Agenda item

Joint Report of the Town Clerk and the Chamberlain.

Members received a joint report of the Town Clerk and the Chamberlain relative to the Annual Governance Statement for 2021/22 (AGS).

The Annual Governance Statement received unanimous praise from Members.

Members discussed the AGS and suggested the following amendments:

• Emphasise in the Executive Summary that the Head of Internal Audit had provided an annual opinion on the systems of internal control (para 4)
• Clarify that the Court of Common Council has a majority independent membership, rather than non-party political (page 2, chart);
• Add a reference to the external Members who serve on some Committees (page 2, chart)
• Confirm that all red (critical) priority recommendations were promptly resolved (table, page 4);
• Reorder the key governance issues (page 8);
• Remove ‘accurate’ when talking about City Database (para 26);
• Emphasise the exceptional circumstances of the cancellation of the Court elections and the final impacts of the pandemic on normal process of electing alderman, sheriffs and lord mayors when these were cancelled (para 27);
• Change terminology to say that there are ‘key’ governance issues rather than ‘significant’ (para 34); and
• Fix any broken links

Members also discussed subjects that could be included in the next AGS. These included:

• a review of the governance changes that have been implemented in consequence of the Governance Review such as the introduction of lead members for policy priorities; and
• post pandemic challenges such as recruitment.

RESOLVED, that – Members:

• Consider and approve the AGS, as amended, for signing by the Chair of the Policy and Resources Committee and the Town Clerk and Chief Executive
• Note that the AGS will be published alongside the 2021/22 City Fund and Pension Fund Statement of Accounts
• Delegate authority to the Town Clerk and Chief Executive, in consultation with the Chairman and Deputy Chairmen of this Committee, to amend the AGS for any relevant significant events or developments that occur prior to the date on which the Statement of Accounts is signed by the Chamberlain.