Agenda and minutes

It was proposed by Councillor Webb, and seconded by Councillor Dawlings, that Councillor Horwood be appointed as Chairman for the meeting.  A vote was taken and Councillor Horwood was elected Chairman.

The Subject Member, Town Councillor Ray Moon, had given his apologies as he was away on holiday.

Parish Councillor Mackenzie advised that he did know the complainant through his work as a Parish Council Chairman; however he remained impartial.

The Hearing Panel was advised that, although there was no requirement for the Subject Member to attend the meeting, the Panel should consider whether to adjourn in Councillor Moon’s absence.

In response to a question, Mr Trowell informed that the Subject Member had not asked for an adjournment of this hearing date, even though he knew he would be away.

The Hearing Panel agreed to proceed with the meeting in the Subject Member’s absence.

The Chairman invited Mr Trowell to explain why he thought the meeting should be considered in public.  Mr Trowell advised that the meeting should be open to the public and press because, although the information contained within the agenda papers was exempt by virtue of paragraph 10 of Part 2 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, the exemption was over ridden by the fact that the individuals who were identified therein had waived their confidentiality.  In addition paragraph 10 of Part 2 of the Schedule applied in that in all the circumstances the public interest in disclosing the information outweighed maintaining any exemption.

In addition it was noted that neither the Complainant nor the Subject Member had requested that the meeting be held in private.

He also advised that all paperwork with the redaction of signatures, personal addresses and telephone numbers, should be available to the press and public.

The Hearing Panel discussed whether the public and press should be excluded from the hearing.  It was agreed that the Hearing should continue in open session and the appropriate paperwork be made available to the public and press.

Investigating Officer’s case

The Chairman invited the Investigating Officer, Mr Bell, to present his case to the Hearing Panel.  Mr Bell outlined the four separate elements of the complaint, namely:

(a)  Allegation A - That Councillor Moon did not recognise or respect the integrity of a fellow Paddock Wood Councillor in a meeting on 15 July 2013 when suggesting that a fellow councillor (Councillor Mrs Thomas) had a conflict of interest regarding a motion under discussion.

(b)  Allegation B - That Councillor Moon was disrespectful to Councillor Hamilton when she was chairing a meeting, when he replied “Don’t interrupt me”.

(c)  Allegation C - That Councillor Moon was intimidating to Councillor Hamilton when, prior to a planning committee meeting, he alluded to an issue that was previously discussed at the confidential mediation process in May 2013.

(d)  Allegation D - That Councillor Moon’s method of raising a concern over the placing of a TPO on Putlands Field (as detailed in a review conducted by the Chair of Speldhurst Parish Council, dated 11 September, 2013) was potentially disrespectful to other councillors.

Mr Bell concluded that, from his findings, he considered that Councillor Moon had breached the Code of Conduct in allegation (c), but not in allegations (a),(b) or (d). 

Mr Bell explained that the original allegation (c) as put forward by the Complainant referred to point 2 of the Paddock Wood Town Council – “not to act in such a way that a reasonable person would regard as bullying or intimidatory.”  However he considered that the member obligation to “act in such a way that a reasonable person would regard as respectful” (point 1 of the Code of Conduct) was more relevant in this case and had been breached.

Questions from the Hearing Panel

The Chairman then invited the Hearing Panel to ask any questions of Mr Bell.

Councillor Webb asked whether the words that were spoken by Councillor Moon in allegation (c) were prohibited by the mediation agreement between him and Councillor Hamilton.  Mr Bell advised that they were not specifically prohibited words, but he considered them to be disrespectful, and therefore resulting in a breach of paragraph 1 of the Paddock Wood Town Council’s Code of Conduct.

With regard to allegation (b), Councillor Webb asked what was said at the meeting prior to Councillor Moon saying “Don’t interrupt me”.  Mr Bell confirmed that this had not been looked into during the investigation.  He also confirmed that no protocol existed stating how long a councillor could speak.

Mr Segall Jones mentioned that the Subject Member had not provided any detail as to why he was interrupted by the Complainant and therefore it was not for the Hearing Panel to consider.  Councillor Dawlings added that the Chairman did have discretion to stop councillors from speaking if they felt it necessary to control the meeting.

Summing up

In his summing up, Mr Bell referred to allegation (c) and Councillor Moon’s comments in relation to ‘plans’.  Mr Bell considered that Councillor Moon  ...  view the full minutes text for item 15.

SANCTIONS

The Hearing Panel invited the Independent Person and the Monitoring Officer to make representations as to whether any sanctions should be applied and in what form.

The Independent Person considered that the following sanctions should be recommended to Paddock Wood Town Council in this case:

(1)  Letter of apology from Councillor Moon to the Complainant regarding allegation (c);

(2)  Paddock Wood Town Council to arrange Code of Conduct training for all Town Council Members;

(3)  Paddock Wood Town Council to arrange for consultants to provide advice on governance matters, including resolving issues.

The Monitoring Officer considered that the following sanctions should be recommended to Paddock Wood Town Council in this case:

(1)  That Paddock Wood Town Council arrange training for Councillor Moon on the Code of Conduct and the behaviour of councillors;

(2)  That Paddock Wood Town Council arrange training for all other members of Paddock Wood Town Council on the Code of Conduct and the behaviour of councillors;

(3)  Bearing in mind that this was the second Code of Conduct Hearing concerning the Town Council within two weeks, that Paddock Wood Town Council arrange a more detailed programme of intervention from an independent expert specialising in local authority ethical standards, to cover matters such as relationships between councillors, relationships between councillors and officers and the overall democratic working and decision making of the council.

The Hearing Panel retired to discuss the sanctions to apply in private.

Final Decision

On the Hearing Panel’s return the Chairman announced the following sanctions that was considered appropriate to recommend to Paddock Wood Town Council:

(1)  That Paddock Wood Town Council be recommended to arrange training for Councillor Moon on the Code of Conduct.

It was acknowledged by the Hearing Panel that an apology had already been provided from Councillor Moon.

It was also recommended that Paddock Wood Town Council arrange the following:

(2)  That all Paddock Wood Town Councillors receive training in the Code of Conduct (as previously recommended).

(3)  That chairmanship training be arranged for the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Council.

(4)  That an independent assessment of the operation and management of the council’s business be undertaken, at the Town Council’s expense.

(5)  That neither Councillor Moon, nor Councillor Hamilton, chairs the meeting of the Town Council that considers these recommendations – and that these recommendations should be considered as soon as possible after the elections on 7 May 2015.

DECISION NOTICE OF CODE OF CONDUCT HEARING PANEL

15 April 2015

Complaint No: T003595

(1)  On 15 April 2015, the Code of Conduct Sub-Committee of Tunbridge Wells Borough Council considered a report of an investigation into the alleged conduct of Town Councillor Moon, a member of Paddock Wood Town Council. 

Complaint Summary

(2)  On 10 January 2014 Mr Paul Cummins, the Monitoring Officer of Tunbridge Wells Borough Council at that time, commissioned an investigation into allegations made by Councillor Sarah Hamilton against Councillor Raymond Moon (both of Paddock Wood Town Council). A general summary of the allegations within the complaint is set out below:

(a)  Allegation A - That Councillor Moon did not recognise or respect the integrity of a fellow Paddock Wood Town Councillor in a meeting on 15 July 2013 when suggesting that a fellow councillor (Councillor Mrs Thomas) had a conflict of interest regarding a motion under discussion.

(b)  Allegation B - That Councillor Moon was disrespectful to Councillor Hamilton when she was chairing a meeting, when he replied “Don’t interrupt me”.

(c)  Allegation C - That Councillor Moon was intimidating to Councillor Hamilton when, prior to a planning committee meeting, he alluded to an issue that was previously discussed at the confidential mediation process in May 2013.

(d)  Allegation D - That Councillor Moon’s method of raising a concern over the placing of a TPO on Putlands Field (as detailed in a review conducted by the Chair of Speldhurst Parish Council, dated 11 September, 2013) was potentially disrespectful to other councillors.

Consultation with the Independent Person

(1)  The Monitoring Officer, in consultation with the Independent Person, decided to refer the allegations for formal investigation.

(2)  After hearing the evidence at the meeting, the Independent Person advised that he supported the Investigating Officer’s findings that, with regard to allegation (C), Councillor Moon had failed to comply with paragraph 1 of the Paddock Wood Town Council’s Code of Conduct, as set out in the Investigator’s report.

Findings

After considering the submission of the Investigating Officer and the views of the Independent Person, the Hearing Panel reached the following decisions:

Allegation A. - That Councillor Moon did not recognise or respect the integrity of a fellow Paddock Wood Town Councillor in a meeting on 15 July 2013 when suggesting that a fellow councillor (Councillor Mrs Thomas) had a conflict of interest regarding a motion under discussion.

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Finding of facts:

(i)            The Hearing Panel took into account that there appeared to be no disputing that Councillor Thomas simply allowed another councillor to second the motion instead.  In addition it was noted that Councillor Thomas’s withdrawal from seconding the motion had no material effect on council business as the motion was subsequently seconded by another and carried.

(ii)           The Hearing Panel noted that no formal complaint had been submitted by Councillor Thomas relating to the incident.

(iii)          The Hearing Panel concluded that there was no evidence that this incident was anything other than a legitimate question being raised  ...  view the full minutes text for item 17.