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City of York Council |
Committee Minutes |
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Meeting |
Executive |
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Date |
11 March 2025 |
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Present |
Councillors Douglas (Chair), Kilbane (Vice-Chair), Lomas, Pavlovic, Ravilious, Steels-Walshaw and Webb |
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Apologies |
Councillors Kent |
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Part B Minute – Recommendation to Council
89. Review of the City of York Council Scrutiny Function (17:37)
The Head of Democratic Governance introduced the report and the 12 recommendations which had been considered by the Council’s Corporate Services, Climate Change and Scrutiny Management Committee.
The Chair of Corporate Services, Climate Change and Scrutiny Management Committee welcomed the review of scrutiny functions at the Council. He noted that the survey of Councillors showed a need for improvements and that this offered the opportunity to get back to the basics of scrutiny. He welcomed the opportunity for a working group to develop the proposals in the recommendations, noting the need for this to be Councillor owned and Councillor lead. He confirmed that Corporate Services, Climate Change and Scrutiny Management Committee supported the recommendations, outside of recommendation 8 which there was not a consensus on the number of Scrutiny Committees and recommendation 3, which the Committee did not support the move to having named substitutes for meetings.
The Executive Leader agreed with the Corporate Services, Climate Change and Scrutiny Management Committee’s suggestions to not adopt recommendation 3. In relation to Recommendation 8 she proposed the Council reduce the number of Councillors on Scrutiny Committee’s to 9 and to move to 3 Committees, an overarching Scrutiny Committee (including calling-in functions), a Place Committee, and a People Committee (to include Housing). It was proposed these changes take effect at the 2025 Annual General Meeting and be reviewed in 12 months. Finally, she noted that the working group to be established in accordance with recommendation 1 be a cross-party working group.
Recommended:
i. That Council endorse the proposed actions as set out in Annex B in respect of Scrutiny Review Report recommendations 1-2, 4-7 and 9-12, noting that a cross-party working group will be established to lead on and oversee the work;
ii. To recommend that, in respect of recommendation 8 of the Scrutiny Review Report, Full Council resolves to implement a revised Scrutiny structure, comprising an overarching Scrutiny Committee (including calling-in functions) with nine seats, a Place Committee with nine seats, and a People Committee (to include Housing) with nine seats. These changes to take effect at the 2025 Annual General Meeting and will be reviewed in 12 months;
iii. To recommend to Council that Recommendation 3 of the Scrutiny Review Report is not adopted.
Reason: To seek Full Council’s approval for changes to how Scrutiny operates at the Council.
Cllr Douglas Chair
[The meeting started at 4.32 pm and finished at 5.56 pm].