Chairmen's Committee - Approved Committee Minutes - 21 June 2016

Present

Deputy  J.A.N.  Le  Fondré,  President  and  Chairman,  Corporate  Services Scrutiny Panel

Deputy R. Renouf , Chairman, Health and Social Security Scrutiny Panel Deputy S.M. Brée, Chairman, Economic Affairs Scrutiny Panel

Deputy D. Johnson , Chairman, Environment, Housing and Technical Services Scrutiny Panel

Deputy S.M. Wickenden, Vice-Chairman, Public Accounts Committee

Apologies

Deputy A.D. Lewis , Chairman, Public Accounts Committee

Absent

In attendance

Mr T. Oldham , Scrutiny Manager

Ref Back

Agenda matter

Action

1.  Records of meetings

The Committee approved the records of its meetings held on 13th, 20th and 25th May 2016, which  were signed accordingly by the President.  

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2.  Activity Reports

The Committee noted Panel and Public Accounts Committee (PAC) activity  reports.  The  report  from  the  PAC  identified  work  that potentially  crossed-over  into  the  remit  of  the  Corporate  Services Panel regarding the States of Jersey Development Company, and the remit of the Environment, Housing and Infrastructure Panel in the case of Jersey Property Holdings. It was agreed that communication should be maintained on those matters to avoid duplication of work and clarity of remits.

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3.  Privileges and Procedures Committee: update

The Committee considered a briefing paper on the deliberations of the Privileges and Procedures Committee.  

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4.  Medium Term Financial Plan Addition

An update was provided by Chairmen regarding planned work on the forthcoming MTFP Addition. It was noted that no Panel had received advanced  detailed  information  from  the  Executive  relating  to  its respective remit, and that such information was not now expected to be received until 24th June at the earliest.

It was noted that all Panels had commenced planning for work on the MTFP  Addition,  with  the  majority  having  already  approved  the necessary scoping document and terms of reference, and concluded the engagement of CIPFA as technical adviser. It was the intention of the remaining Panels to complete such matters shortly.

The Committee agreed that it would seek to meet on a regular basis,

SB/LD

fortnightly if required, during the course of MTFP Addition review work, in order to share progress and identify any overarching areas for consideration.

TO

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5.  Panel Names and Remits

The Committee recalled that approved drafting instructions had been forwarded to the Law Draftsman, and noted that associated drafting was ongoing.

It was further recalled that a related agreement regarding use of the term Chairman' had been submitted to the PPC's Standing Orders Sub-Committee. The Committee had agreed that Chairmen should be able to select their preferred title from amongst a small list of approved titles, which appropriately accounted for how people chose to personally identify. The Committee suggested a shortlist of 3 titles: Chairman, Chairwoman and Chairperson.

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6.  Protocol for Engagement between Scrutiny Panels/PAC and the Executive

The Committee agreed that it would aim to forward the draft Protocol to  the  Executive  prior  to  the  summer  recess,  and  therefore  any further feedback from Panels should be received in advance of the Committee's meeting scheduled for 6th July.

All

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7. Residential Property Transactions Review Panel

Deputy D. Johnson , Chairman of the Review Panel, updated the Committee about the progress of the Review. It was noted that the Panel had recently taken steps to encourage further submissions from the public and stakeholders, as there had been limited response to date despite wide-ranging publicity.

The Committee recalled that it had been agreed that the allocation of the  Officer  resource  for  the  Review  would  be  subject  to  the requirements of the Corporate Services Scrutiny Panel for its MTFP Addition Review. As a result, the Review Panel would shortly be presenting an interim report, and would meet to determine whether further work would be undertaken upon completion of the MTFP Addition Review.

TO

8. P.53/2016  States'  Approval  of  Assistant  Ministers' Appointments

Consideration was given to any potential consequences of P.53/2016 States'  Approval  of  Assistant  Ministers'  Appointments  on  the appointments  of  Scrutiny  Chairmen  and  Panels.  Although  the Committee was favourable to parts a(i) and a(iii) of the Proposition, it identified a number of areas of concern regarding part a(ii) and the possible restrictions this may place on Scrutiny appointments. It was agreed  that the  President  would  seek  to  speak  to  the  proposer, Deputy  J.A.  Martin,  to  relay  the  concerns  identified  by  the Committee.

JLF

9. Education and Home Affairs Scrutiny Panel: Matters Arising from Nursery Education Fund Review

The Chairman of the Education and Home Affairs Scrutiny Panel informed  the  Committee  about  two  matters  of  particular  concern arising  from  her  Panel's  Nursery  Education  Fund  Review;  the approach of the Minister for Education towards the Panel and the Scrutiny process, and the Jersey Child Care Trust (JCCT) declining the Panel's request to attend a public hearing.

The  Committee  agreed  that  both  matters  were  regrettable.  The President would relay the Committee's disquiet about the conduct of the Minister to the Chief Minister at their forthcoming meeting. On the matter  of  the  JCCT,  whilst  noting  the  Trust's  concerns  about attending and noting possible steps that could be taken in mitigation, it was agreed that publically funded bodies in particular should be expected to attend hearings when requested. The Education and Home Affairs Scrutiny Panel would relay such concerns in writing to the JCCT and, mindful of the likelihood that the JCCT could be requested to provide evidence during the forthcoming MTFP Addition review,  would extend an invitation to meet to explain the matter further if required.

LD

10. Scrutiny Website

The ongoing project to deliver an upgraded States Assembly/Scrutiny website, led by Information Services with the support of the States Greffe,  was  discussed.  It  was  noted that feedback from  all  user groups  of  the  current  sites  had  been  received,  including  two workshops  held  with  States  Members.  The  process  of  gathering feedback remained ongoing.

It was agreed that the Committee would welcome receiving a project update from the Internet and Intranet Manager, Information Services, at its next scheduled meeting.

TO

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11. Statement of Intent/Core Objectives

The Committee recalled the Statement of Intent' as agreed by the previous Chairmen's Committee, and the presentation it received the previous week from Dr. Hannah White from the National Institute for Government in the UK to the Committee regarding the purpose and impact of parliamentary scrutiny.

The Committee further recalled that the President and Vice President had proposed that it would be beneficial for the Committee, and consequently Scrutiny more broadly, for it to establish a framework of core values/aims/objectives. This could be used to help give clear direction to the actions and work of the Committee, setting out its overall aims, and providing a reference point to help inform and guide its decision-making for the remainder of its term of office.

Whilst  some  concern  was  raised  that  such  a  framework  already existed  through  Standing  Orders  and  the  Scrutiny/PAC  Code  of Practice, it was agreed that the President and Vice-President would develop  a  draft  Statement  of  Intent/Core  Objectives  for  the Committee's consideration.

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12. Financial Report

The  Committee  noted  Panel  expenditure  to  date  for  2016,  and requested that its suggestions regarding the format of the report be relayed to the States Greffe's Finance and Administration Manager.

13. Future Meetings

It was agreed that the Committee would next meet on 6th July at 2pm, Le Capelain Room, States Building.

The Committee also agreed to meet on 14th July at 12pm to consider progress of Panel work on the MTFP Addition.

The Committee requested the Scrutiny Manager to liaise with the Greffier, in order to establish a convenient time for discussion of the proposed Commissioner for Standards.

TO