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9.1 Standards Committee

The Council will establish a Standards Committee

9.2 Membership

1. The Standards Committee will be composed of at least:-
   • five councillors not including the Leader or more than one member of the Cabinet but including, so far as possible, representatives from at least four political groups on the Council;
   • four persons who are not councillors or officers of the Council or any other body having a Standards Committee (external members);
   • three persons who are members of a parish or town council wholly or mainly in the Council's area (parish members), but who are not also members of Kirklees Council.
2. An independent member of a standards committee of a different relevant authority may be appointed to the Standards Committee in relation to a particular allegation, or set of allegations against a member, co-opted member, former member or former co-opted member, and the Standards Committee shall fix the term of office of that independent member accordingly. For the period of membership that independent member shall have the same rights and obligations as a permanent member of the Standards Committee.
3. External members and parish members, as well as councillors, will be entitled to vote at meetings;
4. At least one external member and two members from Kirklees Council must be present at any meeting of the committee.
5. At least 1 parish member must be present when any matter relating to parish councils or their members is being considered;
6. The committee will be chaired by one of the external members.

9.3 Role and Function

The Standards Committee will have the following roles and functions:

1. To promote and maintain high standards of conduct by members, including co-opted members;
2. Establish sub-committees to consider, review, request an investigation into and determine any written allegation may to it under Section 57A of the Local Government Act 2007, that a member or co-opted member (or former member or former co-opted member) of that Authority has failed or may have failed to comply with the Authority's code of conduct.
   • To make arrangements for publicity of the member complaints system in such manner as it considers appropriate to comply with statute, regulation and Standards Board for England guidance
   • To agree, review periodically and make publicly available criteria against which complaints will be assessed
   • To agree criteria by which the assessment sub-committee will consider requests for confidentiality
   • To agree and publish a statement setting out how anonymous complaints will be dealt with
3. To monitor and review, as appropriate, the members' code of conduct and to advise the Council on any changes;
4. To provide advice and guidance to members and co-opted members on issues relating to the members code of conduct and ethical standards and to arrange the provision of training on such matters;
5. To consider and, if appropriate, grant dispensations to members and co-opted members from requirements relating to interests set out in the members' code of conduct; within the framework permissible by Regulations issued to give effect to the Local Government & Public Involvement in Health Act 2007;
6. To deal with:-
   • any report from a case tribunal or interim case tribunal established under Section 76 of the Local Government Act 2000; and
   • any report from the Monitoring Officer on any matter which is referred to him by an ethical standards officer appointed under that Act
7. The exercise of (a) to (f) above in relation to the parish and town councils wholly or mainly within Kirklees and the members of those councils;
8. To comment on any matter raised by the Council's auditors or the Local Government Ombudsman relating to the above and referred to it by the Chief Executive, the Monitoring Officer or an Overview and Scrutiny Committee;
9. To recommend to the Council, if appropriate, the adoption of protocols relating to members' conduct supplementary to the members code of conduct and to determine procedures for dealing with allegations of breaches of such protocols;
10. To consider and take action on any reports referred to it by the Corporate Governance and Audit Committee relating to the monitoring of the performance of councillors.

9.4 Sub-Committees

9.5 Chair attending Council meetings.

The Chair of the Standards Committee may attend any meeting of the Council at any time when matters relating to the Committee or any of its functions are under consideration.>

On such occasions the Chair will have the same rights and obligations as the Chair of any other Committee with regard to making statements, speaking in any relevant debate and answering or responding to questions and comments.

The Standards Committee may nominate any one of its Kirklees Council membership to carry out that role in the absence of the Chair.

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