous meeting of the Council, may, if admitted to the meeting, behave in a similar fashion such that it will, or is likely to, prevent the meeting from properly carrying out its function, the Chairman shall have the power to refuse that person admission to the meeting If there is a general disturbance in any part of the meeting room open to the public, the Chairman may call for that part to be cleared LEADERS 22.1 Each group of Members shall be able to appoint one of their number to be Group Leader The names of Members so appointed as above shall be notified to the Chief Executive for report to the Council but their right to act in such office shall commence from the date of their appointment MEMBERSHIP OF COMMITTEES AND WORKING GROUPS AND PANELS 23.1 In accordance with the provisions of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 and any Regulations made there under, the Chief Executive shall determine the number of seats to be filled by each Political Group on Committees A Schedule of the Members of the above Committees and Groups is held by the Head of Democratic Services and may be inspected on request. The Schedule will be updated as necessary The Leader of each Political Group shall at least 14 days (or as soon as practicable in an election year) before the Annual Council Meeting, supply a list of the Group s membership of each Committee. PAGE 158 ISSUE 5 OCTOBER 2015

13 PART 5 - RULES OF PROCEDURE MEETINGS 23.4 If at any time following an election, the numbers of the Political Groups change, the Chief Executive shall determine the relevant numbers to be filled by each Political Group on Committees, and shall so inform the Political Groups Permanent changes in the membership of Committees, Working Groups and Panels must be received by the Chief Executive in writing, at least 24 hours before the relevant meeting and then reported to the Council for information Where a vacancy on the Council occurs during any four year term of office, that seat shall not be filled by a substitute member until an election has been held with respect to that vacancy and any changes to the political balance have been agreed Once the political balance has been reviewed by the Chief Executive followed by a By-Election and agreed with the Group Leaders on the advice to the Chief Executive and Head of Legal and Administration and Monitoring Officer, changes to the Committee Memberships will take immediate effect and will then be reported to the next Council Meeting for ratification SUBSTITUTION 24.1 Where a Member of a Committee, Working Group or Panel is unable to attend a particular meeting, then the Leader or Deputy Leader of the relevant Political Group may nominate a substitute Member for that meeting provided that notice in writing to that effect has been received at the office of the Chief Executive by 10 a.m. on the day of the meeting The above rule will also apply where the substitute member is a designated substitute The substitute Member takes the place of the ordinary Member for that meeting only DECLARATION OF INTERESTS 25.1 A Member with a personal interest in a matter who attends a meeting of the Council at which the matter is considered must disclose to that meeting the existence and nature of that interest at the commencement of that consideration or when the interest becomes apparent Subject to Rule 25.3 below, a Member with a prejudicial interest in any matter must withdraw from the room or chamber where the meeting is being held whenever it becomes apparent that the matter is being considered at that meeting unless he has obtained a dispensation from the Standards Committee Where a member has a prejudicial interest in any business of the authority, he or she may remain in the meeting (including a meeting of the Overview Select Committee of the authority or a sub-committee of such a committee) but only for the purpose of making representations, answering questions or giving evidence relating to the business, provided that the public are also allowed to attend the meeting for the same purpose, whether under a statutory right or otherwise. The member must thereafter leave the meeting whilst the business is under discussion REPRESENTATION ON OUTSIDE BODIES 26.1 The Chief Executive shall, as soon as necessary in each year, implement procedures to obtain the views of individual Members upon their priority wishes for their nominations to outside bodies vacant in each municipal year, and shall then submit the information obtained to the Leader of the Council The Leader of the Council shall, after consultation with the Leaders of all Political Groups, be responsible for nominating Members to fill any vacancies occurring on outside bodies, 26.3 A list of those Members so nominated shall be submitted to the Annual Meeting of the Council for approval. Nominations shall also be received in respect of casual vacancies arising during the course of the year and submitted to the Council for approval. PAGE 159 ISSUE 5 OCTOBER 2015

14 27.0 SUSPENSION AND AMENDMENT PART 5 - RULES OF PROCEDURE MEETINGS 27.1 Any of these Council Rules of Procedure except Rules 16.6 and 17.3 may be suspended by motion on notice or without notice, if at least one half of the whole number of Members of the Council are present. Suspension can only be for the duration of the meeting Any motion to amend these rules shall, when proposed and seconded, stand adjourned without discussion to the next ordinary meeting of the Council APPLICATION 28.1 All of the Council Rules of Procedure in this Part 5 Section 1, apply to meetings of the Full Council SUBSTITUTION OF THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE If the Chief Executive is unavailable or unable to act for the purpose of any of these Council Meeting procedure rules, then the Head of Legal and Administration and Monitoring Officer may be substituted for him. PAGE 160 ISSUE 5 OCTOBER 2015

15 PART 5 RULES OF PROCEDURE FOR MEETINGS SECTION 2 COMMITTEE MEETINGS 1.0 TO WHICH COMMITTEES DO THESE RULES APPLY? 1.1 These Rules apply to: Overview Select Committee, the Regulatory Committees, the Standards Committee, the Joint Area Committees, the Audit and Governance Committee Working Groups 1.2 Rule 3.0 below does not apply to Working Groups or Panels. 2.0 APPLICATION OF COUNCIL MEETINGS PROCEDURE RULES 2.1 Rules 5 to 8; 12 to 14; 15 to 21; 23 to 24; and 25, 27 and 29 of the Council Procedure Rules apply to Committees except for Working Groups and Panels where only Rules 7, 8, 16,18, 20, 24, 25 and 27 shall apply. 2.2 Rule 10 (Questions by the Public) only applies to the Joint Area Committees. 2.3 The voting at Development Control Committee shall be in accordance with the Planning Services Local Code of Conduct. 3.0 BUSINESS AT COMMITTEE MEETINGS No item of business may be considered at a meeting of a Committee or Sub- Committee unless either: a copy of the Agenda, including the item, is open to inspection by members of the public for at least five clear days before the meeting or, where the meeting is convened at shorter notice, from the time the meeting is convened. Clear days mean days on which the Council Offices are open for business and excludes both the day the agenda is sent out and the day of the meeting, or by reason of special circumstances, which shall be specified in the Minutes, the Chairman of the meeting is of the opinion that the item should be considered at the meeting as a matter of urgency. 4.0 DELEGATION OF POWERS The power to take appropriate action (including the placing of contracts) within the scope of the Committees shall be delegated to those Committees, but if a majority of the Members of a Committee resolve that a matter so delegated is of sufficient public interest or importance to require consideration by the Council the Committee shall make a recommendation on the matter to the Council and no action committing the Council to any particular course of action shall be taken until such recommendation shall have been considered and approved by the Council, who shall have power to deal with the matter in any way they resolve to be appropriate. 5.0 ELECTION OF CHAIRMEN OF COMMITTEES 5.1 The Council at its Annual Meeting will appoint the Chairman and Vice-Chairman of every Committee for the year but in the event of any failure so to do every Committee (apart from the Standards Committee) shall at its first meeting, before proceeding to any other business, elect a Chairman and Vice-Chairman to hold office until such time as the Council has made the relevant appointment. 5.2 In the absence from a meeting of the Chairman (and Vice-Chairman if elected) a Chairman for that meeting may be appointed to preside by those Members present. 6.0 URGENT MATTERS In the event of an urgent matter arising between meetings of Committees, the Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the Committee concerned in consultation with the PAGE 161 ISSUE 5 OCTOBER 2015

16 PART 5 RULES OF PROCEDURE (MEETINGS) SECTION 2 COMMITTEE MEETINGS relevant Director, shall be empowered to take appropriate action on the matter. Provided that any such action taken shall be reported to the next meeting of the appropriate Committee and any expenditure incurred as a result of this action shall be within the budget of that Committee. 7.0 SPECIAL MEETINGS The Chairman of a Committee or the Chairman of the Council may call a special meeting of the Committee at any time. The special meeting shall also be called on the requisition in writing of a third of the Members of the Committee. The summons to the special meeting shall set out the business to be considered thereat and no business other than that set out in the summons shall be considered at that meeting. 8.0 ATTENDANCE OF MEMBERS 8.1 A Member of the Council shall have the right to attend any Committee 123 of the Council of which he/she is not a member, but he/she shall not vote thereat and his/her right to speak shall in all cases be subject to the permission of the Committee. 8.2 A Committee may invite any Member of the Council, who is not a member of that Committee, to attend one or more of its meetings as a consultee to provide the Committee with: verbal or written answers to the Committee s questions; and/or make a verbal statement to the Committee; and/or a written statement 8.3 A Member attending a Committee meeting as a consultee shall not vote thereat and his/her right to speak shall in all cases be subject to the permission of the Committee. 9.0 PROPOSER OF MOTION MAY ATTEND A Member of the Council who has proposed a motion which, pursuant to Council Meetings Procedure Rule 12.5 has been referred to any Committee may attend the meeting at which it is proposed to consider the motion, and if he/she attends shall have an opportunity of explaining it QUORUM 10.1 The Quorum for a Committee or Working Group shall be one-third of the whole number of the Committee, save in respect of the Standards Committee, where the Quorum is referred to in Part 2, Article 9 and Part 3 of this Constitution respectively If during any meeting of a Committee or Working Group the Chairman, after counting the number of Members present, declares that there is not a Quorum present, the meeting will adjourn immediately The consideration of any business not transacted shall be adjourned to a time and place fixed by the Chairman or, if he/she does not fix a time and place, to the next meeting of the Committee or Working Group 1 A Member attending a Committee as a consultee must declare their personal or prejudicial interests at that meeting 2 A Member with a prejudicial interest who attends as a consultee must leave the meeting during any debate and when any vote is taken. 3 A Member who has attended a Committee meeting as a consultee must when taking part in any future business of the Council consider whether their actions as a consultee amount to bias or predetermination in relation to that future business of the Council. PAGE 162 ISSUE 5 OCTOBER 2015

17 1.0 BACKGROUND PART 5 RULES OF PROCEDURE (MEETINGS) SECTION 3 PUBLIC SPEAKING RULES Arun District Council has always encouraged public involvement in the planning process. In addition to all other means of obtaining interested parties views on the full range of planning issues, the public are able to speak at a Development Control Committee when items are being considered/decided. 2.0 TERMS OF REFERENCE 2.1 The right to speak at a Development Control Committee will apply to applicants and/or their agents as well as any interested party/organisation who have made written representations in respect of any item being considered by that Committee (except those items which are exempt by virtue of S. 12A of the Local Government Act 1972). 2.2 The visual presentation of material at Development Control Committee will be restricted to that information submitted as part of the application (and/or prepared by officers in respect of any other item) in accordance with the visual presentation procedures agreed by the former Planning Committee. 3.0 REGISTRATION OF INTEREST 3.1 Applicants/agents and all other parties/organisations who have made written representations regarding an application/item which falls to be considered by the Development Control Committee will be notified in writing of the date of the relevant Committee, their right to speak and the applicable procedures at the time that the recommendation is prepared by the relevant case officer. 3.2 Those wishing to speak must formally register their wish to speak by telephoning the dedicated number by 5pm on the day prior to the notified Committee date. 3.3 If for any reason the relevant application/item is no longer to be considered by that Development Control Committee the Council will endeavour to notify the interested party, but this cannot be guaranteed 3.4 Speakers will be notified of the future Committee date when the consideration of items are deferred prior to Committee but will need to reregister their wish to speak in the manner previously set out. Where an application is deferred at Committee, if there has been provided an opportunity for the applicant or objectors to speak on that item and whether or not the applicant or objector chooses to speak, there is no right to speak when the matter comes back for reconsideration at the next meeting, 3.5 To avoid possible confusion, the Council regrets that it cannot accept the registration of speakers in any other manner and those invited to speak must first register their acceptance in the way prescribed as the Committee will not be able to hear any party who has not formally registered. 3.6 Some applications/items fall to be determined by officers under the Council s approved Officer Scheme of Delegation and will not be put to the Development Control Committee for determination and it is not always possible to determine the decision method until the stage at which the case officer is formulating a recommendation. Therefore, it is not possible for the Council to accept prior or holding registrations. PAGE 163 ISSUE 5 OCTOBER 2015

18 PART 5 RULES OF PROCEDURE FOR MEETINGS SECTION 3 PUBLIC SPEAKING 4.0 COMMITTEE ARRANGEMENT FOR SPEAKING 4.1 Number/Order of Speakers Table Order SPEAKER TIME ALLOWED 1. Planning Officer to present and if necessary update the report, particularly regarding further written representations received. 2. Town or Parish Council/Meeting 3 minutes One Representative only 3. Objectors to the Application 3 minutes Two Representatives only 4. Applicants/Agents/Supporters 3 minutes Two Representatives only 5. Ward Councillors In the interest of fairness the Chairman will request Ward Councillors to limit their presentation to 3 minutes. 6. Planning Officer to deal with any errors of fact which have arisen or any necessary clarification of policy or other issues 7. Committee to debate and determine the application, involving officers as necessary 8. No Further Right for Public Speaking 4.2 NB: Arun District Council Members are entitled to address any Committee at the discretion of the Chairman in accordance with Standing Orders. Therefore, they are excluded from this process. 4.3 In the event that more than two speakers have registered to speak in categories 2, 3, or 4 the first two registered persons appearing on the register only will be allowed to speak. If one or both of the persons entitled to speak does not attend or confirms that they agree to the next registered person speaking in their place, then the next registered person will be allowed to speak in their place. Prior to the commencement of the meeting, attendance of those who have registered to speak will be listed. The Chairman s discretion shall apply in the event of any dispute in the matter of which persons may speak. 4.4 The time allowed for those registered to speak at a Committee meeting will be as set out above controlled by the Chairman, striking the right balance between the opportunity for people to be heard and ensuring that applications are dealt with efficiently and fairly within a reasonable length of meeting. PAGE 164 ISSUE 5 OCTOBER 2015