(Please also refer to Article 7)
1. HOW DOES THE CABINET OPERATE?
1.1 Who may make executive decisions?
The functions that are the responsibility of the Cabinet are set out in Part 3, Section 8 (Responsibility for Functions) and are known as executive functions. Where a decision is made in respect of an executive function, it is known as an executive decision. An executive decision can be made by:
(i) the Cabinet as a whole;
(ii) a committee of the Cabinet;
(iii) an individual portfolio holder;
(iv) an officer; or
(v) under joint arrangements
It is for the Leader to decide who exercises each executive function.
1.2 Delegation by the Leader
(a) The Leader will present to the Council a written record of delegations made by him/her for inclusion in the Council's scheme of delegation at Part 3 of this Constitution. This record will contain the following information about executive functions in relation to the term of office of the Cabinet:
(i) the names, addresses and wards of the people appointed to the Cabinet by the Leader;
(ii) the extent of any authority delegated to individual Portfolio Holders, including details of any limitation on their authority;
(iii) the terms of reference and constitution of such committees of the Cabinet as the Leader may appoint and the names of Cabinet members appointed to them;
(iv) the nature and extent of any delegation to any other authority under joint arrangements and the names of those Cabinet members appointed to any joint committee for the coming year; and
(v) the nature and extent of any delegation to officers with details of any limitation on that delegation, and the title of the officer to whom the delegation is made.
(b) The Leader may amend the scheme of delegation relating to executive functions at any time during the term of office of the Cabinet. To do so, the Leader must give written notice to the Head of Customer, Legal and Member Services and to the person, body or committee concerned. The notice must set out the extent of the amendment to the scheme of delegation, and whether it entails the withdrawal of delegation from any person, body, committee or the Cabinet as a whole. The Head of Customer, Legal and Member Services will present a report to the next ordinary meeting of the Council setting out the changes made by the Leader. If the next ordinary Council meeting is held within 7 days, then the report must be presented to the next following ordinary meeting.
(c) Where the Leader seeks to withdraw delegation from a committee of the Cabinet, notice will be deemed to be served on that committee when he/she has served it on the chairman of that committee.
NOTE. The Council is also responsible for a scheme of delegation which is set out in Part 3, Section 10. Officer delegation by the Cabinet appears in this list. However, the Cabinet is not responsible for other delegations contained in the Schedule (which are the responsibility of other decision making bodies such as the Council, Development Control Committee, Licensing Panel, etc).
1.3 Sub-delegation of executive functions
Where the Leader has delegated any function to the Cabinet, a Committee of the Cabinet, or an individual Portfolio Holder in accordance with Rule 1.2 above then, unless the Leader has directed otherwise, the Cabinet, Committee of the Cabinet, or individual Portfolio Holder may delegate further, as follows:
(a) the Cabinet may, by resolution, delegate to a Committee of the Cabinet, Portfolio Holder or to an officer;
(b) a Committee of the Cabinet may, by resolution, delegate to an officer (but not to a Portfolio Holder); and
(c) an individual Portfolio Holder may, by notice served on the relevant officer and copied to the Head of Customer, Legal and Member Services, delegate to an officer.
1.4 Personal/Prejudicial Interests
(a) Where, in the exercise of an executive function, the Leader or any individual member of the Cabinet has a personal/prejudicial interest this should be dealt with as set out in Part 2 of the Members Code of Conduct. See Part 5, Section 1 of this Constitution.
(b) If the exercise of an executive function has been delegated to a committee of the Cabinet, an individual Portfolio Holder or an officer (see Rules 1.2 and 1.3 above), and should a conflict of interest arise, then the function will be exercised in the first instance by the person or body by whom the delegation was made and otherwise as set out in the Member's Code of Conduct in Part 5 of this Constitution.
1.5 Cabinet meetings - when and where?
The Cabinet will meet a minimum of 10 times per year in accordance with a schedule of meetings to be agreed and published. Meetings shall normally commence at 2.00 pm or at times to be agreed by the Leader. The Cabinet shall meet at the Council Offices, Priory Road, Spalding or another location to be agreed by the Leader.
1.6 Public or private meetings of the Cabinet?
All meetings of the Cabinet will be held in public except for that part of an item of business where exempt or confidential information is to be discussed. (See Rule 10 of the Access to Information Rules).
1.7 Quorum
The quorum for a meeting of the Cabinet, or a committee of the Cabinet, shall be 4.
1.8 How are decisions to be taken by the Cabinet?
Executive decisions which have been delegated to the Cabinet or a committee of the Cabinet will be taken at a meeting convened in accordance with the Access to Information Rules in Part 4 of the Constitution.
2. HOW ARE THE EXECUTIVE MEETINGS CONDUCTED?
2.1 Who presides?
The Leader will chair any meeting of the Cabinet or any committee of the Cabinet at which he/she is present. The Leader may appoint a Deputy Leader and in his/her absence, then the Deputy Leader shall chair the meeting. In the absence of the Leader or the Deputy Leader, then a person appointed by those present shall chair the meeting.
2.2 Who may attend?
Members of the public may attend all meetings of the Cabinet and committees of the Cabinet unless confidential or exempt information is likely to be disclosed (see Rule 10 of the Access to Information Procedure Rules). During the consideration of confidential or exempt information, members of the public may be excluded from the meeting.
2.3 What business?
The agenda for each ordinary meeting of the Cabinet will include the following standing items of business:
(i) consideration of the minutes of the last meeting(s);
(ii) declarations of interest, if any;
(iii) any matters referred or reported to the Cabinet by the Policy Development Panel or the Performance Monitoring Panel or by the Council. (There may only be up to three such items per Cabinet meeting, subject to the Leader having the discretion to agree more);
(iv) any matters which have been subject to call-in; and
(v) any other matters set out in the agenda.
The agenda will indicate which items are key decisions (see Access to Information Procedure Rules Part 4, Section 2 of this Constitution).
2.4 Consultation
(a) Where it is proposed to include new plans or strategies, or to make amendments or additions to any existing plans or strategies, contained in the Policy Framework then any initial proposals agreed by Cabinet must be followed by a minimum period of consultation of 6 weeks. The proposed timetable for submission of firm proposals to Council following the consultation period must be included in the forward plan (see Policy Framework and Budget rules at Part 4, Section 3.)
(b) All reports to the Cabinet from a committee of the Cabinet, an individual Portfolio Holder or an officer on firm and final proposals relating to the Policy Framework must contain details of the nature and extent of any consultation already undertaken including consultation with the Policy Development and Performance Monitoring Panels, and the outcome of that consultation.
2.5 Who can put items on the Cabinet agenda?
(a) The Leader will decide upon the Agenda for the meetings of the Cabinet. He/she may put on the agenda of any Cabinet meeting any matter which he/she wishes, whether or not authority to deal with that matter has been delegated to the Cabinet, a committee of the Cabinet, an individual Portfolio Holder, an officer or joint arrangements. The Head of Customer, Legal and Member Services will comply with the Leader's requests in this respect.
(b) Any member of the Cabinet may require the Head of Customer, Legal and Member Services to make sure that an item is placed on the agenda of the next available meeting of the Cabinet for consideration. If he/she receives such a request the Head of Customer, Legal and Member Services will comply.
(c) The Head of Paid Service, the Monitoring Officer or the Chief Finance Officer may include an item for consideration on the agenda of a Cabinet meeting and may require the Head of Customer, Legal and Member Services to call such a meeting in pursuance of their statutory duties. In other circumstances, where any two of:
1. the Head of Paid Service
2. Chief Finance Officer
3. Monitoring Officer
are of the opinion that a meeting of the Cabinet needs to be called to consider a matter that requires a decision, they may jointly include an item on the agenda of a Cabinet meeting. If there is no meeting of the Cabinet soon enough to deal with the issues in question, then those officers may also require that a meeting be convened at which the matter will be considered.
3.0 RECORD OF DECISIONS
(Please see Access to Information Procedure Rule 18).
After any meeting of the Cabinet or any Committee of the Cabinet, the Head of Customer, Legal and Member Services or, where no officer was present, the person presiding at the meeting, will produce a record of every key and non-key decision taken at that meeting as soon as practicable, but normally within 3 working days (see Rule 15 of the Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rules). The record will include:
(i) a statement of the reasons for each decision;
(ii) any alternative options considered and rejected at that meeting;
(iii) a statement of any personal/prejudicial interests;
(iv) a note of any dispensation granted by the Council's Standards Committee;
(v) the date of publication of the minutes; and
(vi) a statement, if appropriate, that the decision is urgent (see Rule 15(k) of the Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rules).
