STANDING GUIDANCE FOR
MEMBERS
Members’ Expenses
Members are reminded to include
sufficient details in their expense claims and to submit them in a
timely manner to avoid submitting multiple claims at the same time
where possible.
Members should have regard to the
current Scheme of Approved Duties and the Protocol on
Members’ Attendance at Conferences published in Part 6 of
the Constitution, published on the Council website at
Constitution | North Yorkshire
Council
Interests’ Regime
Under the Council’s Code of
Conduct for Members (Councillors'
code of conduct | North Yorkshire Council), the following interests’ regime
applies.
Registration of
Interests
Members must register the following
interests within 28 days of election/appointment:
·
Disclosable pecuniary
interests (DPIs) of the
Member and their spouse/partner who they live with and
·
Other registrable
interests (ORIs) of the Member
and keep their interests under
review, registering any changes within 28 days.
A pecuniary interest is a
DPI if it is of a
description specified in regulations ie
·
Employment, office, trade,
profession or vocation (for profit or gain)
·
Sponsorship
·
Contracts
·
Land
·
Licenses
·
Corporate
tenancies
·
Securities
(please see the Code for the
detailed descriptions)
And either:
(a) it is the Member’s
interest or
(b) an interest of the
Member’s spouse or civil partner or a person with whom the
Member is living with as such
and the Member is aware of the interest.
Members may request to have, for
example, their home address treated as sensitive and not disclosed
in the published Register of Interests or in their contact details
on the Council website, if they feel this is necessary for their
personal safety or that of someone connected to them.
Please see the later section in the
Bulletin on Sensitive Interests and contact the Monitoring Officer
to discuss any concerns in this regard.
Should Members have any immediate
concerns around Member safety, please contact the Head of
Democratic Services and Scrutiny to discuss.
Other Registrable interests
(ORIs) are:
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:
-
exercising functions of a public
nature
-
directed to charitable purposes
or
-
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.
The Register of Members’
Interests is maintained by the Monitoring Officer and is generally
available for public inspection during office hours at County Hall,
Northallerton. It is published on the Council’s website (as
required by the Localism Act 2011) -
Your Councillors | North Yorkshire Council
Members must, within 28 days of
becoming aware of a new interest or a change to an existing
interest, register the necessary details electronically via the
ModGov committee software system.
Participation re
Interests
Disclosable Pecuniary Interests
(DPIs)
A Member may not participate in the
discussion of, or vote on, Council business directly
relating to a DPI and must declare the existence and nature of
the interest and withdraw from the meeting room at the start of the
item (unless a dispensation is granted).
Other Registrable Interests
(ORIs)
Where a matter arises at a meeting
which directly relates to the financial interest or
wellbeing of one of the Member’s ORIs, then the Member must
declare the existence and nature of the interest, can speak on the
matter if the public can and then must withdraw from the meeting
room (unless a dispensation is granted).
Non-Registrable Interests
(NRIs)
These are interests which are not
required to be registered in the Register of Members’
Interests (ie 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); or
(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).
For NRIs falling under category (i)
above, the Member must declare the existence and nature of the
interest, can speak on the matter if the public can and then must
withdraw from the meeting room (unless a dispensation is
granted).
For NRIs falling under category (ii)
above, the Member must declare the existence and nature of the
interest, and then consider the ‘prejudicial interest’
test to determine if and how they may participate:
-
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 the Member can speak if the public can, but must not take part
in any discussion/vote and must leave room (unless a dispensation
is granted);
-
Where the matter does not so
affect the financial interest or wellbeing, then the Member may
speak and vote in usual way.
If a dispensation is granted
to a Member, the Member must still declare the existence and
nature of the interest and the fact they are relying on a
dispensation to the meeting.
What is the difference between
‘relates to’ and ‘affects’?
Something ‘relates to’ a
Member’s interest if it is directly about it, eg the matter
being discussed is an application about a particular property in
which the Member or somebody associated with them or an outside
body they 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 the Member’s 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.
A Member commits a criminal
offence if, without reasonable excuse, they —
Ø fail to:
v register disclosable pecuniary
interests
v disclose an interest to a meeting where
required
v notify the Monitoring Officer of an interest
disclosed to a meeting
Ø participate in any discussion or vote where
prohibited
Ø an individual Member decision taker takes any
steps in relation to a matter where prohibited
A Member also commits a criminal
offence if, in relation to the registration/disclosure of
disclosable pecuniary interests, they provide information that is
false or misleading and —
Ø know that the information is false or
misleading, or
Ø are reckless as to whether the information is
true and not misleading.
A court may also disqualify the
person, for a period not exceeding five years, for being or
becoming (by election or otherwise) a member or co-opted member of
the relevant authority in question or any other relevant
authority.
Please therefore keep your
interests form under reviewto ensure it is up to date.
Interests’
issues are ultimately Members’ responsibility.
NB: Even if something is not a Code
issue, always bear in mind the rules relating to bias,
predetermination and predisposition.
If you are in any doubt as to your
position, please contact the Monitoring Officer or any of his
team.
Sensitive Interests
You do not need to register or
declare the details of an interest which you and the Monitoring
Officer have agreed is sensitive.
A “sensitive interest”
is any interest (whether or not a disclosable pecuniary interest)
where disclosure of the details could lead to you, or a person
connected with you, being subject to violence or
intimidation.
The existence of an interest must
still be registered/declared but not any detail in relation to
it.
Should you feel that any of your
interests are sensitive given any prevailing circumstances, please
contact the Monitoring Officer immediately to discuss.
Bias, Predetermination,
Predisposition
Members involved in making a
decision on particular business must always bear in mind the rules
relating to bias and predetermination and must not
participate in, or seek to influence, Council business where their
interests may prejudice, or appear to prejudice, their
views.
Predetermination
occurs where a fair minded and
well informed observer, looking objectively at all the
circumstances, considers there is a real risk that a decision maker
has refused to consider a relevant argument or would
refuse.
Possible examples of bias or
predetermination are:
-
connection with someone affected by
a decision;
-
improper involvement of someone with
an interest in the outcome;
-
prior involvement in a
matter;
-
commenting before a decision is
made.
However, the Localism Act 2011 makes
it clear that a Member is not to be taken to have had, or to have
appeared to have had, a closed mind when making a decision just
because they had previously done anything that directly or
indirectly indicated what view they took, or would or might take,
in relation to a matter; this would amount to predisposition
to a view and is acceptable. This ensures that Members can freely
discuss issues, including expressing a view and/or campaigning on
an issue, and then later speak or vote on those issues.
Unless there is positive evidence of
a closed mind, prior observations or apparent favouring of a
particular decision is unlikely to suffice as
predetermination.
Members are entitled to have and
express their own views, as long as they are prepared to reconsider
their position in the light of all the evidence and arguments. They
must not give the impression that their mind is closed.
Members’ Gifts and
Hospitality
Members’ gifts and hospitality
are recorded with their Register of Interests, electronically via
the ModGov committee software system.
Under the Council’s Code of
Conduct, you should not accept gifts/hospitality, of any value,
which could create an impression of obligation upon you or the
Council or substantive personal gain or propensity to show favour.
You should inform the Monitoring Officer of any such
offers.
Otherwise, you should register any
gifts/hospitality received or offered worth £25 or
more.
Should you have any queries in
relation to the registration of any gifts or hospitality
received/offered, then please feel free to contact the Monitoring
Officer or any of his team.
Parish and town councillors should
have regard to their own authority’s Code of Conduct in terms
of how any offers of gifts and hospitality should be dealt
with.
Social media and the Members’
Code of Conduct
Social media is an important means
of communication and engagement, however the use of social media
frequently features in many of the standards complaints received by
the Monitoring Officer.
Aspects of the Members’ Code
of Conduct will apply to your online activity, as in other
communications, if you are, or appear to be, acting in your
capacity as a councillor, rather than a private individual. The
same standards of conduct apply online as would be expected
offline.
The key issue is whether you are
acting in your official capacity as a councillor when using your
social media platforms. Be clear as to the capacity in which you
are posting, official or private.
Use of the title
“Councillor” may give rise to an inference that you are
acting in your official capacity, when the Code can be
engaged.
If you publish information you can
only access as a Member, you are likely to be viewed as acting in
your official capacity.
“…These are ordinary
descriptive English words. Their application is inevitably fact
sensitive and so whether or not a person is so acting inevitably
calls for informed judgment by reference to the facts of a given
case. This also means that there is the potential for two decision
makers, both taking the correct approach, to reach different
decisions…”
You may wish to set up different
social media accounts for your private life and councillor role to
maintain professional boundaries.
You are personally responsible for
the content you publish on social media, in the same way that you
are responsible for letters or emails you send. It is less formal
but is still a form of communication and posts can be capable of
being misunderstood - the immediacy of social media can magnify
this problem.
Being misunderstood is likely to
lead to rapid and wide broadcasting (particularly with something
perceived as being more controversial than was intended) almost
instantly.
Be approachable, polite and
respectful in your language and tone. Irony and sarcasm are very
difficult to convey in writing and therefore should be avoided, as
should profanity.
North Yorkshire Council has a Social
Media Policy available on the Council’s Intranet, which
Members may find helpful.
Members should ensure that they are
familiar with the provisions and that they do not put the
Council’s systems and information at risk, or be damaging to
the reputation of the Council or the office of Member.
LATEST NEWS
Update on Government consultation on
strengthening the standards regime
The
Standards and Governance Committee has previously considered and
responded to the Government consultation on strengthening the
standards regime (Strengthening
the standards and conduct framework for local authorities in
England - GOV.UK) (and the associated LGA
Questionnaire regarding the consultation), which
closed on 26 February
2025
In June, the Chief Executive of the
Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman confirmed at a Lawyers
in Local Government (LLG) conference that the Ombudsman would be
open to running any national appeals body that was referenced in
the Government consultation and was having discussions about this
but stated that it would present challenges in terms of capacity
and speed, as they would need to determine the substantive issue
rather than just the process which had been followed. The Chief
Executive also commented that there was “"no sense …
that there's a decision made behind the scenes that they're going
in any particular direction".
Members will be kept informed of
developments.
Establishment of Ethics and
Integrity Commission
On 21 July 2025, the Government
announced the intended establishment of a new Ethics and Integrity
Commission, to oversee the ethical standards of ministers and
public officials and “drive up standards in public
life”, change the ministerial severance arrangements and the
business appointment rules.
The Commission will also:
· advise Government on ethics in public life by
conducting broad inquiries into topical issues;
·
report annually to the Prime
Minister on ethical standards in the public sector;
·
engage regularly with public bodies
to advise of ethical standards and the development of codes of
conduct;
·
convene other ethics and standards
bodies from across government and Parliament to share best practice
and raise concerns.
The aim is that the Commission will
be established by strengthening and reforming the Committee on
Standards in Public Life.
Further information is available in
the published press release -
Ethics and Integrity Commission to
drive up standards across the public sector - GOV.UK
and via the House of Commons Library
Research Briefing -
Ethics and Integrity Commission -
House of Commons Library
CSPL Annual Report
2024-2025
On 23 June 2025, the CSPL published
its Annual Report for 2024-2025 -
Committee on Standards in Public
Life Annual Report 2024 – 2025 -
GOV.UK.
The Report reflects on the work of
the CSPL during the year, promoting high standards of conduct in
public life and marking the 30th anniversary of the
Nolan Principles. The CSPL’s work is reported to the
Standards and Governance Committee in each standing report re Local
Ethical Framework Developments and highlighted in each Standards
Bulletin.
CSPL conference –‘The
Nolan Principles at 30’
The CSPL continues to mark the 30th
anniversary of the Nolan Principles (general principles of conduct)
and held a conference in June on ‘the Nolan Principles at
30’, to discuss the importance of maintaining high standards
of conduct in public life.
The CSPL has published a blog
regarding the conference -
The Nolan Principles at 30 – Committee on Standards in Public
Life
The key themes discussed during the
conference appear to be:
·
the fragile state of public trust in politics
·
the complexity of public sector decision-making
·
the wider societal changes that pose major challenges to
institutions
·
that high standards can act as an enabler, helping demonstrate that
the way in which decisions, however unpopular, are made in the
public interest
·
the importance of building wider, cross-party agreement on
standards
·
that weaponisation of the standards system for political gain is
damaging
·
the importance of the need for high standards of conduct and its
continued regular discussion
·
regulatory bodies must be independent, able to scrutinise and
adjudicate without fear or favour
·
where necessary there must be a range of sanctions for failures and
breaches
·
regulation must be proportionate and fair
·
the Nolan Principles have stood the test of time and remain very
relevant.
LGA survey – Debate not
Hate
The Local Government Association has
undertaken a survey of councillors as part of its Debate not Hate
campaign –
More than half of councillors report
being victims of misinformation, while rates of abuse and threats
remain high across local government, LGA survey finds | Local
Government Association
The LGA notes the following
regarding the survey results:
·
52% of councillors have reported having untrue or misleading
information about their political or personal conduct publicly
published;
·
the rate of reported abuse, intimidation and threats continues to
be high, with seven in 10 councillors reporting experiencing issues
in the last 12 months;
·
one-quarter of respondents said that they or someone closely
connected to them had experienced a threat of violence or death and
21% of these had reported an incident to the police (compared to
23% last year);
·
of those reporting abuse in responding:
Ø 11% had had
private information made public,
Ø 64% had
experienced abuse online;
Ø 59% had
experienced in-person abuse;
Ø 8% had a member
of the public attend their home in an intimidating or inappropriate
matter
Ø 1 in 20
reported being stalked by a member of the public;
Ø 1 in 20
reported property damage;
Ø 3% reported
actual violence as part of their councillor role
·
councillors are more likely to experience abuse than others based
on protected characteristics;
·
In addition to being more likely to report experiencing abuse, risk
and criminality, women and disabled councillors were more likely to
cite abuse and intimidation as a factor in their decision not to
run for election again.
Action by Cheshire East Council to
combat abuse of councillors
Cheshire East Council has recently
issued a media release outlining the steps it is taking to combat
“appalling” abuse, intimidation and harassment of,
and support to, councillors -
07/08/2025 - Cheshire East takes
steps to combat appalling abuse of councillors
Examples of the abuse include death
threats, excrement posted through letterboxes, stalking, trolling
and obscene phone calls. Over a third of the councillors had
considered stepping down as a result.
The recommended measures
include:
·
the introduction of a formal reporting process,
·
the appointment of a nominated officer for councillor safety,
·
the development of a comprehensive councillor safety protocol
·
the provision of lone-working devices
·
targeted training around conflict prevention and wellbeing
·
the creation of a member champion for councillor safety, as an
advocate to ensure these issues remain prioritised
·
the authority “reaffirm its commitment” to the Local
Government Association’s Debate not
Hate public statement, to help support and encourage
civility in public life
·
councillors having a named Police officer contact for raising
concerns.
NYC
Member Liaison Group on Councillor Safety
North Yorkshire Council takes Member
safety seriously. The Council’s cross party Member Liaison
Group on Councillor Safety was established in May 2024 and has met
six times to date, next due to meet on 25 September 2025. It is
supported by the Assistant Chief Executive Legal and Democratic
Services & Monitoring Officer and the Head of Democratic
Services and Scrutiny and is also attended by the Head of Health
and Safety and two North Yorkshire Police Officers.
The Group has undertaken a number of
practical steps to promote Member safety, including:
·
Consideration of the Local Government Association’s
‘Debate Not Hate’ campaign and supporting toolkit
action points and work undertaken by other authorities to promote
councillor safety, to provide a framework against which progress
locally can be assessed;
·
An all-councillor survey on member safety completed and the results
analysed and responded to in November/December 2024;
·
A system for the reporting, collation and analysis of incidences
where councillors have felt or been threatened or intimidated
during the course of their duties has been in place since March
2025;
·
The roll out of the PeopleSafe App to all councillors as of 31
March 2025. This is currently used by frontline council staff and
enables access to a range of support (check-ins, alarms, times
alerts) when visiting somewhere for the first time or where there
are concerns;
·
The roll out of councillor access to the Staff Warning Register,
via Democratic Services, which enables addresses to be checked for
any flagged concerns
·
Developing strong relationships with the Police to enhance
coordination and foster mutual understanding of abuse affecting
councillors and the role of the Police in addressing it, including
the establishment of a named Police officer contact as Elected
Officials Advisor, who is available to speak with and support
councillors who have concerns regarding their safety;
·
Councillors concerned about their physical safety can apply for
funding for practical measures to increase security at their
homes;
·
Councillor addresses and phone numbers can be removed from the
Council website where there are concerns around safety;
·
Councillor access to wellbeing services can be enabled upon
request;
·
Training and awareness raising on a range of issues is periodically
undertaken through the Member seminars and briefings
The Group has identified further
areas for consideration, including:
·
An annual all-councillor survey;
·
The establishment of a wellbeing or councillor safety champion;
·
A review of relevant policies on safety matters that are currently
in place to see whether they apply to councillors as well as
officers;
·
Training and/or briefings for councillors on the following:
personal safety and risk assessment; social media training and
digital citizenship; and conflict de-escalation;
·
Provision of mentor support for councillors, made available
following an incident, and how this would be done;
·
A review of the current level of support that is available to
councillors through the employee wellbeing services
NYC STANDARDS COMPLAINT
STATISTICS
The Standards and Governance
Committee monitors complaints raised with the Monitoring Officer
under the standards regime.
As well as considering complaints
that a member of North Yorkshire Council may have breached the
Members’ Code of Conduct, North Yorkshire Council is the
principal authority for parish and town councils in North Yorkshire
for the purposes of the standards provisions in the Localism Act
2011.
It is therefore also responsible for
receiving and handling complaints that a parish/town councillor may
have breached that authority’s code of conduct for
Members.
That is the extent of North
Yorkshire Council’s jurisdiction in respect of parish/town
council governance; parish/town councils are separate legal
entities and North Yorkshire Council has no jurisdiction to
consider other complaints for example about the way in which the
parish council has or has not done something, or about particular
parish council decisions.
Context for
complaints
There
are currently:
·
729 Individual
Parishes
·
412 Parish and Town Councils,
including Harrogate and Scarborough
·
160 Parish Meetings;
and
·
90 NYC councillors.
In terms of the national
context:
·
NYC
has the largest number of parish and town councils of any local
authority in the country;
·
The
next nearest council has 327
·
51%
have less than 30
·
97.5%
of councils have less than 200
·
There
are only 6 councils with over 200 parish councils
·
Only 2
councils have over 300 parish councils
Complaints
received
During the period 1 April 2023 to 31
March 2024, the Council received 174 complaints that members may
have breached the relevant authority’s code of conduct for
Members.
During the period 1 April 2024 to 31
March 2025, 133 complaints were received.
A full breakdown of the complaint
statistics for each municipal period is published on the
Council’s website at the bottom of the Councillors’
Code of Conduct webpage -
Councillors' code of conduct | North
Yorkshire Council
For the period 1 April 2025 to 29
August 2025, 39 complaints have been received.
Pre-assessments and Assessments
in current year
Of the 39 complaints received in
this current year:
a) 20
complaints have been disposed of by the Monitoring Officer/Deputy
Monitoring Officer at pre-assessment stage. These included:
• 1 against an NYC Councillor
where there was no evidence presented that the councillor was
acting in their official capacity at the relevant times;
• 14 against councillors and
clerks of two parish councils which did not progress to an
assessment as they were deemed to be outside the Monitoring
Officer’s jurisdiction as they related to matters of internal
parish council governance and parish council employees.
• 1 against a parish
councillor where there was no evidence presented that the
councillor was acting in their official capacity at the relevant
times;
• 1 which was mistakenly sent
to the NYC Monitoring Officer when it related to another
council.
• 1 which was a second
anonymous complaint against an NYC Councillor – the first
related complaint had been assessed and no further action was
required.
• 1 against an NYC
Councillor where there was no evidence of a breach of the Code but
in any event the subject member had already apologised to the
complainant.
• 1 against a town councillor
where there was no evidence that comments on social media were
posted whilst the councillor was acting in their official
capacity
b) 14
complaints have progressed to assessment by the Monitoring
Officer/Deputy Monitoring Officer in consultation with the
Independent Persons for Standards. Of those assessed
complaints:
i.
11 complaints did not merit referral for formal investigation, for
example:
·
a parish councillor’s failure to declare an interest, which
had been addressed by them;
·
allegations of a parish councillor bullying and harassing the clerk
where insufficient evidence was provided of a potential breach of
the relevant code of conduct;
·
two concerned different NYC Councillors, one relating to levels of
engagement with a parish council, and the other regarding alleged
disrespect, whereby in both cases there was
insufficient evidence presented of a potential breach of the Code
of Conduct;
·
two concerned the same NYC Councillor from the same member of the
public - in both cases there was insufficient evidence presented of
a potential breach of the Code of Conduct;
·
an anonymous complaint regarding an NYC Councillor alleging illegal
activity which was not evidenced.
ii.
1 complaint was recommended for informal resolution;
iii.
2 complaints were referred for investigation.
c)
5 further complaints will have been assessed by the time of this
meeting.
Investigation
outcomes
Since the last Standards Bulletin, 1
complaint investigation regarding a Town Councillor has been
concluded. The Investigating
Officer found no evidence of breach of the code. The
report and recommendations were accepted by the Monitoring Officer
and Independent Person as sufficient. No further action was
required.
Determinations
Since the last Standards Bulletin,
there have been no further meetings of the Standards and Governance
Committee Hearings Panel.
A detailed Complaints Update report
is taken to each ordinary meeting of the Standards and Governance
Committee, giving an update on complaints received and their
progress. The Committee’s agenda and papers are published
here -
Browse meetings - Standards and
Governance Committee | North Yorkshire Council
Members will be kept informed of
statistical information in relation to standards complaints
received.
NATIONAL CASES
The Local Government Lawyer website recently
reported on the following cases:
·
A council referred a former councillor to the Police, after finding
they had breached the Code of Conduct, regarding a failure to
declare a disclosable pecuniary interest, for which the councillor
had apologised. At the time of referral, the subject member was no
longer a councillor and no action could be taken other than
referral to the Police. The subject member did not declare an
interest when approving a grant from the council to an organisation
with which the subject member had accepted a new job days before.
The Police subsequently confirmed no action would be taken.
·
It has been found that the Mayor of London did not breach the Code
of Conduct in accepting Taylor Swift concert tickets and no further
action is to be taken.
·
It was alleged that ”It was unclear what level of caution, if
any, the Mayor applied when accepting the gifted tickets, given
that the company which provided the tickets has live
contracts’ with the GLA to organise public events, contrary
to paragraph 11.1 of the Gifts and Hospitality
Policy…” The investigator concluded that the Mayor
“did exercise an appropriate degree of caution in accepting
the offer of tickets” and therefore did not breach the Code.
The investigator accepted that it was a major cultural and economic
event for London and therefore appropriate in principle for the
Mayor to attend and that the most sensitive elements of a relevant
procurement exercise had concluded by the time of allocation of the
tickets.
·
A councillor was found to have breached the Code by falsely
claiming, during a public speech and in a meeting, to have served
as a Royal Marine, when in reality he had not completed the
training or passed out. The investigator concluded that there had
been a breach of Code provisions regarding respect, using his
position improperly, bringing his office and authority into
disrepute and failure to co-operate with the investigation. The
sanction was for the councillor to apologise and be removed from a
council panel.
·
A Mayor of a council was found to have breached the Code provisions
regarding using his position improperly, bringing his office or
authority into disrepute and use of resources, after using his
position to support visa applications for friends and family. He
was sanctioned to apologise, not wear a badge denoting he had been
Mayor and not use his position to support any further visa
applications.
The
Standards and Governance Committee