The Islington Council Standards Committee met on 26 June 2025 to discuss member standards and conduct issues. The committee was also scheduled to review the minutes from their last meeting.

Update on Member Standards and Conduct Issues

The committee was scheduled to discuss a report on member standards and conduct issues.

The report pack included an update on the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG)'s consultation on strengthening the standards and conduct framework for local authorities. The consultation, which ran from December 2024 to February 2025, sought views on introducing a mandatory minimum code of conduct for local authorities, and measures to strengthen the standards and conduct regime.

The key proposals included:

• Introducing harsher sanctions for councillor misconduct
• Strengthening the accountability mechanisms
• Enhancing the support for ethical behaviour
• Improving the transparency of councillor conduct

The report noted that the council's Code of Conduct for Members follows the Local Government Association's Model Code Councillor Code of Conduct 2020¹. Feedback from the consultation was being analysed by the MHCLG, and members were scheduled to be updated upon publication of the results.

The committee was also scheduled to discuss actions and recommendations from a corporate peer challenge² that took place in February 2025. The peer review action plan was scheduled to be taken to the Executive in July 2025 for approval, and may include a further review of the Protocol on Member/Officer Relations.

The report pack also stated that the Member Learning and Development Steering Group recommended that the Code of Conduct for Members be updated to ensure members attend mandatory training. Subject to the Steering Group's agreement, it was proposed that the following wording be added to the Code of Conduct:

Training and Complying with the Code of Conduct: As a councillor, I undertake all mandatory training as specified in the Member Training Programme unless a specific dispensation for the training has been granted by the Monitoring Officer.

The report pack also mentioned that two new Independent Persons, Yemi Mustapha and Rachael Tiffen, have been appointed to support the Standards Committee.

Minutes from the Last Meeting

The committee was scheduled to approve the minutes from the meeting held on 21 November 2024³.

The minutes from the previous meeting included discussions on:

• Pecuniary interest declarations⁴ for councillors, particularly in complex living arrangements.
• A review of arrangements for dealing with Standards Allegations, to clarify if the Monitoring Officer may consult the Independent Persons, rather than the current requirement that the Independent Persons will be consulted on all complaints received.
• The Annual Report on Standards and Member Conduct, including the Member Training and Development Programme.
• Proposed amendments to the Protocol on the Member Officer relationship.
• Proposed amendments to the Code of Conduct for Members, to reflect the Model Code of Conduct.