Rayner announces consultations on remote meetings and tougher standards regime

The Government has announced plans to consult on allowing councillors to attend meetings remotely, as well as on changing the standards regime to give councils the power to suspend members who have breached their local authority's code of conduct.

Speaking at the Local Government Association (LGA) conference today (24 October), Secretary of State Angela Rayner said the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government would also consult on allowing councillors to keep their home addresses private.

The consultation on remote meetings can be found here. It will last eight weeks from 24 October. 

In the consultation foreword, the Government described the attendance of elected members at meetings as a “core part” of the democratic process, but noted that there “are circumstances in which it may not always be possible for members to attend council meetings in person”.

“It is with this in mind that the government intends to amend the law to introduce provisions for remote attendance at local authority meetings,” it added.

The document stated that the Government is seeking to “balance the principle that significant in-person engagement remains vitally important”, with a recognition that there will sometimes be a need to accommodate members’ requirements to attend council meetings remotely.

It said that the change will hopefully encourage a wider diversity of people willing and able to participate in local democracy.

The Government is also seeking views on the possible introduction of proxy voting for occasions when an elected member, due to personal circumstances, may be unable to attend even remotely, for example during maternity, paternity or adoption leave. 

Other announcements made during Rayner's speech included a pledge to scrap "the punitive" ‘pay day loan’ premium on borrowing for councils in need of Exceptional Financial Support, reforming the "broken"  audit system in England, and the launch of a 'Leaders Council' intended to support communication between central and local government.

The Secretary of State said the Leaders Council would replace the days of "diktats from above" and would be "critical for co-designing policy".

Detailing the Ministry's plans for tackling poor councillor conduct, Rayner said she would consult on reforms to the local government standards framework, "including a proposal to allow for the suspension of members who violate codes of conduct".

She said: "I’ve been made aware of cases of persistent bullying and harassment by councillors, even, in some cases, leading to victims’ resignations.

"We don’t have a system that protects victims or empowers councils to deal with unacceptable behaviour.

"And this cannot go on and we will give councils the powers to address poor conduct." 

She also set out plans to protect councillors from harassment. "We are taking decisive action to prevent councillors from being subjected to intimidation and harassment by removing the requirement for members’ home addresses to be published."

Responding to the speech, Lawyers in Local Government’s president, Aneeka Muneer Sarwar, said: “LLG have campaigned tirelessly for remote meeting provision alongside ADSO, and we were resolute in our commitment to affording local choice for authorities in the way in which they held meetings in England, to enable enhanced democratic participation and practical options.

“This was a collaborative effort across the sector, and the culmination of four years' sustained effort.

“We are delighted that the Government has now moved to enable provision and launched a consultation today which we encourage our colleagues to respond to.”

LLG and ADSO (the Association of Democratic Services Officers) have offered to work with the Government and the LGA to agree a governance framework to provide assurance that meetings will comply with relevant legislation, when passed, and council constitutions.

John Austin, the chair of ADSO, said: “I would like to thank everyone who has supported us in our campaign, including NALC (the National Association of Local Councils) who used their considerable influence to have the matter debated in the House of Lords during the passage of the Levelling Up Bill earlier this year.

“Both ADSO and LLG have shown tremendous tenacity, perseverance and professional expertise during the long campaign. I am proud that we have achieved what we set out to do. Now our wish is to ensure that such meetings are held to the very highest governance standards and that local democracy thrives as a result.”

Cllr Louise Gittins, Chair of the Local Government Association, and Cllr Marianne Overton, Chair of the LGA Civility in Public Life Steering Group meanwhile said the announcements showed the Government "is serious about working with councils on issues that are important to them".

They added: "High standards of councillor conduct are vital for maintaining trust in councils and the decisions they make on behalf of local communities. Any changes should be evidenced based and place councillors at the heart of the discussion.

"Confirmation that the government will look to legislate to put it beyond doubt that councillors should not have to publish their home addresses is good news for councils, councillors and communities.

"The LGA looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that proposals on councillor standards, declaring home addresses, and making sure virtual attendance at council meetings works and is in the interest of councils and their communities."

The managing director of Solace, Graeme McDonald, said: “Hearing a determined Secretary of State talk of standards and working with the sector on workforce feels like an inflection point with the potential to unblock challenges Local Government Association and Solace have been working away on for so long.”

Councils were allowed to conduct remote meetings throughout the Covid period under temporary coronavirus regulations that were scheduled to expire on 6 May 2021.

LLG and ADSO applied in advance of that deadline to the Divisional Court for a declaration that current legislation permitted remote meetings, but this was rejected by Dame Victoria Sharp and Mr Justice Chamberlain in April 2021.

Ministers said they were unable to secure primary legislation to extend the regulations, but issued a call for evidence on the use of remote meetings instead.

Since then, numerous organisations have campaigned for councils to be able to meet remotely, including the LGA, LLG and ADSO.

In June of this year, meanwhile, NALC complained that the current standards regime "lacks effective sanctions".

In March 2022 the Conservative Government rejected a recommendation by the Committee on Standards in Public Life in its 2019 Local Government Ethical Standards report that local authorities should be able to suspend councillors without allowances for up to six months for breaches of the code of conduct.

Adam Carey