AIDE MEMOIRE RE PROPOSED NEW INTERESTS REGIME 2021

*SUBJECT TO the provisions on Sensitive Interests:

Interest	Covers	Register in Register of Interests?	Declare at meetings?	Speak?	Discuss and vote?	Able to apply for Dispensation?
Disclosable Pecuniary Interest (DPI) (self and partner)	Employment, office, trade, profession, vocation Sponsorship Contracts Land Licences Corporate tenancies Securities	Yes	Yes (existence and nature)* WHERE you have a DPI directly relating to any matter being considered at a meeting.	No leave the meeting room (subject to any dispensation)	No leave the meeting room (subject to any dispensation)	Yes
Other Registrable Interests (ORIs) (self only)	1. Unpaid directorships 2. Any body of which you are a member or are in a position of general control or management and to which you are nominated or appointed by your authority 3. Any body: i. exercising functions of a public nature ii. directed to charitable purposes or iii. one of whose principal purposes includes the influence of public opinion or policy (including any political party or trade union/professional association) of which you are a member or in a position of general control or management.	Yes	Yes (existence and nature)* WHERE a matter arises at a meeting which directly relates to the financial interest or wellbeing of one of the ORIs.	Yes IF the public can	No leave the meeting room	No
Non-Registrable Interests (NRIs) (self and others)	Interests other than DPIs and ORIs:- (i) which directly relate to the Member’s financial interest or well-being, or that of a relative or close associate (of which the Member could reasonably be expected to be aware);	No (by very nature)	Yes (existence and nature)*	Yes IF the public can	No leave the meeting room	No
	(ii) which affect the Member’s financial interest or well-being or that of a relative or close associate or of a body included under Other Registrable Interests (of which the Member could reasonably be expected to be aware).	No (by very nature)	Yes (existence and nature)*	TEST: Where the matter affects the financial interest or wellbeing more than it affects that of the majority of inhabitants of the ward affected and a reasonable member of the public knowing all the facts would believe that it would affect the Member’s view of the wider public interest, then can SPEAK if the public can, but must not take part in any discussion/vote and must leave room;	See Test No leave the meeting room	No
				Where the matter does not so affect the financial interest or wellbeing, then the Member may SPEAK AND VOTE in usual way.	Yes	No

LGA Guidance on Model Code interests’ provisions – extracts

Disclosable Pecuniary Interests

… The Localism Act uses the phrase … disclosable pecuniary interest in any matter to be considered or being considered at the meeting …

This wording has led to some confusion as to what circumstances would lead to the need to declare a DPI. The Explanatory Notes to the Localism Act say that section 31 of the Act “requires a member of a relevant authority to disclose a disclosable pecuniary interest that they are aware of (apart from a sensitive interest), at a meeting or if acting alone, where any matter to be considered relates to their interest. ... It prohibits a member from participating in discussion or voting on any matter relating to their interest or, if acting alone, from taking any steps in relation to the matter (subject to any dispensations).” [our emphasis].

This means you have a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest (DPI) in a matter when the matter being discussed directly relates to your registered interest or that of your partner, rather than simply affecting it.

For example, if you have registered 1 Acacia Avenue as your address, you would have a DPI if you put in a planning application for 1 Acacia Avenue, or if the whole of Acacia Avenue was being considered for a Resident Parking Zone.

You would not have a DPI if 3 Acacia Avenue had put in a planning application as the matter does not directly relate to your registered interest. You may however have a non-registerable interest (see below) as the application may indirectly affect your property…

Does setting the Council Tax or precept give rise to a DPI?

The LGA is clear that you do not have a DPI simply if you are voting to set the Council Tax or precept. Guidance issued by the Government in 2013 made clear that ‘any payment of, or liability to pay, council tax does not create a disclosable pecuniary interest as defined in the national rules; hence being a council tax payer does not mean that you need a dispensation to take part in the business of setting the council tax or precept or local arrangements for council tax support.’

The Council Tax and precept are charges on all relevant properties in the area and do not directly relate to any single property in such a way as to give rise to a DPI. Members are therefore fully entitled to vote on the matter (subject to rules about Council tax arrears).

Other registerable interests

… If you have an ‘Other Registerable Interest’ … the Code says you should not participate in the relevant business in two circumstances:

1. when a matter directly relates to the finances or wellbeing of that interest… or

2. when a matter affects the finances or wellbeing of that interest to a greater extent than it affects the majority of inhabitants; and a reasonable member of the public would thereby believe that your view of the public interest would be affected...

An interest ‘directly relates’ to an outside body where the local authority is taking a decision which directly relates to the funding or wellbeing of that organisation

For example, under a) if you are a member of a group which has applied for funding from the local authority, or if you are a member of an organisation which has submitted a planning application, the decision directly relates to that organisation.

In such a case you must not take part in any discussion or vote on the matter. You can speak on the matter before withdrawing but only where the public are also allowed to address the meeting. For example, you may want to put forward the organisation’s case as to why it has applied for funding, but representatives from competing organisations would also need to be able to make their case.

If the public are not allowed to address the meeting on that item, you would need, if necessary, to get another councillor who did not have an ORI to make any relevant case.

If the local authority is simply discussing that outside organisation but not making a decision which relates to its finances or wellbeing – for example discussing the annual report from the organisation – that does not directly relate to the organisation as there is no direct impact on the organisation which would give rise to a conflict of interest.

Under b) if you are on the committee of the local village hall and an application for a licence for another venue in the village is made which may take trade away from the village hall then the matter would affect the village hall and a reasonable person would believe that would affect your view of the public interest so those two tests are met.

You would not have an interest if the local authority was discussing early planning for an event, which may or may not be held in the village hall as there would be no direct financial impact at that time. When the plans crystallised then an interest would arise as a decision would be made which would have financial implications.

There will also be circumstances where you do not need to declare an interest even though the matter may be relevant to the wider aims of an organisation of which you are a member. For example, if you are a member of a charity such as the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), you do not need to declare an interest every time the local authority might discuss matters relating to habitats or conservation issues. Those issues may reflect the wider aims of RSPB, but they do not directly relate to or affect the organisation and your mere membership of the organisation has no bearing on the matter.

If you were in a position of control or general management in that body and the organisation was campaigning actively on the specific issue being discussed or you personally were campaigning actively on that specific issue the situation would be different. In those circumstances you may have an interest and there is a risk of predetermination. Where there is doubt you should always seek advice from the monitoring officer …

Non-registerable interest

… A Non-registerable Interest arises where the interest is that of yourself or your partner which is not a DPI or of a relative or close associate (see definition below).

As a councillor you are not expected to have to register the interests of your relatives or close associates but under the Code you are expected to declare them as and when relevant business occurs which affects their finances or wellbeing. The Code says you should not participate in the relevant business in two circumstances:

· a. when a matter directly relates to that interest. Or

· b. when a matter affects that interest to a greater extent than it affects the majority of inhabitants and 

o a reasonable member of the public would thereby believe that your view of the public interest would be affected

For example, under a) if your son has submitted an application for a licence to open a bar, the matter directly relates to your relative. You must not take part in any discussion or vote on the matter.

For example, under b) there has been an application made to build several units of housing on a field adjacent to your business partner’s home. It is not their application, but they will be more affected by the application than the majority of people so again you would be expected to declare the interest and withdraw.

Similarly, an application for the property next door to you does not directly relate to your property so it is not a DPI, but you would instead need to declare a Non-Registerable Interest.

In all of these cases you can speak on the matter before withdrawing but only where the public are also allowed to address the meeting. If the public are not allowed to address the meeting on that item, you would need if necessary, to get another councillor who did not have an NRI to make any relevant case or to represent the wider views of constituents…

What is the difference between ‘relates to’ and ‘affects’?

Something relates to your interest if it is directly about it. For example, the matter being discussed is an application about a particular property in which you or somebody associated with you or an outside body you have registered has a financial interest.

‘Affects’ means the matter is not directly about that interest but nevertheless the matter has clear implications for the interest – for example, it is a planning application for a neighbouring property which will result in it overshadowing your property. An interest can of course affect you, your family or close personal associates positively and negatively.  So, if you or they have the potential to gain or lose from a matter under consideration, an interest would need to be declared in both situations.

What does “affecting well-being” mean?

The term ‘well-being’ can be described as a condition of contentedness and happiness. Anything that could affect your quality of life or that of someone you are closely associated with, either positively or negatively, is likely to affect your well-being. There may, for example, be circumstances where any financial impact of a decision may be minimal but nevertheless the disruption it may cause to you or those close to you could be significant. This could be on either a temporary or permanent basis. Temporary roadworks in your street may affect your wellbeing on a temporary basis. Closure of a local amenity may have a more permanent impact on your wellbeing if you use it more than the majority of people in the area.

What are the definitions of relative or close associate?

The Code does not attempt to define “relative” or “close associate”, as all families vary. Some people may have very close extended families, but others will have more distant relations. You should consider the nature of your relationship with the person (eg whether they are a close family member or more distant relation). The key test is whether the interest might be objectively regarded by a member of the public, acting reasonably, as potentially affecting your responsibilities as a councillor. It would be a person with whom you are in either regular or irregular contact with over a period of time who is more than an acquaintance. It is someone a reasonable member of the public might think you would be prepared to favour or disadvantage when discussing a matter that affects them. It may be a friend, a colleague, a business associate or someone whom you know through general social contacts. A close associate may also be somebody to whom you are known to show animosity as you might equally be viewed as willing to treat them differently.