The Standards Sub-Committee of Kingston upon Thames Council met to consider a complaint against a councillor, and to confirm the procedure for hearings before the sub-committee. It was also scheduled to consider excluding the press and public from part of the meeting.

Determination of Complaint Against a Councillor

The sub-committee was scheduled to consider an Independent Investigator's Report concerning a complaint against a councillor.

The Public Reports Pack included Appendix D, which details the procedure for handling complaints made against elected or co-opted members for breaches of the Member Code of Conduct.

The procedure states that after a complaint has been received, the Monitoring Officer¹ will review it and consult with the Council's Independent Person² to decide whether it merits investigation.

If an investigation is deemed necessary, an Investigating Officer will be appointed to gather evidence. At the end of the investigation, the Investigating Officer will produce a draft report and seek comments from the complainant and the member against whom the complaint has been made.

If the Investigating Officer concludes that there is evidence of a failure to comply with the Code of Conduct, the Monitoring Officer, in consultation with the Independent Person, can either refer the matter to the Standards Sub-committee or seek local resolution.

The Procedure for Hearings Before the Standards Sub-committee outlines the steps to be taken during a hearing, including:

• Introductions
• Consideration of whether to exclude the press and public
• An outline of the hearing procedure by the Chair of the Subcommittee, Councillor Lynn Henderson
• A determination of facts
• Consideration of whether the member failed to comply with the Code of Conduct
• Consideration of sanctions, if a failure to comply with the Code is found

If the sub-committee finds that a member has failed to comply with the Code of Conduct, it can take various actions, including issuing a public censure, asking the member to apologise, or recommending to council that the member be removed from any committees.

Exclusion of Press and Public

The sub-committee was scheduled to consider excluding the press and public from the meeting during consideration of the complaint against a councillor. The reason cited was that the discussion was likely to involve the disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraphs 1 and 2 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972. These paragraphs relate to information about individuals and information likely to reveal the identity of an individual.

Procedure for Hearings

The sub-committee was scheduled to confirm the procedure for hearings before the Standards Sub-committee as detailed in the Schedule to Appendix D of Part 5A Member Code of Conduct of the Council's Constitution.