This meeting was the first meeting of the District Joint Committee for Devolution, which has been formed of the seven district councils in Lincolnshire. These seven councils are going to become non-constituent members¹ of the Greater Lincolnshire Mayoral Combined County Authority (MCCA), which will be led by a directly elected mayor of Lincolnshire².

The meeting covered the following topics, intended to establish the District Joint Committee and to set out how it would work.

Standing Orders and Terms of Reference for the District Joint Committee

The committee was scheduled to discuss adopting a set of standing orders to govern the procedure at its meetings, and terms of reference defining what it is responsible for.

The draft Standing Orders included:

• How often the committee will meet.
• That four members of the committee would be required to make decisions (known as a quorum).
• Rules about public participation in meetings.
• Rules about excluding the public from meetings.
• How decisions will be made.

The draft terms of reference make it clear that:

• Each council will be represented by its leader.
• The purpose of the committee is to represent the interests of the seven district councils within the Greater Lincolnshire Mayoral Combined County Authority.
• The committee will provide four representatives to the Greater Lincolnshire Mayoral Combined County Authority, who will serve on a rotating basis.

Public Participation

Councillors were scheduled to decide whether to adopt a scheme to allow members of the public to speak at its meetings.

The draft scheme explains:

• That any resident, business or organisation in any of the seven districts may speak.
• That speakers will be allowed to speak for up to three minutes.
• That the committee will not answer questions about:
  • Individual people's circumstances.
  • Matters that are confidential under the Access to Information Act 1985.

You can talk about anything in which the Joint Committee has a role to play but questions on issues which are exempt or confidential under the 1985 Access to Information Act are not allowed.

Rotation of Appointments to the Greater Lincolnshire Combined County Authority

The seven district councils will have four representatives on the Greater Lincolnshire Mayoral Combined County Authority. The committee was scheduled to decide how to choose which councils will provide these representatives, and when.

Nomination of Representatives to the Greater Lincolnshire Combined County Authority

In addition to the four rotating members, the committee was scheduled to nominate two further representatives to the Greater Lincolnshire Mayoral Combined County Authority.

District Joint Committee Administration

The committee was scheduled to decide how the District Joint Committee will be administered, in particular which council will provide administrative support.

Appointment of Representatives to the Greater Lincolnshire Combined County Authority Committees

The committee was scheduled to appoint a total of twelve representatives to three of the committees of the Greater Lincolnshire Mayoral Combined County Authority:

• Economy Advisory Panel
• Business and Infrastructure Board
• Skills and Employment Board

The committee was also scheduled to note that it will need to make future appointments to two further committees:

• Overview and Scrutiny Committee
• Audit Committee

Forward Planning

The committee was scheduled to decide what it will discuss at its next meeting.

Schedule of Future Meetings

The committee was scheduled to agree a schedule of future meetings, including the date, time and venue. The draft schedule included the following meetings:

• Thursday 30 January, 2.30pm, Guildhall, Gainsborough.
• Thursday 6 March, 2.30pm, venue to be confirmed (proposed Sleaford or Horncastle)
• Tuesday 8 April 2.30pm, venue to be confirmed (proposed Sleaford or Horncastle)