The Standards Sub-Committee met to consider requests from Councillors for dispensations¹ relating to their roles in outside bodies². All of the dispensations requested in the meeting were granted. The Sub-Committee also agreed to allow the Monitoring Officer to grant similar requests from Councillors without the need for them to be considered at a future meeting.

Dispensations for Outside Bodies

The Sub-Committee considered a report, Dispensations - Appointment to Outside Bodies, which contained a request for the Sub-Committee to grant dispensations to all Councillors who had been appointed to roles in outside bodies in the 2024-25 municipal year. The report explained that the Localism Act 2011 allowed Councils to grant dispensations to Councillors:

So many Members of the decision-making body have interests that require them not to take part in a matter that it would “impede the transaction of the business”. Effectively this means the decision-making body would be inquorate as a result;

The Sub-Committee agreed to grant all of the dispensations requested in the report, which are listed in Appendix 1 to the report.

The Sub-Committee also resolved to delegate authority to Stephen Ballantyne, Head of Law & Monitoring Officer at North Tyneside Council to approve similar requests from Councillors in writing. This means that Councillors who are appointed to outside bodies during the current municipal year will not need to apply to the Sub-Committee for a dispensation.