Agenda item

The Committee considered the report.

Following discussion the Committee agreed to amend recommendation 2 in the report to delete the word ‘senior’. The Committee also unanimously agreed to amend recommendation 6 to delete all text after the first sentence. 

The Committee discussed the process for dealing with an application for an indemnity as outlined in section 4.1 of the report. It was agreed that the initial part of the process be that any application for an indemnity received from a Member or officer should be made to the Head of Governance who will liaise with the Head of Insurance and other relevant officers. However, the Committee disagreed with the proposed decision authority as set out in the second part of section 4.1, that ‘The Head of Governance will report his/her findings and recommendations to the Assistant Chief Executive, s151 officer and Leader of the Council’. Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to add a new recommendation to replace this decision authority, as follows:

‘Any decision on an application for an indemnity will be delegated to the Chief Executive in consultation with the Leader, with the exception of if either of the above are the subject of the application in which case the decision will be delegated to the Monitoring Officer in consultation with the Deputy Leader, and the decision reported to the Policy and Resources Committee’.

On the recommendations in the report as amended, including the additional recommendation being put to the vote the recommendations were unanimously agreed.

RESOLVED – That

The Committee agrees that the Council should provide indemnities in respect of financial liabilities arising for Councillors and other co-opted members, independent panel and board members (Other Members) as follows:

1.    Councillors acting in good faith and as a Member of the Council in respect of acts or defaults covered by the Local Authorities (Indemnities form Members and Officers) Order 2004 (‘the Order’).

2.    Councillors and officers acting in good faith, working outside the Council as an authorised representative of the Council for acts or defaults covered by the Order.

3.    Officers’ liabilities and legal costs in defending a claim against them for acting in good faith but outside the powers of the Council will be indemnified in appropriate circumstances which will be considered on a case by case basis should the liability arise.

4.    Other members acting in good faith outside the powers of the Council for all acts or defaults covered by the Order.

The Committee agrees that all indemnities are subject to the following provisions:

5.    The indemnity will apply retrospectively to any act or failure to act which may have occurred before the date the indemnity was approved and shall continue to apply after the councillor, officer or other member has ceased to be a councillor, officer or other member of the Council as well as during his/her membership of or employment by the Council.

6.    The indemnity shall only extend to actual loss and expense incurred.

7.    An application for an indemnity received from a Member or officer should be processed in accordance with paragraph 4 of this report.

Any decision on an application for an indemnity will be delegated to the Chief Executive in consultation with the Leader, with the exception of if either of the above are the subject of the application in which case the decision will be delegated to the Monitoring Officer in consultation with the Deputy Leader, and the decision reported to the Policy and Resources Committee.