Agenda and minutes

The apologies of those Members unable to attend this meeting of the Court were noted.

No declarations were made.

To agree the minutes of the meeting of the Court of Common Council held on 12 May 2016.

Resolved – That the Minutes of the last Court are correctly recorded.

Resolved unanimously – that the sincere congratulations of this Court be offered to:

 Sir David Brewer, K.G., C.M.G., C.V.O., J.P.

Formerly Lord Mayor of the City, on his recent appointment by Her Majesty the Queen as a Knight of the Most Noble Order of the Garter.

Resolved unanimously – that the sincere congratulations of this Court be offered to:

Adrian Leppard, C.B.E., Q.P.M.

Lately Commissioner of Police for the City, on his recent appointment by Her Majesty the Queen as a Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire in recognition of his services to Policing and the prevention of economic crime.

The Right Honourable The Lord Mayor to report on his recent overseas visits.

The Right Honourable the Lord Mayor reported on his recent overseas visits to Greece, Slovakia and Turkey, as well as on recent inward visits by the Presidents of Chile, Costa Rica and Hungary and the Prime Minister of Malaysia.

To receive a statement from the Chairman of the Policy and Resources Committee.

There was no statement.

There were no documents to be sealed.

To consider a circulated list of applications for the Freedom of the City.

The Chamberlain, in pursuance of the Order of this Court, presented a list of the under-mentioned, persons who had made applications to be admitted to the Freedom of the City by Redemption:-

To consider Resolutions of the Annual Wardmotes from the Wards of Bishopsgate,  Broad Street, Candlewick, Cheap, Farringdon Within, Farringdon Without and Portsoken.

Resolutions of the Annual Wardmotes:-

From the Ward of Bishopsgate

“That the Grand Court of Common Council do consider the provision of further facilities for the charging of electric cars within the City of London in general and in particular within the Ward of Bishopsgate.”

Resolved – That the resolution be referred to the Streets & Walkways Sub-Committee and the Port Health & Environmental Services Committee for consideration and any necessary action.

From the Ward of Broad Street

“That, at the last Wardmote very great concern was expressed regarding the level of litter and blocking of pavements from smokers and ‘vapers’. The litter and blocking of pavements from groups of smokers causes much disturbance to local occupiers, especially those in the area local to New Broad Street.

The City of London Corporation is therefore asked to confirm:

1.    What action will be taken to ensure that litter (especially from smokers) will not accumulate on pavements?

2.    What action will be taken to raise the awareness of smokers to the prohibition on littering the streets and to discourage them from blocking pavements when smoking?

3.    That the City of London Police will be encouraged to use its powers under environmental legislation to issue Fixed Penalty Notices to litterers.

Resolved – That the resolution be referred to the Streets & Walkways Sub-Committee and the Port Health & Environmental Services Committee for consideration and any necessary action.

From the Ward of Candlewick

“That the Planning and Transportation Committee be asked to improve the arrangements for access to St Swithin’s Lane such that the bollards controlled by N M Rothschild on behalf of the City of London Corporation are raised only in times of high alert and that when they are raised they are physically manned so that access is clearly available to

To receive a report setting out measures introduced into Parliament which may have an effect on the services provided by the City Corporation.

The Court received a report on measures introduced by Parliament which might have an effect on the services provided by the City Corporation as follows:-

(The text of the measures and the explanatory notes thereon may be obtained from the Remembrancer’s office.)

To consider the following appointments:

* denotes a Member standing for re-appointment

(A)         Three Members on the Outside Bodies Sub (Policy and Resources) Committee, for one year terms expiring in April 2017.

Nominations received:-

John Alfred Barker, O.B.E., Deputy

John George Stewart Scott, J.P.

James Richard Tumbridge

(B)         Three Members on Christ’s Hospital, for four year terms expiring in January 2020.

Nominations received:-

*Vivienne Littlechild, J.P.

(C)         Two Members on the Court of City University, for three year terms expiring in June 2019.

Nominations received:-

*Mark Boleat

*Dr Giles Robert Evelyn Shilson, Deputy

The Court proceeded to consider appointments to the Outside Bodies Sub (Policy and Resources) Committee, Christ’s Hospital, and the Court of City University.

* denotes a Member standing for re-appointment

(A)         Outside Bodies Sub (Policy and Resources) Committee (three vacancies for one year terms expiring in April 2017).

Nominations received:-

John Alfred Barker, O.B.E., Deputy

John George Stewart Scott, J.P.

James Richard Tumbridge

Read.

Whereupon the Lord Mayor declared Deputy John Barker, John Scott and James Tumbridge to be appointed to the Outside Bodies Sub (Policy and Resources) Committee.

(B)         Three Members on Christ’s Hospital (three vacancies for four year terms expiring in January 2020).

Nominations received:-

*Vivienne Littlechild, J.P.

Read.

Whereupon the Lord Mayor declared Vivienne Littlechild to be appointed to Christ’s Hospital.

(C)         Court of City University (two vacancies for three year terms expiring in June 2019)

Nominations received:-

*Mark Boleat

*Dr Giles Robert Evelyn Shilson, Deputy

Read.

Whereupon the Lord Mayor declared Mark Boleat and Deputy Dr Giles Shilson to be appointed to the Court of City University.

Smithfield General Market Site

Patrick Streeter asked a question of the Chairman of the Property Investment Board concerning the recent purchase of the Smithfield General Market Site.

In reply, the Chairman outlined the process by which the valuation had been made and the procedures in place to scrutinise the valuation. He confirmed that the price paid had reflected a fair market value and that the Board was content with the purchase.

Homelessness

Patrick Streeter asked a question of the Chairman of the Community & Children’s Services Committee concerning funding from central government to tackle homelessness.

In reply, the Chairman provided clarity as to the funding announced in the spring budget and the projects it was being made available for. He reassured Members that bids would be made for the various elements of the funding as appropriate.

Tudor Street

Martin Dudley asked a question of the Chairman of the Planning & Transportation Committee regarding the situation at Tudor Street.

The Chairman advised that, following the Court’s decision in April not to see the previously proposed traffic arrangements implemented in Tudor Street, TfL had nevertheless banned motor vehicle access in to the Street as part of the Cycle Super Highway. The Chairman had convened a number of meetings with TfL and key stakeholders as a consequence, resulting in several proposals to improve the situation. An internal safety review of the Junctions between Tudor Street and New Bridge Street and Bridewell Place and New Bridge Street had also been commissioned, resulting in temporary improved signage being installed, and an independent safety audit of the new Cycle Super Highway and safety risk assessment of impacted streets had also been passed to TfL. Tudor Street junction would also continue to feature as a standing item on the Streets & Walkways Sub Committee’s agenda.

In response to supplementary questions,

There were no motions.

There was no report.

To consider reports of the Policy and Resources Committee, as follows:

POLICY AND RESOURCES COMMITTEE

(Mark Boleat)

(A) Statutory Dismissal Procedures for the Head of Paid Service, Monitoring Officer and Chief Financial Officer – concerning the implementation of new procedures and proposing associated amendments to Standing Orders.

For Decision

13 June 2016

(A) Statutory Dismissal Procedures for the Head of Paid Service, Monitoring Officer and Chief Financial Officer

The Town Clerk and Chamberlain withdrew from the meeting whilst this item was considered.

The Court proceeded to consider proposals concerning the Statutory Dismissal Procedures for the Head of Paid Services (Town Clerk), Monitoring Officer (Comptroller and City Solicitor) and the Section 151 Officer (Chamberlain), required following amendments to the Local Authorities (Standing Orders) (England) (Amendments) Regulations 2015. The Amendments required that a new Committee, known as the Statutory Officer Review Panel, be created and the proposed Terms of Reference together with associated changes to Standing Orders were put forward for Members’ consideration.

It was recommended that the Court:

·         agree to the creation of a Statutory Officer Review Panel, with Terms of Reference as set out at Appendix 1 to the report;

·         agree to the amendment of Standing Order 63 in line with the terms set out in Appendix 2 to the report;

·         agree to the addition of the Statutory Officer Review Panel to the list of those Committees in Standing Order 29(3) of which a Member can hold Chairmanship while being Chairman of another Committee, and to amend Standing Order 29(3) to state that “no ex-officio Member of a Committee is eligible to be Chairman of the Committee, except for the Statutory Officer Review Panel”; and

·         agree to amend Standing Order 29(7) to add the Statutory Officer Review Panel to the list of those Committees in which ex-officio Members are eligible to vote in the election of Chairman.

Resolved – That approval be given to:-

·         the creation of a Statutory Officer Review Panel, with Terms of Reference as set out at Appendix 1 to the report;

·         the amendment of Standing Order 63 in line with the terms set out

(B) Management of the City Educational Trust Fund and the City of London Corporation Combined Education Charity – concerning the arrangements for oversight of the two charitable funds and proposing amendments to the Terms of Reference of the Community & Children’s Services Committee and the Education Board.

For Decision

19 May 2016

(B) Management of the City Educational Trust Fund and the City of London Corporation Combined Education Charity

The Court proceeded to consider a report of the Education Board proposing that the Education Board be appointed as the Grand Committee responsible for management of the City Educational Trust Fund and the City of London Corporation Combined Education Charity, and that it appoint an Education Charity Sub (Education Board) Committee to oversee the application of funds from those charities. The Community and Children’s Services Committee would then be responsible for making recommendations to the Education Board on any policy adopted for the application of those funds and for appointing some of its membership to serve on the Education Charity Sub (Education Board) Committee. The report also proposed some minor clarifications to the existing terms of reference to facilitate this.

Members were therefore recommended to approve the proposed amendments to the terms of reference of both the Education Board and Community and Children’s Services Committee, as set out in the report.

The Revd. Dr Martin Dudley expressed the view that management of the two charities might sit better with the Community & Children’s Services Committee, given that it was a Ward Committee with a broader membership; as a minimum, he suggested that it would be appropriate for the proposed terms of reference to be amended such that both Committees had to agree the policies adopted for the application of the funds.

The Chairman of the Policy and Resources Committee observed that the proposed arrangements and terms of reference had already been approved by both of the affected Committees and he was therefore reticent to agree any further changes at this stage. In addition, he noted that the intention of the report was to ensure that management was delegated to one Committee;

(C) Central Criminal Court Reporting Lines – proposing the creation of a new sub-committee and associated amendments to the Policy and Resources Committee’s Terms of Reference.

For Decision

19 May 2016

(C) Central Criminal Court Reporting Lines

With the next few years to be a particularly important time for the Central Criminal Court in view of the extensive refurbishment works planned for the building, as well as the work of the Recorder and Sheriffs to review and improve working arrangements and practices and to extend the community engagement role, the Central Criminal Court had been identified as an area that would benefit from greater coordination and dedicated attention in terms of Member support and oversight.

The Finance Committee, General Purposes Committee of Aldermen and Policy and Resources Committee had considered this matter and all had agreed that it would be appropriate for the Policy and Resources Committee to create a dedicated Sub-Committee to be responsible for the Central Criminal Court, for a period of five years (to April 2021).

To allow this proposal to be enacted, amendments would need to be made to Committee Terms of Reference. Accordingly, it was recommended that the Court of Common Council approve an amendment to the Policy and Resources Committee’s Terms of Reference to make it responsible for oversight of the management of all matters relating to the Central Criminal Court (as set out at Appendix 1), to allow the Committee to create a Central Criminal Court Sub-Committee.

John Scott asked a question concerning the City Corporation’s wider relationship with the magistracy and the management of its assets relative to that function, suggesting that the terms of reference of the new Sub-Committee be expanded to give it oversight of all of the City’s courts. Members debated the proposal, noting that the General Purposes Committee of Aldermen had recently established a new Aldermen and Magistracy Sub-Committee with a broad remit including looking at such matters. Nonetheless, it was felt on balance that a

(D) Report of Urgent Action Taken: Election of Deputy Chairmen – to note action taken under urgency procedures in approving amendments to Standing Order no.30, concerning the appointment of Deputy Chairmen to the Policy and Resources Committee.

For Information

16 May 2016

(D) Report of Urgent Action Taken: Election of Deputy Chairmen

The Court received a report advising of action taken in accordance with urgency procedures in approving an amendment to Standing Orders.

On 6 December 2012, as part of the post-implementation review of the introduction of the new governance arrangements, the Court of Common Council had agreed to the election of three Deputy Chairmen of the Policy and Resources Committee from 2013, and to a process for one of the Deputy Chairmen to be elected as the “Chairman in-waiting” in the last year of the Chairman’s term of office (thereby reducing the lead-in time for the ‘Chairman in-waiting’ of that Committee to one year). The Court of Common Council resolved that this should be achieved by the Policy and Resources Committee establishing a protocol. 

Whilst a protocol was consequently approved by the Policy and Resources Committee, the wording of Standing Order No. 30 had not been adequately amended and could therefore be interpreted such that it would not be consistent with the protocol. Standing Order No. 30 therefore required clarification and amendment to ensure there was no ambiguity regarding the protocol’s application; with the Policy and Resources Committee due to elect its Deputy Chairman on 19 May 2016, steps were therefore taken to rectify this error. The approval of the Court was therefore obtained under urgency procedures to amend Standing Order No. 30 to ensure that it was clear and in line with the agreed process.

The Court was therefore recommended to note that on 16 May 2016 approval was given, in accordance with Standing Order No. 19, to the amendment of Standing Order No. 30 as set out in Appendix A so as to ensure that there was no ambiguity regarding the application of the agreed protocol.

To consider reports of the Hospitality Working Party of the Policy and Resources

Committee, as follows:

(Michael Welbank, M.B.E., Chief Commoner)

(A)         Applications for the Use of Guildhall – to note the prior approval of the listed applications for the use of Guildhall.

For Information

31 May 2016

(A) Applications for the Use of Guildhall

In accordance with the arrangements approved by the Court on 21 June 2001 for the approval of applications for the use of Guildhall, the Court was informed of the following applications which had been agreed to:-

Resolved – That the several applications be noted.</AI15>

(B)         Applications for Hospitality – to consider one recommendation concerning the provision of hospitality, to coincide with a meeting of the Association of Commonwealth Speakers.

For Decision

31 May 2016

(B) Applications for Hospitality

Commonwealth Speakers Association Standing Committee Dinner

The Standing Committee of the Association of Commonwealth Speakers and Presiding Officers were due to meet in London from 12 – 14 January 2017. The meeting was to be attended by Speakers and Presiding Officers of sixteen national parliaments of Commonwealth countries and would be jointly hosted by the Speaker of the House of Commons and the Speaker of the Seychelles National Assembly. The main aims of the meeting were to prepare for the biennial conference of Commonwealth Speakers, to take place in the Seychelles in 2018 and it had been proposed that the City Corporation host a tour of Guildhall and dinner on the evening preceding the main working sessions of the meeting.

It was therefore recommended that hospitality be granted for a dinner for the Association of the Commonwealth Speakers with arrangements to be made under the auspices of the Hospitality Working Party; the costs to be met from City’s Cash and within the approved parameters.

This would be a Committee event.

Resolved – That hospitality be granted and that the arrangements be made under the auspices of the Hospitality Working Party; the costs to be met from City’s Cash and within the approved cost parameters.

To receive the annual report providing a summary of the Standards Committee’s activities over the year.

STANDARDS COMMITTEE

(Oliver Arthur Wynlayne Lodge)

13 May 2016

Standards Committee: Annual Report

The Standards Committee is required to monitor all complaints referred to it and to prepare an annual report on its activity for submission to the Court of Common Council. The Court was advised that two allegations of a breach of the Code of Conduct were made to the Committee during the course of 2015/16; one of which was not found to warrant assessment and one that progressed to a hearing and then an appeal.

Motion – That the report be referred back to the Standards Committee for further consideration.

Alderman Malins spoke against the report in relation to the reporting of a breach of the Code of Conduct and the manner in which the Hearing and Appeal had been conducted. Edward Lord reminded Members that the procedure for both the Hearing and Appeal Stages had been produced in consultation with the Monitoring Officer and that the Hearing and Appeal had been fully compliant with this protocol.

Edward Lord also made reference to Standing Order No.11(11) and a possible breach by Alderman Malins. The Town Clerk reminded all Members of the provisions of that Standing Order.

Several Members spoke to express the view that the level of detail within the report was excessive and not commensurate with the findings of the Appeal Sub-Committee, agreeing with the Motion that the report be withdrawn and a more proportionate report re-submitted.

Motion – That, in accordance with Standing Order 11(9), the Question be now put.

Upon the Question being put, the Lord Mayor declared the Motion to be carried. The Motion proposed by Alderman Malins and seconded by Sir Michael Snyder was therefore put forthwith.

Upon the Question being put, the Lord Mayor declared the Motion to be carried.

The Town

That the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business below on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act, 1972, or which fall under paragraph 100A(2) of the Local Government Act 1972 relating to confidential information that would be disclosed in breach of an obligation of confidence by a department of Her Majesty’s Government.

Resolved – That the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business below on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 or which fall under paragraph 100A(2) of the Local Government Act 1972 relating to confidential information that would be disclosed in breach of an obligation of confidence by a department of Her Majesty’s Government.

Summary of exempt items considered whilst the public were excluded:-

To agree the non-public minutes of the meeting of the Court held on 12 May 2016.

Non-public Minutes

Resolved – That the non-public Minutes of the last Court are correctly recorded.

The Chief Commoner to be heard in relation to the provision of hospitality.

Hospitality Working Party of the Policy and Resources Committee

The Court approved a Motion concerning the provision of hospitality.

To consider a report concerning the award of a corporate security contract.

Finance Committee

The Court approved a report concerning the award of a corporate security contract.