Standards Committee
What it does
- considers and make recommendations as necessary on ethical issues affecting the Council
- oversees all matters relating to the Local Code of Conduct for Members
- convenes sub-committees to assess allegations of misconduct and to conduct hearings
The full terms of reference for the Standards Committee are listed in:
- Article 9 of the Constitution
(PDF: 26KB) - Most of the committee is related to the Code of Conduct for Members (PDF: 40KB)
Make-up of Barnet’s Standards Committee
The Standards Committee comprises six councillor members, with two from each of the three political groups represented on the council, and seven independent members.
Membership of the Standards Committee
Independent Members
Independent Members of the Standards Committee are not elected but instead appointed by the Council for a four-year term following a recruitment and selection process. They must demonstrate the knowledge and skills necessary to perform the role and fulfil certain requiremnts to demonstrate their independence from the Council. The Council last appointed new Independent Members of the Standards Committee in May 2008.
The role of Independent Members is vital to the work of the committee and only an Independent Member can be chairman of the main committee and any of its sub-committees.
Meetings and Agendas
For details of upcoming meetings of the Standards Committee as well as the agendas, reports and minutes of past meetings please use the Committee Papers pages.
Local Regulation
The work of the Standards Committee is going to develop in 2008-09 and beyond. Part 10 of the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 has brought many changes to the standards regime for local authorities in England and these came into force on 8th May 2008. The most significant of these are collectively known as 'Local Regulation' and concern the assessment and review of allegations that a Councillor (or other member of a Council committee) has breached the Code of Conduct, together with hearing cases and determining sanctions.
At Barnet, a sub-committee of the Standards Committee will assess allegations and, if there is an appeal, a different sub-committee may review this decision. The Standards Committee, or in practice its sub-committees, will also conduct hearings and make determinations about those allegations that are investigated.
The Process
Please see: How to make a complaint about the conduct of a Councillor
for full details of the process in respect of any allegations of misconduct by Councillors or other members. This includes the form (and guidance notes) to complete if you wish to make an allegation about member conduct.
Standards Board for England
The Standards Board for England has changed in its role from receiving complaints about individual Councillors to being a "light-touch regulator". Responsibility for assessing and investigating allegations of Member misconduct has passed to the Standards Committee of the Council concerned.
For further information on the the standards regime and the work of Standards Committees you may find it helpful to refer to the Standards Board for England website.
