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The Role of the Monitoring Officer

Under the provisions of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 Councils have a duty to appoint a Monitoring Officer to ensure the lawfulness and fairness of Council decision making. Councils may choose who to designate as Monitoring officer except that it may not be the Head of Paid Service (Chief Executive). In Hackney the Monitoring Officer is Meic Sullivan-Gould, the Deputy Director of Law & Democratic Services.

Lawfulness and Maladministration

The duties of the Monitoring Officer have increased considerably since the 1989 Act came into operation, however ensuring the lawfulness and fairness of the Council's decision making remains a key role. If the Monitoring Officer considers that any proposal, decision or omission would give rise to unlawfulness or if any decision or omission has given rise to maladministration he must report to the Full Council or where appropriate the Cabinet after first consulting with the Head of Paid Service and Chief Finance Officer. Any proposal or decision that is subject to such a report cannot be implemented until the report has been considered.

The sound governance arrangements operated by the Council ensure that the power to report potentially unlawful decision making is rarely used. However reports from the Local Government Ombudsman regarding concerns about service delivery which amount to maladministration are sometimes received by the Council and these are reported along with proposals for remedial action.  As the Council strives to improve the standard of service provision it is likely that such reports will occur even less frequently.

The Constitution

The Constitution sets out how the Council operates, how decisions are made and the procedures which are followed to ensure that these are efficient, transparent and that those who made the decisions are accountable to local people. The Monitoring Officer is the guardian of the Council's Constitution and is responsible for ensuring that the Constitution operates efficiently, is properly maintained and is adhered to. The functions of the Monitoring Officer are set out in Article 13 of the Constitution. A summary of the Monitoring Officer's functions can be found towards the end of this page.

Good Governance & The Ethical Framework

The Monitoring Officer has a pro-active role in ensuring good practice, good procedures and good governance. In part this involves keeping standing orders, codes of practice, procedures etc under review and up to date. But it also involves providing procedure notes, guidance, Member training, protocols and briefings. It further involves providing advice on issues of lawfulness and the Council's powers to act, maladministration, financial impropriety, probity and the policy and budget framework to all members of the Council.

The Monitoring Officer is the Council's lead adviser on issues of lawfulness and on the Council's powers to the Cabinet and is lead adviser on compliance with budget and policy framework. Part of this role involves monitoring Committee reports, agendas and decisions to ensure compliance with legislation and the constitution. The Monitoring Officer also has a duty to ensure that executive decisions and their reasons are made publicly available.

The Standards Committee

As lead Officer for the Standards Committee and the Ethical Framework the Monitoring Officer has a key role in facilitating, promoting the Council's Ethical Framework and in promoting and maintaining high standards of conduct within the authority. As well as policy development and implementation this also involves advising Members and officers on propriety issues and includes investigating breaches of the Code of Conduct. The maintenance of the Registers of interests and hospitality is also the responsibility of the Monitoring Officer.

More generally the Monitoring Officer promotes networking, collaboration and joined –up working practices and enables effective support to Councillors in their different roles including training and development.

The Standards Board for England

The Monitoring Officer is responsible for establishing and maintaining an effective working relationship with the Standards Board for England. In addition the Monitoring Officer is responsible for receiving reports from Ethical Standards Officers regarding investigations carried out by the Standards Board into the conduct of Councillors, the conduct of local investigations and local hearings.

How to get Advice

To obtain advice from the Monitoring Officer please contact the Deputy Director of Law and Democratic Services, Meic Sullivan-Gould  on 020 8356 6184, E-mail: Meic.Sullivan-Gould@Hackney.gov.uk or write: Room 120, Hackney Town Hall, Mare Street, London, E8 1EA.

Summary of Functions