ASSESSMENT DECISION NOTICE
NO BREACH OF THE CODE
Reference:
CCN045(i)/12
Complainant:
Mr Tony Child
Subject Member:
Councillor Ian Newby
Person conducting
the Assessment:
Simon Mansell – Principal Legal Officer, Corporate
Governance
Date of Assessment:
18 January 2012
Complaint
On 18 January 2013 the Monitoring Officer considered a complaint from Mr Tony Child
concerning the alleged conduct of Councillor Newby of St Agnes Parish Council. A
general summary of the complaint is set out below:
The Complainant has alleged that contrary to the minutes of a St Agnes Parish
Council meeting held on 10 October 2012 which set out that the purpose of the
meeting was for ‘Consideration of purchase of land for future Parish needs’, a
discussion was held regarding the Miners and Mechanics Institute of which, the
Complainant alleges, Councillor Newby is a Trustee.
The alleged breaches of the Code of Conduct put forward by the Complainant are:


bringing their office into disrepute
isolating Villagers from Democratic decision making process
The second bullet point above is not a provision with the Code of Conduct and in
any event this is a procedural matter which is outside of the Code of Conduct and
this will not be considered further as a specific alleged breach.
Decision
I find that there is no breach of the Code of Conduct in relation to alleged breaches,
as put forwards by the complainant namely:

bringing their office into disrepute
In considering the facts as set out by the Complainant in accordance with the
assessment criteria I have identified what could be considered to be another
allegation of a breach of the Code of Conduct. However I further find there is no
breach of the Code of Conduct by Councillor Newby in relation to:

a failure to declare an interest, abstain from the vote and to absent himself
from the meeting in which he may have an interest; namely in relation to any
discussion concerning the Institute that may have taken place at the meeting
on 10 October 2012.
Reasons for the Decision
In assessing this complaint I have been able to access sufficient information to enable
this complaint to be assessed and determined without the need to refer the complaint
for investigation and, with this, the undertaking of interviews.
The Complainant has, within the body of his complaint, raised concerns regarding
several procedural aspects in relation to the meeting of St Agnes Parish Council held
on 10 October 2012. However, as the procedural matters raised fall outside of the
Code of Conduct and therefore the jurisdiction of Cornwall Council they have not been
considered further.
In raising the question as to whether the issue of the Miners and Mechanics Institute
was discussed and the fact that Councillor Newby is a Trustee of the Institute I have
considered the following facts;

The minutes of the meeting held on 10 October 2012 make no reference to the
Institute and these minutes are the formal legal record of the meeting.

No information has been provided by the Complainant, other than hearsay, to
substantiate his claim that Councillor Newby is a Trustee of the Institute.

The information on the Charity Commissions web site regarding the Institute
does not list Councillor Newby as a Trustee of the Institute.

Councillor Newby has advised that an update on the Institute was given to the
members assembled for the meeting on 10 October 2012, but as this update
was prior to the start of the formal meeting, no notes of the update were taken.
As it appears that Councillor Newby is not a Trustee of the Institute and as no formal
discussion regarding the Institute took place at the meeting of the Parish Council on
10 October 2012 there would be no need for Councillor Newby to declare an interest,
abstain from the vote and to absent himself from the meeting. Therefore I find that
there is no breach of the Code of Conduct of St Agnes Parish Council by Councillor
Newby.
In reaching this decision I have had regard to the views of the Independent Person
who also considers that the actions of Councillor Newby do not amount to a breach of
the Code of Conduct.
What happens now?
This decision notice is sent to the complainant, the member against whom the
allegation has been made and the Clerk to St Agnes Parish Council.
Right of review
At the written request of the complainant, the Monitoring Officer can review and is
able to change a decision not to refer an allegation for investigation or other action.
To ensure impartiality in the conduct of the review different officers to those involved
in the original decision will undertake the review.
We must receive a written request from the complainant to review this decision within
28 days from the date of this notice, explaining in detail on what grounds the decision
should be reviewed.
If we receive a request for a review, we will write to all the parties mentioned above,
notifying them of the request to review the decision.
Additional help
If you need additional support in relation to this or future contact with us, please let
us know as soon as possible. If you have difficulty reading this notice we can make
reasonable adjustments to assist you, in line with the requirements of the Disability
Discrimination Act 2000.
We can also help if English is not your first language.
SJR Mansell MBE
Principal Legal Officer
On behalf of the Monitoring Officer
Date: 28 January 2013