Decision details

Council considered a report which advised Members of any Key Decisions taken under statutory Urgency Rules in the previous 12 months, any decision taken under Urgency Rules with the Council’s Scrutiny Rules (this was where call-in provisions were waived as the decision was urgent and could not be reasonably deferred), and to set the Key Decision threshold for the forthcoming year in line with the constitutional requirement at Annual Council meetings.

The report set out that one Key Decision had been taken using Special Urgency rules in the previous 12 months.  This had been a decision in respect of a Public Space Protection Order.

The report stated that all Key Decisions were subject to the Council’s call-in provisions which were set out in the Scrutiny Rules. Call-in provisions may be waived only where a decision was urgent. A decision was urgent if any delay likely to be caused by the call-in process would seriously prejudice the Council’s or the public interests. The Chair of the relevant Scrutiny Committee (or, in their absence the Chair of Council or Vice Chair of Council) must agree both that the decision proposed was reasonable in all the circumstances and to it being treated as a matter of urgency. Decisions taken as a matter of urgency were required to be reported to Council. In the past 12 months, five decisions had been taken using urgency provisions to waive call-in.  These decisions had been:

Lease in respect of Property at Former Construction Block, The Arc (Decision by the Chief Executive on 17^th July 2023)

Dog Management Public Space Protection Order (Decision by the Chief Executive on 25^th October 2023)

Renewal of Insurance Policies (Decision by the Director of Finance & Section 151 Officer on 29^th September 2023)

Appointment of Contractor to Deliver Hyper-Local New Zero Innovation Programme (Executive – 6^th November 2023)

Award of three-year Idox Software Maintenance Contract (Executive – 15^th April 2024)

The report recommended that the Key Decision thresholds remained the same, which were:

·       Revenue Income, Savings or Expenditure - £75,000

·       Capital Income of Expenditure - £150,000

Moved by Councillor Duncan McGregor and seconded by Councillor Tom Munro

RESOLVED that (1) the decisions that had been taken over the past 12 months under Special Urgency Rules, be noted.

          (2) the decision that had been taken over the past 12 months under Urgency Provisions in the Council’s Scrutiny Rules, be noted.

          (3) the financial thresholds for Key Decisions be maintained at £75,000 (Revenue) and £150,000 (Capital).

(Monitoring Officer/Governance & Civic Manager)