Major change to South Tyneside Council rules slammed as ‘appalling move undermining democracy’
Changes have been made to the procedure to “call-in” decisions made by the leading cabinet for reconsideration – which has been met with criticism from opposition councillors.
Call-in provides a mechanism for councillors to intervene when they feel a decision being made by the cabinet needs to be revisited, or possibly changed.
If a valid call-in request to South Tyneside Council is received it means the matter will go before the overview and scrutiny co-ordinating and call-in committee to examine the decision.
The panel then decides whether it should be referred back to councillors on the leading cabinet for reconsideration.
Previously the council’s constitution stated such a request could be made by any five councillors representing at least two political groups or any three councillors together with the chair of the relevant scrutiny committee – the overview and scrutiny co-ordinating and call-in committee.
However a report went before the latest borough-wide meeting of the local authority to consider changes recommended by the constitution committee to alter this.
The new rules state a call-in request must include “any three members of the council together with the chairperson and vice chairperson of the overview and scrutiny co-ordinating and call-in Committee.”
The change was approved, with 26 in favour, 20 against and one abstention, but not before it was met with criticism from opposition councillors.
Cllr Kate Owens-Palmer, from the South Tyneside Alliance Group, raised concerns about how the process now has to involve the chair and vice chair of the overview and scrutiny committee, who are both part of the leading Labour group.
She noted they would therefore “be calling their own cabinet into question.”
Cllr Owens-Palmer added: “I think it’s definitely a case of students marking their own homework.
“I think it takes away an awful lot of the way that we can actually call things into question here.
“It’s removing that and it’s absolutely undermining democracy in this chamber, I think it’s appalling.”
Cllr Chris Davies, Green Group representative, added: “This is a massive change to how call-in is structured across the council.”
Labour’s Cllr Tracey Dixon, council leader, said the recommendation for the change came following debate at a recent constitution committee meeting which was scheduled following a number of requests for changes to the constitution.
She added: “We held a constitution committee meeting in public where members of the constitution committee were invited to attend.
“There was a full debate by the members at that constitution committee, it has been through the process, fairly, openly and transparently, in public, with the opportunity for members to attend.
“That meeting was given the right notice and these changes were debated in the public meeting to a length.”
A report which went before the latest council meeting noted the call-in procedure is “best regarded as an urgent and serious request from councillors to the executive decision maker that they should think again.”
It added the request “should be seen as notable because it is a function that should only be used in exceptional circumstances.”
The council report stated the Centre for Governance and Scrutiny, a national charity devoted to good governance and decision-making, note call-in must be subject to some form of restriction – in keeping with the fact that it should be “seen as a long-stop, used rarely.”
The report continued: “For this principle to be upheld, call-in arrangements must, practically, place hurdles which have to be overcome for a call-in to be considered “valid”.
“The Centre for Governance and Scrutiny stresses that putting such hurdles in place is not only legal, but also a specific component of the legislation and formal guidance on this subject.
“Not to do so risks call-in being ineffective.”
However the council report also noted these hurdles “should not be designed to thwart members’ legitimate right to call-in decisions.”
It comes after a valid call-in request was recently submitted over the decision to demolish the Durham Court tower block in Hebburn.
On that occasion the overview and scrutiny co-ordinating and call-in committee unanimously agreed to refer the decision back to cabinet, where councillors stuck with their original decision to demolish the residential high-rise building.