Issue - meetings

Councillor Bains introduced the item as relevant Cabinet Lead.

The Leader invited Councillor Lloyd as Chairman of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee on 12 April 2022 when this matter was considered, to introduce the Committee’s report and its recommendations, which are that Cabinet be recommended to agree that:

1 the option of offering all councillors the opportunity of giving up all or part of their modernisation allowance to finance a new laptop provided and supported by the Council be explored

2  the current cost of supporting Councillors using their own IT equipment be explored and

3  the default position be that Councillors will not receive paper copies of agendas unless they specifically request them.

Cabinet were generally supportive of the recommendations, therefore Councillor Rennie proposed that recommendation 1 from the Overview & Scrutiny Committee’s report be added as recommendation ‘d’ to the substantive motion. This was seconded by Councillor Pike.

Following a vote in which Councillor Lloyd did not take part, it was RESOLVED that recommendation 1 from the Overview and Scrutiny Committee’s report now form recommendation ‘d’.

Proposed by Councillor Rennie and seconded by Councillor Pike, following debate, it was RESOLVED that Cabinet approved:

a.     That a Capita Supported Laptop will be the standard supported device for Councillors who require it.

b.     That Democratic Services define and deliver a plan to remove the distribution of printed agendas for all council meetings on the basis that all Councillors will be able to access this material electronically.

c.     That approval is given to invest in Modern.Gov to provide enhanced functionality to further improve paper-less working.

d.     the option of offering all councillors the opportunity of giving up all or part of their modernisation allowance to finance a new laptop provided and supported by the Council be explored