Purpose of
committee
The West London Waste Authority is a Joint
Authority. There are six Members on the
Board - one from each of the following
London boroughs which make up the area of the Authority:
Brent
Ealing
Harrow
Hillingdon
Hounslow
Richmond
The Authority is responsible for receiving and
arranging the disposal of waste collected by each of the London
Borough.
Functions and Procedure Rules
1.
Purpose of the Joint Committee
1.1
The London Boroughs of Barnet, Brent, Ealing,
Hammersmith & Fulham, Harrow and Hounslow (“the
Participating Boroughs”) have established the Joint Committee
pursuant to powers under the Local Government Acts 1972 and 2000,
and under the Local Authorities (Arrangements
for the Discharge of Functions) (England) Regulations
2012.
1.2
The Joint Committee shall be known as ‘WEST
LONDON ECONOMIC PROSPERITY BOARD.’
1.3
The Joint Committee’s role and purpose on
behalf of the Participating Boroughs relates to ensuring appropriate, effective and formal governance is in
place for the purposes of delivering the West London Vision for
Growth and advancing Participating Boroughs’
aspirations for greater economic prosperity in West
London, including promoting “the Economic Prosperity
Agenda”, in partnership with employers, representatives from
regional and central government, and education and skills
providers.
1.4
The purpose of the Joint Committee will be
collaboration and mutual co-operation and the fact that some
functions will be discharged jointly by way of the Joint Committee
does not prohibit any of the Participating Boroughs from promoting
economic wellbeing in their own areas independently from the Joint
Committee.
1.5
The Joint Committee is not a self-standing legal
entity but is part of its constituent authorities. Any legal
commitment entered into pursuant of a decision of the Joint
Committee must be made by all of the Participating
Boroughs.
1.6
These Procedure Rules govern the conduct of meetings
of the Joint Committee.
2.
Definitions
2.1 Any reference to “Access to Information legislation”
shall mean Part V and VA of the Local Government Act 1972 (as
amended) and, to the extent that they are applicable, to the
Openness of Local Government Bodies Regulations 2014 (as amended)
and the Local Authorities (Executive Arrangements) (Meetings and
Access to Information) (England) Regulations 2012 (as
amended).
2.2
Any reference to “executive”, “executive
arrangements”, “executive function” or
“committee system” has the meaning given by Part 1A of
the Local Government Act 2000.
3.
Functions
3.1
The Joint Committee will discharge on behalf of the Participating
Boroughs the functions listed below related to promoting economic
prosperity in West London:
3.1.1
Making funding applications and/or bids to external
bodies, in relation to economic prosperity for the benefit of the
local government areas of the participating local
authorities.
3.1.2
Providing direction to a nominated lead borough on
the allocation of any such funding awards to appropriate projects
for the benefit of the local government areas of the participating
local authorities, including, where applicable, approving the
approach to the procurement to be undertaken by the lead
borough.
3.1.3
Seeking to be the recipient of devolved powers
and/or funding streams for the local government areas of the
participating local authorities, which relate to the economic
prosperity agenda.
3.1.4
Exercising any such powers and allocating any such
funding.
3.1.5
Representing the participating local authorities in
discussions and negotiations with regional bodies, national bodies
and central government on matters relating to economic prosperity
for the benefit of the local government areas of the participating
authorities.
3.1.6
Representing the participating authorities in
connection with the Greater London Authority, London Councils and
the London Enterprise Panel, for the benefit of the local
government areas of the participating authorities, in matters
relating to the economic prosperity agenda.
3.1.7
Representing the participating local authorities in
discussions and negotiations in relation to pan-London matters
relating to economic prosperity.
3.1.8
Seeking to influence and align
government investment in West London in order to boost economic
growth within the local government areas of
the participating authorities.
3.1.9
Agreeing and approving any additional governance
structures as related to the Joint Committee, or any sub-committees
formed by the Joint Committee.
3.1.10
Representing the participating local authorities in
discussions and negotiations with the
Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government to
encourage legislative reform enabling Economic Prosperity Boards,
as defined by the Local Democracy, Economic
Development and Construction Act 2009 Act, to
be established by groups of boroughs in London.
3.1.11
Inviting special representatives of stakeholders
such as business associations, government agencies such as DWP or
Jobcentre Plus, the further education sector, higher education
sector, schools, voluntary sector, and health sector to take an
interest in, and/or seek to influence, the business of the
committee including by attending meetings and commenting on
proposals and documents.
3.2
In relation to the Participating Boroughs which
operate executive arrangements only executive functions of each
borough may be exercised.
4.
Membership and Quorum
4.1 The membership will
comprise of 6 members with each Participating Borough appointing
one person to sit on the Joint Committee as a voting
member.
4.2 Each Participating Borough
will make a suitable appointment in accordance with its own
constitutional requirements.
4.2.1 Where a Participating Borough operates executive arrangements,
then the appointment of a voting member of the West London EPB will
be by the leaders of the executive or by the executive. It is
anticipated that, where practicable, the leader of each such
executive will be appointed to the West London
EPB.
4.2.2 Where a
Participating Borough does not operate executive arrangements, the
appointment of a voting member of the West London EPB will be in
accordance with the Borough’s own procedures. It is envisaged that this will usually be one of
its senior councillors.
4.3 In all cases, the
appointed person must be an elected member of the council of the
appointing Participating Borough. Appointments will be made
for a maximum period not extending beyond each member’s
remaining term of office as a councillor, and their
membership of the Joint Committee will automatically cease if they
cease to be an elected member of the appointing Participating
Borough.
4.4 Members of the Joint Committee are governed by the provisions of
their own Council’s Codes and Protocols including the Code of
Conduct for Members and the rules on Disclosable Pecuniary
Interests.
4.5 Each Participating Borough will utilise existing mechanisms
for substitution as laid down in their own Standing
Orders. Continuity of attendance is
encouraged.
4.6 Where a Participating Borough wishes to withdraw from membership
of the Joint Committee this must be indicated in writing to each of
the committee members. A six month
notice period must be provided.
4.7 When a new borough wishes
to become a Participating Borough then this may be achieved if
agreed by a unanimous vote of all the existing Participating
Boroughs.
4.8 The quorum for the
Joint Committee is three members. If
the Joint Committee is not quorate it cannot transact any
business. If there is no quorum at the
time the meeting is due to begin, the start of the meeting will be
delayed until a quorum is achieved. If
no quorum is achieved after 30 minutes has elapsed, the clerk will
advise those present that no business can be transacted and the
meeting will be cancelled.
5.
Chair and Vice-Chair
5.1 The Chair of the
Joint Committee will be appointed for 12 months, and will rotate
amongst the Participating Boroughs.
5.2 Unless otherwise
unanimously agreed by the Joint Committee, each
Participating Borough’s appointed person will serve as chair
for 12 months at a time. Where the incumbent Chair ceases to
be a member of the Joint Committee, the individual appointed by the
relevant borough as a replacement will serve as Chair for the
remainder of the 12 months as chair.
5.3 The Joint Committee
will also appoint a Vice-Chair from within its membership on an
annual basis to preside in the absence of the Chairman. This appointment will also rotate in a similar
manner to the Chair.
5.4 At its first
meeting, the Committee will draw up the rotas for Chair and
Vice-Chair respectively.
5.5 Where neither the
Chair nor Vice-Chair are in attendance, the Joint Committee will
appoint a Chair to preside over the meeting.
5.6 In the event of any disagreement
as the meaning or application of these Rules, the decision of the
Chair shall be final.
6.
Sub-Committees
6.1
The Joint Committee may establish sub-committees to
undertake elements of its work if required.
7.
Delegation to officers
7.1 The Joint Committee may
delegate specific functions to officers of any of the Participating
Boroughs.
7.2 Any such delegation may be
subject to the requirement for the officer to consult with or
obtain the prior agreement of an officer (or officers) of the other
boroughs.
7.3 It may also be subject to
the requirement for the officer with delegated authority to consult
with the Chair of the Joint Committee and the Leaders of the one or
more Participating Boroughs before exercising their delegated
authority.
8.
Administration
8.1 Organisational and
clerking support for the Joint Committee, and accommodation for
meetings, will be provided by the Participating Borough whose
representative is Chair unless otherwise agreed by the Joint
Committee. The costs of this will be
reimbursed by contributions from the other Participating Boroughs
as approved by the Joint Committee.
9.
Financial matters
9.1
The Joint
Committee will not have a pre-allocated budget.
9.2 When making a decision
which has financial consequences, the Joint Committee will follow
the relevant provisions of the Financial Procedure Rules of LB
Ealing.
10.
Agenda management
10.1 Subject to
10.2, all prospective items of business for the Joint Committee
shall be agreed by a meeting of the Chief Executives of the
Participating Boroughs or their representatives.
10.2 It will be
the responsibility of each report author to ensure that the impacts
on all Participating Boroughs are fairly and accurately represented
in the report. They may do this either
by consulting with the monitoring officer and chief finance officer
of each Participating Borough or by some other appropriate
method.
10.3
In pursuance of their statutory duties, the monitoring
officer and/or the chief financial officer of any of the
Participating Boroughs may include item
for consideration on the agenda of a meeting of the Joint
Committee, and, may require that an extraordinary meeting be called
to consider such items.
10.4 Each
Participating Borough operating executive arrangements will be
responsible for considering whether it is necessary [in order to
comply with Access to Information legislation regarding the
publication of agendas including Forward Plan requirements] to
treat prospective decisions as ‘key- decisions’ and/or
have them included in the Forward Plan.
Each Participating Borough operating a committee system will apply
its local non statutory procedures.
11.
Meetings
11.1 The Joint Committee will
meet as required to fulfil its functions.
11.2 A programme
of meetings at the start of each Municipal Year will be scheduled
and included in the Calendar of Meetings for all Participating
Boroughs.
11.3 Access to
meetings and papers of the Joint Committee by the Press and Public
is subject to the Local Government Act 1972 and to the Openness of
Local Government Bodies Regulations 2014. The Joint Committee will also have regard to the
Local Authorities (Executive Arrangements) (Meetings and Access to
information) (England) Regulations 2012, notwithstanding the fact
that its provisions do not strictly apply to the Joint Committee
for so long as the committee has any members who are not members of
an executive of a Participating Borough.
12.
Notice of meetings
12.1 On behalf of
the Joint Committee, a clerk will give notice to the public of the
time and place of any meeting in accordance with the Access to
Information requirements.
12.2 At least
five clear working days in advance of a meeting a clerk to the
Joint Committee will publish the agenda via the website of
clerk’s authority and provide the documentation and website
link to the Participating Boroughs to enable the information to be
published on each Participating Borough’s
website. “Five Clear Days”
does not include weekends or national holidays and excludes both
the day of the meeting and the day on which the meeting is
called.
12.3 The clerk to
the Joint Committee will arrange for the copying and distribution
of papers to all Members of the Committee.
13.
Public participation
13.1 Unless
considering information classified as ‘exempt’ or
‘confidential’ under Access to Information Legislation,
all meetings of the Joint Committee shall be held in
public.
13.2 Public
representations and questions are permitted at meetings of the
Joint Committee. Notification must be
given in advance of the meeting indicating by 12 noon on the last
working day before the meeting the matter to be raised and the
agenda item to which it relates.
Representatives will be provided with a maximum of 3 minutes to
address the Joint Committee.
13.3 The maximum number of
speakers allowed per agenda item is 6.
13.4 Where the
number of public representations exceed the time / number allowed,
a written response will be provided or the representation deferred
to the next meeting of the Joint Committee if
appropriate.
13.5 The Joint
Committee may also invite special
representatives of stakeholders such as business associations,
government agencies such as DWP or Jobcentre Plus, the further
education sector, voluntary sector, and health sector to take an
interest in the business of the committee including by attending
meetings and commenting on proposals and documents.
13.6 The Chair
shall have discretion to regulate the behaviour of all individuals
present at the meeting in the interests of the efficient conduct of
the meeting.
14.
Member participation
14.1 Any elected
member of the council of any of the Participating Boroughs who is
not a member of the Joint Committee may ask a question or address
the Committee with the consent of the Chair.
15.
Business to be transacted
15.1 Standing
items for each meeting of the Joint Committee will include the
following:
·
Minutes of the Last Meeting
·
Apologies for absence
·
Declarations of Interest
·
Provision for public participation
·
Substantive items for consideration
15.2 The Chair
may vary the order of business and take urgent items as specified
in the Access to Information Requirements at his / her
discretion. The Chair should inform the
Members of the Joint Committee prior to allowing the consideration
of urgent items.
15.3 An item of business may
not be considered at a meeting unless:
(i) A copy of the
agenda included the item (or a copy of the item) is open to
inspection by the public for at least five clear days before the
meeting; or
(ii) By reason of special
circumstances which shall be specified in the minutes the Chair of
the meeting is of the opinion that the item should be considered at
the meeting as a matter of urgency.
15.4
“Special Circumstances” justifying an item being
considered as a matter or urgency will relate to both why the
decision could not be made at a meeting allowing the proper time
for inspection by the public as well as why the item or report
could not have been available for inspection for five clear days
before the meeting.
16.
Extraordinary meetings
16.1
Arrangements may be made following consultation with
Chair of the Joint Committee to call an extraordinary meeting of
the Joint Committee. The Chair should
inform the appointed Members prior to taking a decision to convene
an extraordinary meeting.
16.2
The business of an extraordinary meeting shall be
only that specified on the agenda.
17.
Cancellation of meetings
17.1 Meetings of
the Joint Committee may, after consultation with the Chairman, be
cancelled if there is insufficient business to transact or some
other appropriate reason warranting cancellation. The date of meetings may be varied after
consultation with the Chairman and appointed members of the Joint
Committee in the event that it is necessary for the efficient
transaction of business.
18.
Rules of debate
18.1
The rules of debate in operation in the
Chair’s authority shall apply.
19.
Request for determination of
business
19.1 Any member of the Joint
Committee may request at any time that:
·
The Joint Committee move to vote upon the current
item of consideration.
·
The item be deferred to the next meeting.
·
The item be referred back to a meeting of the Chief
Executives of the Participating Boroughs for further
consideration.
·
The meeting be adjourned.
19.2 The Joint Committee will
then vote on the request.
20.
Urgency procedure
20.1 Where the
Chair (following consultation with the appointed Members of the
Joint Committee) is of the view that an urgent decision is required
in respect of any matter within the Joint Committee’s
functions and that decision would not reasonably require the
calling of an Extraordinary Meeting of the Joint Committee to
consider it and it cannot wait until the next Ordinary Meeting of
the Joint Committee, then they may request in writing the Chief
Executive of each Participating Borough (in line with pre-existing
delegations in each Borough’s Constitution) to take urgent
action as is required within each of the constituent
boroughs.
21.
Voting
21.1 The Joint
Committee’s decision making will operate on the basis of
mutual cooperation and consent and will take into account the views
of the special representatives. It is
expected that decisions will be taken on a consensual basis
wherever reasonably possible.
21.2 Where a vote
is required it will be on the basis of one vote per member and
unless a recorded vote is requested, the Chair will take the vote
by show of hands.
21.3 Any matter
(save for a decision under Rule 4.7 above) shall be decided by a
simple majority of those members voting and present. Where there is an equality of votes, the Chair of
the meeting shall have a second and casting vote.
21.4 Any two members can
request that a recorded vote be taken.
21.5 Where,
immediately after a vote is taken at a meeting, if any Member so
requests, there shall be recorded in the minutes of the proceedings
of that meeting whether the person cast his / her vote for or
against the matter or whether he/ she abstained from
voting.
22.
Minutes
22.1 At the next
suitable meeting of the Joint Committee, the Chairman will move a
motion that the minutes of the previous meeting be agreed as a
correct record. The meeting may only
consider the accuracy of the minutes and cannot change or vary
decisions taken at a previous meeting as a matter arising out of
the minutes.
22.2 Once agreed, the
Chairman will sign them.
22.3 There will
be no item for the approval of minutes of an ordinary Joint
Committee meeting on the agenda of an extraordinary
meeting.
23.
Exclusion of Public and Press
23.1 Members of
the public and press may only be excluded from a meeting of the
Joint Committee either in accordance with the Access to Information
requirements or in the event of disturbance.
23.2 A motion may
be moved at any time for the exclusion of the public from the whole
or any part of the proceedings. The
motion shall specify by reference to Section 100(A) Local
Government Act 1972 the reason for the exclusion in relation to
each item of business for which it is proposed that the public be
excluded. The public must be excluded
from meetings whenever it is likely, in view of the nature of
business to be transacted, or the nature of the proceedings that
confidential information would be disclosed.
23.3 If there is
a general disturbance making orderly business impossible, the
Chairman may adjourn the meeting for as long as he/she thinks is
necessary.
23.4 Background
papers will be published as part of the Joint Committee agenda and
be made available to the public via the website of each
authority.
24.
Overview and Scrutiny
24.1 Decisions of
the Joint Committee which relate to the executive functions of a
Participating Borough will be subject to scrutiny and ‘call
-in’ arrangements (or such other arrangements equivalent to
call-in that any Participating Borough operating a committee system
may have) as would apply locally to a decision made by that
Participating Borough acting alone
24.2 No decision
should be implemented until such time as the call-in period has
expired across all of the Participating Boroughs.
24.3 Where a
decision is called in, arrangements will be made at the earliest
opportunity within the Participating Borough where the Call-In had
taken place for it to be heard.
24.4 Any decision
called in for scrutiny before it has been implemented shall not be
implemented until such time as the call-in procedures of the
Participating Borough concerned have been concluded.
25.
Access to minutes and papers after the
meeting
25.1 On behalf of
the Joint Committee, a clerk will make available copies of the
following for six years after the meeting:
(i) the minutes of
the meeting and records of decisions taken, together with reasons,
for all meetings of the Joint Committee, excluding any part of the
minutes of proceedings when the meeting was not open to the public
or which disclose exempt or confidential information;
(i)
the agenda for the meeting; and
(iii) reports relating to items
when the meeting was open to the public.
26.
Amendment of these Rules
26.1 These
Rules shall be agreed by the Joint Committee at its first
meeting. Any amendments shall be made
by the Joint Committee following consultation with the monitoring
officers of the Participating Boroughs.
Note that Rule 3 (Functions) may only be amended following a formal
delegation from each of the Participating Boroughs.
27.
Background Papers
27.1 Every report
shall contain a list of those documents relating to the subject
matter of the report which in the opinion of the author:
(i) disclose any
facts or matters on which the report or an important part of it is
based;
(ii) which have been
relied on to a material extent in preparing the report but does not
include published works or those which disclose exempt or
confidential information and in respect of reports to the Joint
Committee, the advice of a political assistant.
27.2 Where a copy
of a report for a meeting is made available for inspection by the
public at the same time the clerk shall make available for
inspection
(i) a copy
of the list of background papers for the report
(ii) at least one copy of
each of the documents included in that list.
27.3 The Clerk
will make available for public inspection for four years after the
date of the meeting one copy of each of the documents on the list
of background papers.
Previous agendas and
minutes can be viewed on Hounslow
Council’s website.
Constitutional documents and audited accounts
are available online:
The Authority has its own website: http://www.westlondonwaste.gov.uk/