The Governance Committee agreed the minutes of their meeting of 16 April 2024 and made a number of appointments to committees and outside bodies. They also discussed several proposed changes to the council constitution.

Appointment of Councillors to Committees

The committee approved the recommendations of the Assistant Chief Executive on the allocation of seats on the council's committees, sub-committees and other bodies.

A motion was proposed by Councillor Tutt to allocate the Chairs of Scrutiny Committees to members of opposition parties. This was opposed by Conservative Councillors, and was defeated in a tied vote.

Appointment to Outside Bodies

The Committee considered several appointments to outside bodies.

GSENZ Hub

An officer, the Council's Environment Team Manager, was appointed to represent the council on the Greater South East Net Zero Hub. The GSENZ Hub is a collaboration of

Local Authorities, businesses and universities [...] working together to accelerate the transition to net zero.

Amendments to the Constitution

The committee discussed several proposed amendments to the East Sussex County Council constitution¹.

A council's constitution is the document that defines how the council operates. You can read East Sussex County Council's constitution here.

Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee Terms of Reference

The committee approved changes to the Health Overview and Scrutiny Committe's Terms of Reference. This committee has a special role in scrutinising the work of other public bodies. These changes were intended to ensure that these terms of reference comply with the local government regulations on Health Overview and Scrutiny Committees.

Flexible Retirement

The committee discussed the introduction of a new Flexible Retirement policy, allowing some staff to draw on their pensions while remaining in employment. The policy was supported by the committee, because

it provided a clear framework for managing requests whilst also providing benefits for both the council and employees.

However, there was concern that the policy would

exacerbate the challenges already faced in recruiting and retaining experienced staff.

and it was agreed that the impact of the policy on recruitment and retention would be reviewed after 12 months.

Arrangements for the Appointment of Members to Outside Bodies

Councillor Taylor expressed concern that the current arrangements for the appointment of councillors to outside bodies do not allow for sufficient scrutiny of candidates.

I'm not sure we always have enough information, or time, to make these decisions as well as we could

She was particularly concerned about the appointment of Councillors to the board of South Downs National Park Authority, which the council jointly funds.

I wonder if there's a conflict of interest when we're asked to decide whether our colleagues are suitable to sit on the board of an organisation that we help to fund

It was agreed that the process would be reviewed at a future meeting.