STANDING ORDERS

  Standing Orders & Procedure Rules for the Council of the Isles of Scilly   Approved January 2026                                                                     Standing Orders of the Isles of Scilly   Standing Orders & Procedure Rules for the Council of the Isles of Scilly           Introduction   The Council's business is transacted within a general framework comprising statutory provisions, orders and directions, bylaws and a variety of resolutions of the Council and its Committees. These Standing Orders and Procedure Rules have been approved by Full Council and are the rules which apply to the conduct of the business of the Council of the Isles of Scilly.  Where appropriate they should be read in conjunction with appendices to the Standing Orders.   STANDING ORDER 1 Interpretation and revision   1.1    The ruling of the Chairman of Council or, where appropriate, the Chairman of a committee or sub-committee, on the application and interpretation of these Standing Orders is final for the purposes of the meeting at which the ruling is made, but the Chairman must have regard to the advice of the Chief Executive or Monitoring Officer, or in the absence of them both the appropriate Senior Manager or Officer, and shall not make a ruling that is contrary to the law.  

1.2       With the exception of Standing Orders relating to the signing of minutes and recording of votes, any Standing Order may be suspended at a Council meeting by a motion included on the agenda or by a motion put to the meeting without notice and passed by a majority of those present and voting, providing that the Monitoring Officer or Chief Executive have first confirmed that suspension of that Standing Order is lawful.  

1.3       Standing Orders may only be changed or revoked by Full Council.  

1.4       Standing Orders shall only be applied and enforced in a way that is compatible with the law relating to meetings of local authorities, and the rights of members, staff and the general public.   1.5    Throughout these Standing Orders and Procedure Rules the following words and expressions shall have the meanings below:

(i)          'Chairman' shall mean the Chairman of the Council or a Committee or the Chairman for the time being of a meeting, according to the context.

(ii)         'Chief Executive' shall mean the Chief Executive Officer of the Council of the Isles of Scilly.

(iii)       'Council' shall mean the Council of the Isles of Scilly.

(iv)       'Committee' shall mean a Committee or sub-committee of the Council.

(v)        'Co-opted Member' shall mean a person co-opted by the Council or Committee (whether required by legislation or at the Council’s discretion) in order that they may participate in or provide their views or opinions relevant to the business being conducted.  In the case of the Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority, these are called ‘General Members’.  Such co-opted Members have no voting rights, unless specific provision is made to the contrary.  This definition excludes Councillors.

(vi)       'Elected Member' shall mean a Member of the Council who has been elected to the Council, whether by an uncontested or a contested election, and who remains in office.  Members of the Council elected through co-option are not to be treated as Co-opted Members.

(vii)     'Independent Person' shall mean an independent person as defined in the Localism Act 2011. (viii)    'In writing' or 'signed' means correspondence or documents that can be verified to originate from the person purported to have sent or signed them.  This includes hard copy correspondence and documents as well as electronic communications including e-mail.  The Council may disregard any correspondence or documents that it is unable to verify.

(ix)       'Meeting' shall mean a formal meeting of the Council or one of its Committees or Sub-Committees convened in accordance with the corresponding statutory provisions including the Local Government Act 1972, as amended.  It does not include informal meetings not called in accordance with such provisions.

(x)        'Senior Manager' shall mean the Chief Executive and the Council’s Directors or their nominee.

(xi)       'Sub-Committee' shall mean a sub-committee of a committee.

(xii)     'Vice-Chairman' shall mean the Vice-Chairman of the Council or a Committee or the Vice- Chairman for the time being of a meeting, according to the context. (xiii)   ‘Retirement of Councillors’ shall have the meaning prescribed under s7(1) of the Local Government Act 1972’  

1.6       References to legislation include any amending or superseding legislation.     STANDING ORDER 2                           Annual meeting   2.1    Subject to the proviso in Standing Orders 2.2 the annual meeting of the Council shall be held on the second Tuesday in May, except in the years of elections of all 16 councillors.   2.2    In the years of the ordinary quadrennial elections, the date of the annual meeting shall be fixed, in accordance with statute, to take place within 21 days immediately following the day of retirement of councillors.   Ordinary meetings   2.3    There will ordinarily be a monthly cycle of ordinary Council meetings.       Special and extraordinary meetings   2.4    An extraordinary meeting of Council may be called at any time by the Chairman of Council, or the Monitoring Officer, or by the Chief Executive.   2.5    An extraordinary meeting shall also be summoned on a requisition signed by five Members of the Council delivered in writing to the Chairman.  The Summons shall set out the names of the people requisitioning the meeting and the business to be considered and no other business shall be considered at the meeting.   2.6    Should the Chairman refuse to call a meeting or fail to call a meeting within seven days of the evidenced date of requisition the five Members can call a meeting forthwith.   2.7    An extraordinary meeting, shall ordinarily be concerned with one item of business alone, and shall not adhere to the Order of Business as shown at Standing Order 7, and instead the Order of Business will be:

(i)                  to elect a Member to preside if the Chairman and Vice-Chairman are absent;

(ii)                to hear declarations of interest; and

(iii)              to consider a report on the subject of the requisition of the meeting.   2.8 An extraordinary meeting shall only be called in the manner set out in SO2.4 or SO2.5 in relation to matters which the Council can lawfully consider and any question as to lawfulness shall be determined by the Monitoring Officer.   2.9 An extraordinary meeting shall not be called in the manner set out in SO2.4 or SO2.5 in relation to matters which the Council is prevented from considering by SO12.19 and any questions as to the application of this SO and SO12.19 shall be determined by the Monitoring Officer.   Place and time of meetings   2.10    Meetings of the Council, except where otherwise ordered by the Chairman, shall be held at the Wesleyan Chapel, Garrison Lane, St Mary’s, Isles of Scilly.   2.11   The date and time of meetings shall be determined by Members annually in a schedule of dates for the forthcoming year but such dates and times may be varied where it is appropriate to do so for the effective conduct of the Council’s business.   2.12 In addition to changes in venue in accordance with Standing Order 2.11, the venue of meetings may be required to change where the Chief Executive, Monitoring Officer, or other Senior Manager, deems it necessary.   Quorum   2.13 The quorum for all meetings of Full Council shall be 8 Elected Members.     STANDING ORDER 3 Notice of meeting   3.1    At least 5 clear working days before any meeting, notice of its time, place and business to be transacted signed by the Chief Executive, (or if the meeting is called by Members, signed by those Members), shall be published at the Council Offices, St Mary’s, Isles of Scilly and advertised on the local authority website.   3.2    Meetings may only be called at shorter notice in exceptional circumstances as determined by the Chief Executive in consultation with the Chairman and Monitoring Officer.     STANDING ORDER 4                        Delivery of summons for Council   4.1    At least 5 clear (working) days before any meeting of the Council or a committee or sub-committee a summons to attend specifying the business to be transacted and signed by the Chief Executive shall be sent to every Member of the Council by an appropriate method.  An appropriate method can be:

(i)                 Leaving it at or sending it by post to the Member’s usual residence

(ii)                Where a Member has specified an address other than their usual place of residence, leaving it at, or sending it by post to that different address

(iii)              Where the Member has given consent for the summons to be transmitted in electronic form to a particular electronic address (and consent has not been withdrawn) sending it in electronic form to that address   STANDING ORDER 5                  Documents to accompany summons for meetings   5.1    Minutes of the last meeting of the Council, together with draft Minutes and reports of the committees and any other reports, as are available, for Members relating to items on the agenda, shall accompany the summons referred to in Standing Order 4 except in the case of special or extraordinary meetings for which the documents to accompany the summons will be determined by the Chief Executive in consultation with the Chairman and Monitoring Officer.   STANDING ORDER 6                                                 Agenda  

6.1       An item of business may not be considered at a meeting unless either:

(i)                  A copy of the agenda, including any such reports as are available (or a copy of the reports) is open to inspection by Members of the public for at least five clear days before the meeting or where the meeting is convened at shorter notice, from the time the meetings is convened; or

(ii)                By reason of special circumstances which shall be specified in the minutes the Chairman of the meeting is of the opinion that the item should be considered as a matter of urgency.  

6.2       Except in the case of business required by the Local Government Act 1972 or any other legislative provision required to be transacted at a meeting of the Council and any other business brought as a matter of urgency by the Chairman, or acceded to by the Chairman, in accordance with these Standing Orders, no business shall be transacted at a meeting of the Council other than that specified in the summons.  

6.3       Nothing in Standing Orders 6.1 and 6.2 shall require the Council to make available to the public information which is confidential or exempt from publication, as defined under Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972.       STANDING ORDER 7           Order of business for meetings of Council   7.1   Except as provided by Standing Order SO7.2, the order of business at every meeting of Full Council shall be:-

(i)                  to elect a Member to preside if the Chairman and Vice-Chairman are absent;

(ii)                to transact any business required by statute to be done before any other business;

(iii)              declarations of interest

(iv)              to receive the minutes of the preceding meeting and, if agreed, to order that they be signed as a correct record;

(v)                to receive Chairman's announcements;

(vi)              to consider questions under SO14;

(vii)            to consider reports from Committees including the receipt of minutes for information;

(viii)          to consider motions in accordance with SO12;

(ix)              to transact any other business which the Chairman is prepared to confirm as of such urgency that it must be dealt with at this meeting

(x)                written  (including urgent) reports requiring a decision;

(xi)              written reports for information only; and the Council shall, to the extent reasonably practicable, schedule at the end of the Agenda any business which will entail the consideration of information which is exempt pursuant to Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act, 1972 or confidential pursuant to section 100A of that Act.   7.2    The order of business set out in SO7.1 may be varied.

(i)                  by the Chairman at their discretion; or

(ii)                by a resolution passed on a motion (which need not be in writing) duly moved and seconded, which shall be moved and put without discussion.

(iii)              By virtue of SO 7.3 or 7.4   7.3    In the case of Annual Council, there shall be an election held for the position of Chairman and Vice-Chairman of Council for the ensuing year, running from May to May each year, and this shall be the first item on the agenda.   7.4    Also in the case of Annual Council, there shall be an election held for the Lead Member positions for the ensuing year, running from May to May each year, and this shall follow the election of Chairman and Vice-Chairman.           STANDING ORDER 8                       Record of attendances   8.1   The Chief Executive or his representative shall record the attendance of Members at meetings of the Council and of committees and subcommittees.   8.2    Pursuant to s85(1) of the Local Government Act 1972, if a member of a local authority fails throughout a period of six consecutive months from the date of his last attendance to attend any meeting of the authority, he shall, unless the failure was due to some reason approved by the authority before the expiry of that period, cease to be a member of the authority.  

8.3        With regard to SO8.2, it shall be the sole responsibility of individual councillors to monitor their own attendance and avoid triggering the 6 month limit.   STANDING ORDER 9        Powers and duties of Chairman   9.1    If present the Chairman or Vice-Chairman shall preside at a Council meeting.   9.2    Any power or duty of the Chairman in relation to the conduct of a meeting, whether under these Standing Orders or otherwise, may be exercised by the person presiding at the meeting.   STANDING ORDER 10               Election of Chairman   10.1    Prior to Annual Council, Members should consider if they wish to stand for Chairman or Vice-Chairman for the forthcoming year and if so they should make their intentions known to the Chief Executive prior to the beginning of the meeting.   10.2    The Chief Executive will call the meeting to order and ask for any nominations for Chairmanship.  All nominations must be accompanied by a seconder, the seconder must not be the candidate.  Only Elected Members of the Council of the Isles of Scilly can stand for Chairmanship.   10.3    Once all nominations have been received the Chief Executive will ask all Members to cast their vote for the candidates, with each candidate being called in alphabetical order by surname.   10.4    The candidate who receives the most votes will be declared the winner and asked to sign to accept that office prior to sitting as Chairman of Council for the forthcoming year.   10.5    In the event of a tie, the candidate(s) with the least votes (if more than two candidates stood for Chairmanship) shall be discounted and all Councillors will be asked to cast their vote for the remaining candidates.  Councillors are entitled to change their original vote if they wish to do so.   10.6    If after the preceding steps there is no clear winner, then the Chief Executive will determine the Chairmanship by coin toss or other appropriate means in an equal game of chance.   STANDING ORDER 11                 Reports and draft minutes for meetings   11.1 The order in which reports and minutes of committees shall be presented to the Council shall ordinarily be alphabetical order of committee title.   11.2 Recommendations from committees which require the approval of the Council shall be presented to the Council in a separate standalone report.   11.3 Draft Minutes of committees and associated meetings of Council bodies shall be received by Council for information purposes only but Council cannot vote to change draft minutes of committees.  Comment on the accuracy of the draft minutes is allowed but debate on the issues raised within the minute, or decisions made, is not permitted.  If a Member at Council wishes to raise an issue mentioned in the minutes then the proper protocol is to request in writing to the Chairman of Council to put such a report on the next suitable agenda of Council.   11.4 The format of reports shall be determined by the Chief Executive, in consultation with the Monitoring Officer and the Section 151 Officer, so that an efficient and clear methodology of presenting information to Members is maintained, be it for the purposes of making decisions or for purposes of the relaying of information where no decision is required.   11.5 The Public Sector Equality Duty will be complied with in relation to the form and content of reports and the methodology of reporting to Members and in making such reports available to the public, where required to be made available.   STANDING ORDER 12                                Original Motions and amendments   12.1 Except motions which may be moved without notice by these Standing Orders, every notice of motion shall be in writing, signed by the Members giving the notice and shall be delivered at the office of the Chief Executive at least 9 clear working days before the date of the appropriate meeting.  The motion, upon delivery to the Chief Executive, shall be published on the authority’s website, and the motion in full will be detailed in the published agenda of the Council or committee meeting where it is to be considered.   12.2 Motions to which SO12.1 applies must be signed by the proposer and two other Members.  The proposer of the Motion will be taken as being the first signature on the Notice of Motion, unless otherwise indicated on the Notice.   12.3 The motion will be withdrawn from the Agenda if the proposer is not present at the time that it is due to be considered, unless it is to be moved by another Member in accordance with SO 12.5.   12.4 The Member proposing the motion shall have the right to move it and, upon its being seconded by another member present, the motion shall be debated.  If the motion is not proposed and seconded at the meeting, then there shall be no debate on the motion at that meeting and the meeting shall move onto the next item on the agenda.   12.5 Where the proposer of the Motion is unable to attend the meeting they may write to the Chairman authorising another Member who signed the Motion to move it.  If no such authority has been given the motion will be withdrawn from the Agenda.   12.6 The Proposer may withdraw a Motion at any time prior to its consideration by providing written Notice to the Chief Executive prior to the commencement of the meeting at which the Motion is to be considered.  A member wishing to bring forward a motion previously withdrawn under this SO must begin the notice process afresh at SO12.1.   12.7 Once a meeting has begun a Motion may only be withdrawn with the approval of a majority of the members present at the meeting.   12.8 If the subject matter of an original Motion comes within the terms of reference of a committee (as decided by the Chairman having regard to the advice of the Monitoring Officer or Chief Executive) it shall as soon as practicable be referred to the next meeting of that committee for consideration and report without discussion, and notification of that action sent to the proposer.  The committee, once it has considered the matter, will report on the motion to the next meeting of Council following consideration of the matter.  As exceptions to this SO such notice of Motion shall be dealt with at the Council meeting where either: (i)     the Chairman believes that the Motion relates to a recommendation in Part 1 of a committee’s report to Council, in which case it shall be called as the first amendment when that recommendation is considered and dispensed with in accordance with the provisions of these Standing Orders relating to amendments; or (ii)    the Chairman or on a vote, the Council, decides that a decision should be taken immediately on the issue.   12.9 In exceptional cases Motions will be referred direct to the Council, including Motions which the Chairman of a committee, after consultation with the Chief Executive and the Chairman of the Council, considers to be of an urgent nature requiring decision by the full Council where submission of the Motion to committee would cause unwarranted delay.   12.10 Every Notice of Motion shall be relevant to some matter in relation to which the authority have functions, or which affects the area of the authority, or part of it, or the inhabitants of that area, or some of them.  In some cases, it may be that the issue is one not within the power of the Authority, but may be a matter to which it was felt that a debate was appropriate, perhaps on a regional or national matter.  It is improper for a local authority to debate matters relating to foreign affairs and Motions to that effect will not be referred to Council or any committee.   12.11 On the advice of the Monitoring Officer and Chief Executive the Chairman may: (i)    exclude from the agenda any Motion which they consider improper, for whatever reason, or ultra-vires.

(ii)       amend any Motion subject to the agreement of the proposer and other subscribers to the Motion.   12.12 Motions for which Notice have been given will be listed on the agenda in the date or time order in which the Notice was received, subject to prior withdrawal in accordance with SO12.6.   12.13 If Notice is given of any original motion that, in the opinion of the Chief Executive, is offensive, illegal, irregular or otherwise improper, the Chief Executive shall immediately submit such Notice to the Chairman and it shall not be accepted and placed on the Agenda without the permission of the Chairman who shall have regard to the advice of the Chief Executive and the Monitoring Officer.  In the event of the Motion not being accepted for inclusion on the Agenda the Chief Executive shall provide written confirmation of that to the proposer of the Motion.   12.14 Original motions may be passed with or without amendment or may be dismissed, and the debate may at any time be interrupted either by the moving of a procedural motion or by a member properly raising a point of order in accordance with these Standing Orders.   12.15 All Motions must be proposed in positive terms to adopt a particular course of action or stance.   12.16 An amendment to a Motion may be moved without notice but must be relevant to the Motion and within the power of the Council and must be seconded by another member.  If an amendment has been moved and seconded no further amendments shall be moved until the amendment before the meeting has been voted upon or withdrawn but this shall not prevent any Member from giving notice of further amendment.   12.17 If an amendment is carried it becomes the substantive motion in substitution for the original motion.  If the amendment falls the original or preceding substantive motion remains on the table.  There can be no amendments to an amendment until it becomes a substantive motion but subsequent amendments can be moved to the original motion or substantive motion, as appropriate, in accordance with the preceding provisions.   12.18 An amendment may only be to do one of the following: (i)     refer the matter to a committee or sub-committee or an officer for consideration; (ii)     to leave out words; (iii)    to leave out words and insert or add others; and (iv)    to insert or add other words provided that the effect of (ii) to (iv) is not to materially negate the motion.  Exceptions may be made in relation to regulatory decisions, such as in relation to planning control and licensing issues where approval, with or without conditions, or refusal are the principal options available.   12.19 No Motion may seek to rescind any resolution of the Council passed within the preceding six months or which is to the same effect as one which has been rejected within that period unless the Motion is signed by at least 5 Members and sets out evidence of a change in circumstances or position or other information that materially affects the decision taken.   12.20 Only one amendment may be moved and discussed at a time and no further amendment shall be moved until the amendment under discussion has been dealt with.   STANDING ORDER 13                         Procedural Motions   13.1    The following motions may be moved without notice:-

(i)          to appoint a Chairman of the meeting at which the motion is moved;

(ii)         in relation to the accuracy of the minutes;

(iii)       to change the order of business in the agenda;

(iv)       to refer something to an appropriate body or individual;

(v)        to appoint a committee or Member arising from an item on the summons for the meeting;

(vi)       to receive minutes or approve recommendations of the committees or officers and any resolutions following from them; (vii)     to withdraw a motion; (viii)    to amend a motion;

(ix)       to proceed to the next business or withdraw an item from the agenda.  If seconded, the vote will be taken, if carried the item under discussion will be treated as withdrawn;

(x)        that the question be now put;

(xi)       to adjourn a debate.  If seconded, the vote will be taken immediately and if carried there are no rights of reply.  On resuming the debate the Member who moved the original Motion will have the right to speak first; (xii)     to adjourn a meeting.  If seconded, and before taking the vote, the Chair will deal with any unopposed business.  If the Motion to adjourn is seconded there is no right of reply allowed; (xiii)    to suspend a particular Standing Order or other procedure rule; (xiv)    to exclude the public and press in accordance with SO36; (xv)     to not hear further a Member in accordance with SO22.1, but such Motion may only be moved by the Chairman; (xvi)    to exclude a Member from the meeting in accordance with SO22.2, but such Motion may only be moved by the Chairman; (xvii)  to give the consent of the Council where its consent is required by this Constitution, by the law or some other reason.   Motions which may be moved during debate   13.2    When a motion is under debate no other motion shall be moved except:-  

(i)          to withdraw a motion;

(ii)         to amend a motion;

(iii)       to proceed to the next business;

(iv)       that the question be now put;

(v)        to adjourn a debate;

(vi)       to adjourn a meeting; (vii)     to extend time limit for speeches; (viii)    to not hear further a Member or to exclude them from the meeting in accordance with SO13.1 (xv) or (xvi);

(ix)       to exclude the public and press in accordance with SO36;

(x)        that the subject of debate be referred back to a committee; or

(xi)       to suspend a Standing Order in accordance with SO1.2.   Closure motions   13.3  A Member may move, without comment, at the conclusion of a speech by another Member:-  

(i)                      to proceed to the next business;

(ii)                    that the question be now put;

(iii)                  that the debate be adjourned; or

(iv)                  that the meeting be adjourned.   On the seconding of which the Chairman shall proceed as follows:-  

(v)                on a motion to proceed to the next business:  Unless in the Chairman's opinion the matter before the meeting has been insufficiently discussed, he or she shall first give the mover of the original motion a right of reply, and then put to the vote the motion to proceed to the next business.  

(vi)              on a motion that the question be now put:  Unless in the Chairman's opinion the matter before the meeting has been insufficiently discussed, he or she shall first put to the vote the motion that the question be now put, and if it is passed then give the mover of the original motion a right of reply before putting the matter before the meeting to the vote.  

(vii)            on a motion to adjourn the debate or the meeting:  If in the Chairman's opinion the matter before the meeting has been insufficiently discussed and cannot reasonably be sufficiently discussed on that occasion the Chairman shall put the adjournment motion to the vote without giving the mover of the original motion a right of reply on that occasion.   13.4 A further motion to proceed to the next business, to adjourn the debate or to adjourn the meeting shall not be made within a period of one hour unless moved by the Chairman.   STANDING ORDER 14                     Questions and Comments   14.1    It is not permissible to move an amendment to draft minutes of committees received by Council.    14.2 A Member may ask the Chairman of a Committee any question relating to a report received by that committee during the Agenda item relating to questions under SO7.1(vi) or under the agenda item itself.  The same rules of debate and order apply as would be applied for any other agenda item considering a report.   14.3 Subject to SO14.4, a Member of Council may submit a written question to the Chairman of Council, or Chairman of any Committee, or any Lead Member a question on any matter in relation to which the Council has powers or duties or which affects the Isles of Scilly.  The written question must be delivered no later than 10:30am 7 working days before the Council meeting to: (i)     the Member to whom the question is put; and (ii)    the Chief Executive or their nominee by email at: council@scilly.gov.uk or by hand at Old Wesleyan Chapel, St Marys, Isles of Scilly.   14.4  Where a question within SO14.3 is considered by the Chairman to whom the question is to be put to relate to urgent matters, having regard to the advice of the Chief Executive, and the question has been provided in writing to the Chairman to whom it is to be put and the Chief Executive at least one hour before the start of the meeting at which it is intended the question is put, the question may still be put at the meeting.   14.5 A Member seeking to put a question in accordance with this Standing Order may be required to edit the question so that it is in an acceptable form and sufficiently concise.   14.6 A Member asked a question under the preceding provisions will provide an answer to the question at the meeting at which the question is put.  The answer may take the form of: (i)     a direct oral answer; or (ii)    where the desired information is in a publication of the Council or some other published work, a reference to that publication; or (iii)    by a written answer circulated to the Members of the Council present at the meeting.   14.7 The number of written questions which may be asked at a single meeting of Council pursuant to notice given in accordance with SO14.3 above shall ordinarily be limited to two, though the Chairman may increase this at their discretion, having regard to all relevant factors including the length of the agenda before Members.   14.8 Questions will be listed on the Agenda in the order in which they were received.   14.9 If after a reply is given to a written question the person who asked the question considers that the reply requires clarification, he may ask once for clarification, but no further debate will ensue in the chamber on the matter at that time.   14.10A question within the scope of this Standing Order may be rejected if it: (i)     is not in an appropriate form or sufficiently clear; (ii)    is not about a matter for which the Council has powers or duties; (iii)    is defamatory, frivolous, vexatious or offensive in the opinion of the Monitoring Officer and the Chief Executive; (iv)   is substantially the same as a question put to a meeting in the previous six months in the opinion of the Monitoring Officer and the Chief Executive; (v)    will require the disclosure of confidential or exempt information in the opinion of the Monitoring Officer and the Chief Executive; or (vi)   is already subject to separate appeal, adjudication, litigation, mediation or dispute resolution in the opinion of the Monitoring Officer and the Chief Executive. If a question is rejected under this Standing Order, then the Chief Executive or Monitoring Officer will provide a written explanation to the person as to why it has been rejected within 48 hours of receipt of the question.   14.11 The Member(s) asking the question must be present at the meeting at which the question is put or the question will fall along with the requirement to provide a response under SO14.6.   14.12 Questions can be submitted by the public up to two clear working days before the beginning of a Council meeting and must be submitted by email to council@scilly.gov.uk The question must relate to an item on the published agenda, though there will be no questions accepted on a planning application. The question will be considered by the Monitoring Officer and Chairman of Council to ensure it is not vexatious or otherwise improper. The author of the question is permitted to speak or otherwise present the question to the meeting provided that they do succinctly and with respect to the chairman.  An oral response will then be supplied by a member or officer. The author of the question may ask one supplemental question only. The duration of one entire question and answer shall take no more than 5 minutes.   14.13 No Member other than the Member to whom a question is put shall be permitted to speak during the period the response is being provided unless expressly asked by the responding Member to give some background to the matter that is the subject of the question.   14.14 A written version of the answer to the question will be published in full in the minutes of the meeting.     STANDING ORDER 15                           Minutes   Accuracy and form of Minutes   15.1 Minutes will contain all motions and amendments in the exact form and order they were considered at the meeting.   15.2 No motion or discussion shall take place upon the minutes, except as to their accuracy.   15.3 If the Chairman declares an interest, within the Code of Conduct for Members, in part of the minutes under consideration at the Council meeting they must move them with the exception of that part which will be moved by the Vice Chairman.   Signing of Minutes   15.4 As soon as the minutes of the Council have been approved, with or without amendment, the Chairman shall move that the minutes be signed as a correct record.  The Chairman shall sign the minutes as a correct record as soon as practicable after they are approved.   STANDING ORDER 16            Limit to number of speeches   16.1 A Member shall be entitled to speak once on any motion, and shall not be entitled to speak again whilst the Motion is the subject of debate except:-  

(i)                  to speak once on an amendment moved by another Member;

(ii)                if the motion has been amended since he last spoke, to move a further amendment;

(iii)              if his first speech was on an amendment moved by another Member, to speak on the main issue, whether or not the amendment on which he spoke was carried;

(iv)              in exercise of a right of reply under SO18;

(v)                on a point of order;

(vi)              by way of personal explanation;

(vii)            to put forward a factual correction; or

(viii)          to ask for clarification on any matter relevant to the debate.   16.2 A Member when seconding a motion or amendment may, if he then declares the intention to do so, reserve his speech until later in the debate.   STANDING ORDER 17                   Addressing the meeting   17.1 A Member when permitted by the Chairman to speak shall address the Chairman. If two or more Members wish to speak then the Chairman shall call on one to speak and the other or others shall wait until asked to speak.   17.2 A Member shall direct his speech to the question under discussion or to a personal explanation or to a point of order.   17.3 A Member may attend any committee or sub-committee of the Council, subject to compliance with the Code of Conduct, but a Member attending a committee or sub-committee on which they do not serve may only speak if invited to do so by the Chairman of that meeting.   STANDING ORDER 18                                     Right of reply   18.1 The mover of a motion has a right of reply at the end of the debate on the motion, immediately before it is put to the vote. In their reply the mover shall confine themselves to responding to matters relevant to the debate raised by previous speakers and shall not introduce any new matter into the debate.   18.2 If an amendment is moved, the mover of the original motion shall also have a right of reply at the close of the debate on the amendment. The mover of the amendment shall have no right of reply to the debate on their amendment.   18.3    A Member may, however:

(i)                  explain any material part of his speech which the Member believes to have been misunderstood;

(ii)                if the Member is the Chairman or other Member who has presented the report of a committee, with the Chairman's consent, make a statement of the facts at the outset of the debate and also reply generally to the debate; and

(iii)              if the mover of a motion, speak with the leave of the Chairman on the motion or on any amendment thereto at any time during the debate.   18.4 A Member moving a Motion may nominate another Member (with the exception of the mover of a defeated amendment) to exercise the right of reply.   18.5 Right to speak on a Point of Order

(i)          A Member may speak on a point of order or to a personal explanation and shall be entitled to be heard by the Chairman forthwith.

(ii)         A point of order shall relate only to an alleged breach of a Standing Order or the law and the Member shall specify the Standing Order or point of law and the way in which they consider it has been broken.

(iii)       A personal explanation shall be confined to some material part of their speech which the Member considers has been misunderstood.

(iv)       The ruling of the Chairman on a point of order or on the admissibility of a personal explanation shall be final and not open to discussion.     STANDING ORDER 19                Voting   19.1 Unless provided otherwise and subject to any statutory requirements, any matter shall be decided by a simple majority of those Members voting and present in the room at the time the question was put.   19.2 Unless a ballot or recorded vote (roll call) is demanded the vote shall be taken by a show of hands or, if there is no dissent, by the affirmation of the meeting.   19.3 In the case of an equality of votes, the person presiding at the meeting is entitled to a second, or casting, vote and there is no restriction on how they exercise their casting vote.   19.4 Requests for votes by ballot or recorded vote shall take place in accordance with the following provisions:

(i)          subject to sub-paragraph 19.4(iii), a vote shall take place by ballot if at least one third of the Members voting and present at the meeting demand it. The Chairman shall announce the result of the ballot immediately after the result is known;

(ii)         subject to sub-paragraph 19.4(iii), there shall be a recorded vote if at least one third of the Members voting and present at the meeting demand it. Each Member present shall, upon being called individually by the appropriate officer, inform all those present of their vote, or their decision to abstain.  The names for and against the motion or amendment or abstaining from voting shall be entered into the minutes; and

(iii)       where valid requests are made for both of the preceding methods of voting, there shall be no debate and Members present and eligible to vote at the meeting shall be asked by the Chairman on a show of hands which option they prefer and that option with the most support shall be used to take the vote on the substantive item of business.   19.5 Where immediately after a vote is taken at a meeting and any member of that meeting so requires, there shall be recorded in the minutes of that meeting whether that person cast their vote for or against the Motion or whether they abstained from voting.   19.6 Where more than two persons are nominated for any appointment and of the votes given there is not a majority in favour of one of them the name of the person having the least number of votes shall be struck off the list and a fresh vote shall be taken, and so on until a majority of votes is given in favour of one person.   19.7 Immediately after any vote is taken at an annual budget decision meeting of the Council there must be recorded in the minutes of the proceedings of that meeting the names of the persons who cast a vote for the decision or against the decision or who abstained from voting and in this Standing Order: (i)     a ‘budget decision meeting’ means a meeting of the Council at which it makes a calculation (whether originally or by way of substitute) in accordance with any of sections 31A, 31B, 34 to 36A, 42A, 42B, 45 to 49, 52ZF, 52ZJ of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 and includes a meeting where making the calculation was included as an item of business on the agenda for that meeting; and (ii)    references to a vote are references to a vote on any decision related to the making of the calculation.   19.8  If a Member owes an amount in relation to council tax and that sum has become payable by them and has remained unpaid for at least two months they shall, if at a meeting of the Council at which consideration will be given to a calculation as to council tax (within any of Chapters III, IV, 4ZA or IVA of Part I of the Local Government Finance Act, 1992) or the consideration of any recommendation, as soon as practicable after the commencement of the meeting disclose that fact and shall not vote on any question with respect to the matter.   19.9  If a Member owes an amount in relation to rent payable to the Council as local housing authority and that sum has become payable by them and has remained unpaid for at least two months they shall, if at a meeting of the Council at which consideration will be given to local authority housing rents, as soon as practicable after the commencement of the meeting disclose that fact and shall not vote on any question with respect to the matter.   STANDING ORDER 20                       Respect for Chairman   20.1 Whenever the Chairman speaks during a debate all Members and others present shall fall silent.     STANDING ORDER 21                        Consideration of matters affecting staff   21.1  If any question arises at a meeting of the Council as to the appointment, promotion, dismissal, salary, superannuation or conditions of service or as to the conduct of any person or persons employed or formerly employed by the Council, a motion to exclude the public (including the press) from the meeting shall be made forthwith by the Chairman identifying the description of exempt information giving rise to the exclusion of the public (under Schedule 12(A) of the Local Government Act 1972).   STANDING ORDER 22    Disorderly conduct by Members   22.1 If at a meeting any Member persistently disregards the Chairman's ruling or otherwise behaves improperly by continuous irrelevance or tedious repetition, or by behaving irregularly, improperly, offensively or by wilfully obstructing business, the Chairman may move that the Member be not further heard, and the motion, if seconded, shall be voted upon without discussion.   22.2 If the Member the subject of a Motion under SO22.1 continues to behave improperly the Chairman may move either;

(i)                  that the Member shall leave the meeting; or

(ii)                to adjourn the meeting for a specified period and in either case, if seconded, the Motion shall be voted on without discussion and the Member shall leave the Chamber if that is the decision.   22.3 In the event of general disturbance which in the opinion of the Chairman renders the orderly dispatch of business impossible or unduly hindered, the Chairman in addition to any other power vested in them, may adjourn the meeting for such period as they consider expedient.   STANDING ORDER 23                Disturbance by the public   23.1 If a Member of the public interrupts the proceedings at any meeting, the Chairman shall ask them to refrain from doing so and, if appropriate, advise them that they may be ejected from the meeting. If he or she continues the interruptions the Chairman shall order his or her removal from the Chamber.   23.2 If there is a general disturbance which, in the opinion of the Chairman, interrupts proceedings or makes business impossible or unduly hindered the Chairman may call for the room to be cleared and may adjourn the meeting for as long as necessary.   23.3 The ‘public’ shall be deemed to include any person within the Chamber who is not entitled to vote at that meeting.  This may include a Member in the public gallery.   23.4 The application of the provisions of this Standing Order must be done having regard to the rights of the public to attend and record meetings.     STANDING ORDER 24                         Appointment of committees   24.1 The Council shall appoint such standing committees at the annual meeting as are considered appropriate to deal with matters which are not reserved to the Full Council and which it is required by statute to appoint.   24.2 The Council may at any time alter the status or functions of a committee following recommendations from the Governance Committee or from the Chief Executive or Monitoring Officer, subject to compliance with any statutory requirements.   24.3 All Members of the Council, with the exception of the Chairman of Council, will be appointed to the Licensing Committee annually and at such other times as may be necessary.   24.4 The Council’s committees and sub-committees shall have the responsibilities set out in  Appendix B to these Standing Orders.   STANDING ORDER 25         Chairmen, Vice-Chairmen and membership of committees   25.1 The Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Council shall not have ex-officio status on committees or sub-committees, and their participation in any committee shall be considered at each meeting of Annual Council, as it would for any other Member.   25.2 Each committee shall appoint at their first meeting following the annual meeting of the Council a Chairman and Vice-Chairman from amongst the Members of the Committee. The Chair of the Health and Wellbeing Board is appointed by Full Council by approval of its Terms of Reference at the annual meeting of Council. Where the Chair and/or Vice Chair of Scrutiny are also a Lead Member, they shall not chair an item on the Scrutiny Committee that relates to a matter which falls within the responsibility of their Lead Member role.   25.3 In the absence from a meeting of the Council, a committee or subcommittee of both the Chairman and Vice-Chairman, of the Council, a committee or subcommittee as appropriate, a Member shall be appointed from amongst those present and entitled to vote to preside at that meeting.   Removal of Chairman or Vice-Chairman   25.4 A Chairman or Vice-Chairman, once elected to that role, shall discharge that role until the next Annual General Meeting of Council, (or in the case of committees the first post-Annual Council meeting of that committee)  unless: (i)     they cease to be a Member, subject to the statutory provisions as to the continuation of the Chairman and Vice-Chairman of Council following the full-term elections; or (ii)    they resign from that role in writing to the Monitoring Officer; or (iii)    a majority of the Members present and voting at the meeting vote to remove them from that role, following a motion being proposed and seconded and supported by the quorum for the meeting.  Upon such support being shown the vote shall be taken without debate.  The subject Member shall not be entitled to vote.   Appointment of Members to committees and sub-committees and other groups   25.5 The Council shall appoint Members to committees and may at any time alter the membership of a committee in accordance with these Standing Orders, following recommendations from the Governance Committee or from the Chief Executive or Monitoring Officer, or as may otherwise be required such as to fill vacancies on any committee.   25.7 Sub-committees may be set up by the Standing committees to suit their business.  Sub-committees may only comprise members of the parent committee or Council, except as may otherwise be provided in these Standing Orders.   STANDING ORDER 26                   Scheduling of meetings   26.1 Committees shall convene for ordinary meetings as often as Council determines, or as often as legislation dictates.   28.2 No meeting of Council or a committee shall be called on the polling or counting days of elections or on Bank Holidays.  In cases where elections are called after the scheduling of meetings, the Chairman shall rearrange the date of the meeting.       STANDING ORDER 27                 Quorum   27.1 Business shall not be transacted at any meeting exercising powers unless the following number of Members entitled to participate and vote are in attendance, subject to paragraph 27.2:  

Body                                              Quorum

Council                                         8 Licensing Committee                6 Scrutiny Committee                  4 Governance Committee           4   Any other Committee or Sub-Committee:       One quarter of the Members of the Committee or Sub-Committee rounded up to next whole number but in any event not less than 3 Elected Members.   27.2 The Inshore Fisheries Conservation Authority, Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education, and Health and Wellbeing Board will set their own quorum in their terms of reference.   27.3 If during any meeting of the Council there ceases to be a quorum the Chairman shall declare the meeting inquorate and the meeting shall stand adjourned.  The consideration of any business not transacted shall be adjourned to a date (which may be the same date as the adjourned meeting) and time fixed by the Chairman at the time the meeting is adjourned or, if he does not fix a date and time, to the next ordinary meeting of the Council.   27.4  If at the expiration of 30 minutes from the time at which the meeting has been appointed to be held a quorum is not present the meeting shall not take place unless the reason for there being no quorum is only because a Member en-route to the meeting is delayed because of travel or other unforeseen difficulties in which case the Chairman may delay the start of the meeting for up to an hour from the time appointed for the meeting to start.  If there is still no quorum at the expiration of that period the meeting shall not take place.  If a meeting does not take place because it is inquorate, consideration of any business on the agenda for the meeting shall be adjourned to a date and time fixed by the Chairman or, if the Chairman does not fix a date and time, to the next ordinary meeting of the Council.   STANDING ORDER 28         Application of Standing Orders to Committees   28.1 Save as may be otherwise stated or as prevented by operation of the law these standing orders shall apply to meetings of committees and sub-committees as they apply to meetings of the Council.   28.2 It is permissible for a committee to refer a matter to Council for determination, even if Council has delegated responsibility for that matter to that committee.   STANDING ORDER 29                 Access to and inspection of Documents   29.1 Members have a common law right to be provided with or to inspect documents in the possession of the Council that it is reasonably necessary for them to see in order for them to carry out their duties as a Councillor.  Without prejudice to any other rights Members may have to access information, any question as to a Member’s rights under this paragraph shall be determined by the Monitoring Officer in consultation with the Chief Executive.   29.2 Members have a statutory right to inspect any document that is in the possession or under the control of the Council and which contains material relating to any business which is to be transacted at a public Council, committee or sub-committee meeting.  Without prejudice to any other rights Members may have to access information, any question as to a Member’s rights under this paragraph shall be determined by the Monitoring Officer in consultation with the Chief Executive.   29.3 In addition, Members have the same rights of access to documents as Members of the public.   29.4 Members of the public have such rights to information as are statutorily prescribed including in relation to freedom of information, data protection, environmental information and under the access to information provisions of the Local Government Act 1972, as amended, subject to any exemptions or exceptions that might properly be applied.   29.5 The Council will comply with its obligations as to the making of information available to the public, including in relation to Agendas and reports for meetings of the Council, committees and sub-committees, whether as set out in these Standing Orders or otherwise.     STANDING ORDER 30         Confidential matters   30.1 A Member shall not disclose without permission of the Council or of the appropriate committee or sub-committee, or strictly in accordance with the Members’ Code of Conduct:

(i)                  the content of any document marked "Not for Publication" by virtue of being confidential or exempt, under the relevant provision of the Local Government Act, 1972; or

(ii)                any item dealt with as a confidential or exempt matter, unless or until it has been made public by the Council, the committee or the sub-committee following consideration of the advice of the Chief Executive or Monitoring Officer in that regard; or

(iii)              any information provided to the Member on a confidential basis or on terms or in circumstances from which an obligation of confidence arises and any Member found to be in breach of this Standing Order may be subject to a complaint for breach of the Member’s Code of Conduct and may have restrictions placed on their access to confidential or exempt information.   STANDING ORDER 31         Variation and revocation of Standing Orders   31.1 Any motion, not being a recommendation of a committee or of the Chief Executive or Monitoring Officer, to add to, vary or revoke these Standing Orders shall when proposed and seconded stand adjourned without discussion to the next ordinary meeting of the Council.   31.2 The Monitoring Officer may make minor variations to the Standing Orders to include, changes to legislation, grammatical, spelling and formatting changes, changes in job titles and giving effect to decisions of Full Council.   STANDING ORDER 32         Issue to Members   32.1 A copy of these Standing Orders shall be issued to each Member upon their election, in either electronic form or paper form.   32.2 A new copy shall be issued to each Member after alterations have been agreed by Council.     STANDING ORDER 33         Delegated powers   33.1 Except in relation to those decisions which must by statute be taken by Council the Council may delegate decision-making powers to a committee, a sub-committee or to an officer until limited or withdrawn by a formal decision of the Full Council.   33.2    The Council shall appoint such committees with such responsibilities and functions as are appropriate for the discharge of the Council’s business, subject to compliance with any statutorily prescribed requirements.   33.3 The Council shall, at its annual meeting, agree the Scheme of Delegation to Officers and the Terms of Reference for each committee and both the Scheme of Delegation and Terms of Reference for each committee shall continue until such time as varied or revoked by Full Council, whether at the annual meeting or at another meeting.   33.4 Any function to be exercised by the Chief Executive under these Standing Orders may also be exercised by such officer or officers as he may specifically authorise in writing for the purpose.   STANDING ORDER 34         Urgent action between meetings   34.1 Between meetings of the Council, the appropriate Senior Manager may deal with and take action on any matter which is urgent or due to an emergency which cannot, in the opinion of the Chief Executive, await a meeting of Council or the responsible committee being convened provided: (i)     there has been consultation with the Chairman or Vice Chairman of Council or the responsible committee, as appropriate, or if neither are available not less than two Members of Council; and (ii)    there has been consultation with the Section 151 Officer and the Monitoring Officer or in their absence, or where they are the officer exercising the authority to take urgent action, their nominees or deputies; and (iii)    the action taken complies with the Financial Regulations and such other procedure rules of the Council to the extent reasonably practicable having regard to the matter and the implications of not taking action urgently and any action taken under this Standing Order shall be reported for information to the next ordinary meeting of Council and the appropriate committee.   STANDING ORDER 35         Declarations of interest and limits on participation   35.1 At Meetings of the Council, it’s committees and sub-committees all Members will comply with their obligations under the Members’ Code of Conduct generally and particularly in relation to the disclosure of interests and the actions required of them as a consequence of such disclosure, including restricting their participation and absenting themselves from the Chamber as may be required under the Code as well as may be required by Standing Orders 19.8 and 19.9.   35.2 If any Member declares an interest in accordance with the Code of Conduct that declaration, including the nature of the interest, shall be recorded in the minutes of the meeting.   35.3 A Member with a disclosable pecuniary interest or a non-pecuniary interest in a matter must withdraw from the Chamber whenever it becomes apparent that the matter is being considered and for the duration of consideration of that matter, unless they have obtained a formal dispensation relevant to the interest and matter, in which case they may participate in accordance with the terms of the dispensation. Where the Member does not have a formal dispensation relevant to the interest and matter and they have a non-pecuniary interest in the matter the Chairman may afford the Member the opportunity to make representations, answer questions or give evidence. The Member shall withdraw from the Chamber immediately after so doing and prior to the vote.   35.4 Members are individually responsible for complying with their obligations under the Code of Conduct, but they shall have regard to the advice of the Chief Executive, Monitoring Officer or other appropriate officer in that regard.   STANDING ORDER 36                                         Public access to meetings of the local authority   36.1 All formal meetings of the Council its committees and sub-committees are open to the public, save where the public can properly be excluded prior to the consideration of exempt or confidential business as provided in these Standing Orders.   36.2 Members of the public shall withdraw from a meeting upon a Motion being passed that the public be excluded from the meeting for the business specified on the grounds that information to be discussed is exempt pursuant to Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 or confidential pursuant to section 100A of that Act.   36.3  For the purpose of this Standing Order a member of the public shall mean all persons other than the Elected Members of Council, co-opted members of the relevant committee or sub-committee, officers or other persons the Chairman of the meeting determines are attending the meeting to assist in the transaction of the business of the meeting but in relation to such other persons the meeting shall, to the extent necessary when passing a Motion under SO36.2, make a specific exception in order that such persons may remain in the meeting.   36.4 All matters to be considered in the absence of the press and public shall be taken, where possible, at the end of the Agenda for the meeting.   STANDING ORDER 37                                         Common Seal of the Council   37.1 The Common Seal of the Council shall be in the custody of the Chief Executive and kept in some safe place.  It shall not be affixed to any document unless the sealing has been authorised by a resolution of the Council, the relevant committee or sub-committee or a decision properly made by an officer in accordance with the Scheme of Delegation.  The affixing of the Common Seal to any document shall be attested by the Chief Executive and an entry of the sealing shall be made in a book provided for that purpose and signed by the Chief Executive.         STANDING ORDER 38         Attendance of Statutory Officers at meetings   38.1  The Chief Executive, his Deputy or representative, the Monitoring Officer and the Section 151 Officer shall be entitled to attend the meetings of the Council and every committee, sub-committee, panel and working group, with the exception of any meeting convened to consider matters relating to their conduct or in relation to which they have a personal interest such that their attendance at the meeting or the relevant part of the meeting would be improper, but this provision shall not prevent their attendance for the purpose of responding to allegations against them or otherwise properly participating in such meetings in accordance with the Council’s other procedure rules.   STANDING ORDER 39                                 Appointment and designation of officers   39.1 The Chief Executive will be designated as the Head of Paid Service for the purposes of Section 4 Local Government and Housing Act 1989 and the Council shall designate such other statutory officers as may be required from time to time.   39.2 Canvassing of a Member of any Committee or the Council directly or indirectly for any appointment under the Council shall disqualify the candidate from such appointment.   39.3 A Member shall not solicit for any person any appointment under the Council or recommend, except when the appointment is being discussed in Committee or Council, any person for such appointment or for promotion. This shall not, however, preclude a Member from giving written testimonial of a candidate’s ability, experience or character for submitting to the Council with an application for appointment. A Member giving such a testimonial shall take no part in the appointment process.   39.4 Candidates for any appointment under the Council shall, when making applications, disclose in writing to the Chief Executive whether to their knowledge they are related to any Member or Senior Officer of the Council. A candidate who fails to do so shall not be appointed and if appointed before the relationship is discovered, shall be liable to dismissal without notice.   39.5 Where a candidate has a relationship with or a personal connection to a Member or Senior Officer of the Council, upon that relationship or connection becoming apparent that Member or Senior Officer shall take no further part in any proceedings related to the appointment whilst that candidate remains a person being considered for appointment.   39.6 The purport of sub-paragraphs 2 to 5 of this Standing Order shall be included in any material or particulars inviting applications for appointment.   39.7 Where the Council proposes to appoint a Chief Officer or Deputy Chief Officer and it is not proposed that the appointment be made exclusively from the existing Officers, the Council shall:

(i)       draw up a statement specifying the duties of the Officer concerned and any qualifications or qualities to be sought in the person to be appointed; (ii)      make arrangements for the post to be advertised in such a way as is likely to bring it to the attention of persons who are qualified to apply for it, subject to SO39.8; (iii)     make arrangements for a copy of the statement mentioned in paragraph (i) to be sent to any person on request, subject to SO39.8; (iv)     where a post has been advertised in accordance with the above provisions, the Council shall select a short list of such qualified applicants and interview those included on the short list.   39.8 The Council shall normally seek to fill Chief Officer or Deputy Chief Officer posts following external advertisement but if it proposes to make such an appointment exclusively from amongst its existing officers sub-paragraphs (ii) and (iii) of SO39.7 shall not apply.   39.9 Where no person considered to be suitable has applied, the Council shall make further arrangements for advertisements in accordance with Standing Order 39.7.   39.10Appointments of a Chief Officer or a Deputy Chief Officer (any role with directorial responsibility) shall be made by a selection panel of elected Members of the Council comprising five Elected Members including the Chairman of the Council.  The panel will be advised by the appropriate Senior Manager to the appointment being made.   39.11 Appointment of the Chief Executive Officer (Head of Paid Service), Section 151 Officer, and Monitoring Officer shall only be made by the Full Council, following a recommendation from the panel established in accordance with SO39.10 and no offer of appointment may be made until Full Council has approved such appointment.   39.12 Member decisions as to appointments will be determined by simple majority and the Standing Orders as to methods of voting shall apply.   39.13 With the exception of the designation of the Returning Officer and the Electoral Registration Officer, the appointment of officers, other than those to whom Standing Orders 39.10 and 39.11 apply, is the responsibility of the Head of Paid Service or their nominee and may not be made by or at the direction of Members.     STANDING ORDER 40                                 Disciplinary action and dismissal   40.1    In the following paragraphs:

(i)                  “the 2011 Act” means the Localism Act 2011;

(ii)                “chief finance officer”, “disciplinary action”, “head of the authority’s paid service” and “monitoring officer” have the same meaning as in regulation 2 of the Local Authorities (Standing Orders) (England) Regulations 2001;

(iii)              “independent person” means a person appointed under section 28(7) of the 2011 Act;

(iv)              “local government elector” means a person registered as a local government elector in the register of electors in the authority’s area in accordance with the Representation of the People Acts;

(v)                “the Panel” means a committee appointed by the authority under section 102(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 for the purposes of advising the authority on matters relating to the dismissal of relevant officers of the authority;

(vi)              “relevant meeting” means a meeting of the authority to consider whether or not to approve a proposal to dismiss a relevant officer; and

(vii)            “relevant officer” means the chief finance officer, head of the authority’s paid service or monitoring officer, as the case may be.   40.2 A relevant officer may not be dismissed by the Council unless the procedure set out in the following paragraphs is complied with.   40.3 The Council must invite relevant independent persons to be considered for appointment to the Panel, with a view to appointing at least two such persons to the Panel.   40.4 In SO40.3 “relevant independent person” means any independent person who has been appointed by the Council or, where there are fewer than two such persons, such independent persons as have been appointed by another authority or authorities as the Council considers appropriate.   40.5 Subject to SO40.6, the Council must appoint to the Panel such relevant independent persons who have accepted an invitation issued in accordance with SO40.3 in accordance with the following priority order—

(i)          a relevant independent person who has been appointed by the Council and who is a local government elector;

(ii)         any other relevant independent person who has been appointed by the Council;

(iii)       a relevant independent person who has been appointed by another authority or authorities.   40.6 The Council is not required to appoint more than two relevant independent persons in accordance with SO40.5 but may do so.   40.7 The Council must appoint any Panel at least 20 working days before the relevant meeting.   40.8 Before the taking of a vote at the relevant meeting on whether or not to approve such a dismissal, the Council must take into account, in particular—

(i)          any advice, views or recommendations of the Panel;

(ii)         the conclusions of any investigation into the proposed dismissal; and

(iii)       any representations from the relevant officer.   40.9 Any remuneration, allowances or fees paid by the Council to an independent person appointed to the Panel must not exceed the level of remuneration, allowances or fees payable to that independent person in respect of that person’s role as independent person under the 2011 Act.   40.10 Only Full Council can dismiss the Head of Paid Service, the Section 151 Officer or the Monitoring Officer and no notice of dismissal may be given until such dismissal has been approved by the Full Council.   STANDING ORDER 41 Human Resource matters relating to the Chief Executive   41.1 Day to day human resource matters will be dealt with and approved by the Head of Human Resources (or their nominee in their absence) in consultation with a Senior Officer that is not the Chief Executive Officer. The Head of Human Resources will seek the advice of the Council’s Monitoring Officer and Section 151 Officer (or their Deputy as appropriate) when determined by the Head of Human Resources to be required.   41.2 Matters not covered by Standing Orders 39 and 40 and which are determined by the Head of Human Resources, in consultation with a Senior Officer that is not the Chief Executive, not to be day to day human resource matters, are to be referred for consideration and decision by a panel of 5 Members.