Code of Conduct

This Code applies to elected Members and voting co-opted Members of Morley  Town Council in all aspects of their public life.  This means that the Council expects Members to follow this Code when they are conducting the work of the Council, representing the Council on any external organisation, and otherwise acting in their official capacity.  The Code of Conduct does not apply to what Members do in their purely private and personal lives.

 

Part One - Standards of Conduct

You must have regard to, and act in accordance with, the following standards of conduct:

 

Selflessness

You should serve only in the public interest and should never improperly confer an advantage or disadvantage on any person, organisation or group, or any other third party.

 

Honesty and Integrity

You should not place yourself in situations where your honesty and integrity may be questioned; you should not behave improperly and should avoid the appearance of such behaviour.

 

Objectivity

You must make decisions based on the information before you, having had regard to any professional advice provided to you and in accordance with your view of the public interest.  

 

You should make decisions on merit, this includes when making appointments, awarding contracts, or recommending individuals for awards or other recognition. 

 

Accountability

You are accountable to the public for your decisions and actions and the manner in which you carry out your duties.  You must co-operate fully and honestly with any scrutiny appropriate to your office. 

You should not undertake any action which would bring the Council, your position, or the position of Members generally, into disrepute.

 

Openness

You must be as open as possible about your actions and those of the Council and should be prepared to give reasons for those actions.  

 

Leadership

You must promote and maintain high standards of conduct by supporting these principles by leadership and by example and should act in a way that secures or preserves the confidence of others.

You must have due regard to the impartiality and integrity of the Council’s officers and its other employees.  

 

Part Two – Registration and disclosure of interests

 

Registration of Interests

 

1. Within 28 days of your election or co-option, you must notify the Monitoring Officer of any ‘disclosable pecuniary interests’ which you have at that time.  
2. Where you are re-elected or re-appointed, notification is only required of any new disclosable pecuniary interests within 28 days of your election or co-option.
3. You must keep your Register of Interests entry up to date by notifying the Monitoring Officer of any changes to your disclosable pecuniary interests within 28 days of the change occurring, or of you becoming aware of the change.
4. A pecuniary interest is a ‘disclosable pecuniary interest’ in relation to you if it is of a type described in Appendix 1, and either:
5. it is an interest of yourself, or
6. it is an interest of - 
   1. your spouse or civil partner,
   2. a person with whom you are living as husband and wife, or
   3. a person with whom you are living as if you are civil partners,

   and you are aware that that other person has the interest.

7. You are also required to notify the Monitoring Officer of any gifts or hospitality with an estimated value of at least £50 which you receive in your role as a Morley Town  Councillor.  You must inform the Monitoring Officer of any such gifts or hospitality within 28 days of receiving them so that the details can be entered into the Register of Interests.

 

Sensitive interests

1. If the nature of an interest is such that you and the Monitoring Officer consider that disclosure of the details of the interest could lead to you, or a person connected with you, being subject to violence or intimidation, the interest must not be included in any published version of the Register of Interests, or be entered into any copy of the register that is made available for public inspection .  

Disclosure of disclosable pecuniary interests at meetings

1. The following provisions apply if you are present at a meeting of the Council  or of any committee, sub-committee, joint committee or joint sub-committee of the Council , and you are aware that you have a disclosable pecuniary interest in a matter to be considered, or being considered, at the meeting.
2. If the interest is not entered in the Council’s  Register of Interests, you must disclose the interest to the meeting (unless the interest is a sensitive interest).
3. If the interest is not entered in the Council’s  Register of Interests and is not the subject of a pending notification, you must notify the Monitoring Officer of the interest before the end of 28 days beginning with the date of the disclosure.
4. Where the interest does appear in the Register of Interests, you must bring the interest to the attention of the meeting (unless the interest is a sensitive interest).
5. You may not:
   1. participate, or participate further, in any discussion of the matter at the meeting,
   2. participate in any vote, or further vote, taken on the matter at the meeting, or
   3. remain in the room during the discussion or vote on the matter (subject to paragraph 18 below).
6. If you are not a member of the relevant committee, sub-committee, joint committee or joint sub-committee, and are present at the meeting in another capacity, you may remain in the room to observe the proceedings but must not participate in the discussion on the matter, even as a member of the public.
7. In certain circumstances you may be granted a dispensation to permit you to take part in the business of the Council, even if you have a disclosable pecuniary interest relating to that business.  Such dispensations are granted by the Council; any requests for dispensation must be sent to the Town Clerk prior to the meeting at which the dispensation is required.  

 

Allegations of a Failure to Comply with Code of Conduct

1. All complaints alleging a failure to comply with this Code will be considered in accordance with a procedure agreed by Full Council. 

APPENDIX 1 - DEFINITION OF A ‘DISCLOSABLE PECUNIARY INTEREST’

Employment, office, trade, profession or vocation - Any employment, office, trade, profession or vocation carried on for profit or gain.

Sponsorship - Any payment or provision of any other financial benefit (other than from the relevant authority) made or provided within the relevant period in respect of any expenses incurred by you in carrying out your duties as a Member, or towards your election expenses.  This includes any payment or financial benefit from a trade union within the meaning of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992.

Contracts - Any contract which is made between the relevant person (or a body in which the relevant person has a beneficial interest) and the relevant authority – 

1. under which goods or services are to be provided or works are to be executed; and
2. which has not been fully discharged.

Land - Any beneficial interest in land which is within the area of the relevant authority.

Licences - Any licence (alone or jointly with others) to occupy land in the area of the relevant authority for a month or longer.

Corporate tenancies - Any tenancy where (to your knowledge) – 

1. the landlord is the relevant authority; and
2. the tenant is a body in which the relevant person has a beneficial interest.

Securities - Any beneficial interest in securities of a body where – 

1. that body (to your knowledge) has a place of business or land in the area of the relevant authority; and
2. either – 
   1. the total nominal value of the securities exceeds £25,000 or one hundredth of the total issued share capital of that body; or
   2. if the share capital of that body is of more than one class, the total nominal value of the shares of any one class in which the relevant person has a beneficial interest exceeds one hundredth of the total issued share capital of that class.