Issue - meetings

The Council had before it the recommendation of the Executive in respect of the following notice of motion submitted by Councillor Ali.

“This council requires that expenses of all kinds (e.g. benefits, gifts and trips) are published for Council Officers and Councillors appointed by Woking Council to be Directors of companies owned by Woking Council and its residents.

These expenses will be publicly available at monthly intervals henceforth and also retrospectively back to the formation of the bodies or appointment.”

The Council was advised that the provisions sought through the Notice of Motion had been, or were in the process of being, adopted.  Details of the Council’s expenditure were routinely published on the Council’s website, as were details of the gifts and hospitality received by Councillors.  The details of gifts and hospitality received by Officers were recorded in an open register and would in future be published on the website.  Expenses paid by Council-owned bodies would be added to the website, backdated 2-3 years.

Although the Motion had not been formally supported by the Executive, it was clear that the intent of the Executive had been to support the spirt of the motion. With the agreement of the Portfolio Holder and Councillor Ali, it was recommended that the Notice of Motion should be supported, subject to an amended timetable of 2-3 years for the backdating of expenses information on Council-owned bodies.

RESOLVED

That the Motion be supported subject to the addition that the details of the expenses paid by Council-owned bodies added to the website would be backdated 2-3 years.

Reporting Person – Corporate Management Group

At its meeting on 30 July 2020, the Council referred the following Notice of Motion to the Executive.

Councillor M Ali

Expenses paid by Woking Council owned bodies

“This council requires that expenses of all kinds (e.g. benefits, gifts and trips) are published for Council Officers and Councillors appointed by Woking Council to be Directors of companies owned by Woking Council and its residents.

These expenses will be publicly available at monthly intervals henceforth and also retrospectively back to the formation of the bodies or appointment.”

Councillor Ali attended the meeting and spoke in support of the Motion.  The Executive noted that expenses information was currently published by the Council.  Officers advised that details of gifts and hospitality received by Officers were published in an open Register and that going forward, these could be published on the Council’s website.  It was highlighted that Councillors and Officers appointed as Directors to subsidiary companies did not receive payment.  The Executive confirmed its support for openness and transparency, however it was not supportive of the Motion as the Executive did not support backdating information to the formation of the companies due to the administrative burden.  The Chairman undertook to ask the Director of Legal and Democratic Services to investigate, before Council on 15 October 2020, backdating one or two years of expenses in order to ascertain the work involved for Officers.  The Chairman stated that the Executive would be happy in principle to recommend at Council that expenses paid by Woking Council owned bodies be published, as set out in the Motion, in the future.

RECOMMENDED to Council

That the Motion be not supported.