Agenda and minutes

To receive any apologies or substitutions for the meeting.

Apologies were received from:

·         Cllr Gavin Grant

·         Cllr Ian Blair-Pilling

·         Cllr Paul Oatway

·         Cllr Ian Thorn

·         Cllr Ian McLennan (attending online non-voting)

·         Cllr Jacqui Lay (attending online non-voting)

To approve and sign the minutes of the meeting held on 15 August 2023.

The minutes of the meeting held on 15 August 2023 were presented for consideration, and it was,

Resolved:

To approve and sign the minutes as a true and correct record.

To receive any declarations of disclosable interests or dispensations granted by the Standards Committee.

There were no declarations.

To receive any announcements through the Chair.

There were no announcements.

Statements

If you would like to make a statement at this meeting on any item on this

agenda, please register to do so at least 10 minutes prior to the meeting. Up to 3 speakers are permitted to speak for up to 3 minutes each on any agenda item.

Please contact the officer named on the front of the agenda for any further

clarification.

Questions

To receive any questions from members of the public or members of the Council received in accordance with the constitution.

Those wishing to ask questions are required to give notice of any such questions in writing to the officer named on the front of this agenda no later than 5pm on 19 September 2023 in order to be guaranteed of a written response. In order to receive a verbal response questions must be submitted no later than 5pm on 21 September 2023. Please contact the officer named on the front of this agenda for further advice. Questions may be asked without notice if the Chairman decides that the matter is urgent.

Details of any questions received will be circulated to Committee members prior to the meeting and made available at the meeting and on the Council’s website.

No questions or statements were submitted.

To receive a report from the Director, Legal and Governance.

Caroline Rudland, Electoral Services Specialist Manager provided information on the upcoming Polling District and Polling Place Review, which would commence on 2 October 2023 if the Committee was in agreement.

The aim of the review was to ensure the electoral arrangements for Wiltshire meet the needs of the electorate. The majority of polling district changes proposed in the review were rectifying some very small polling districts that were created as a result of Community Governance Reviews and the Unitary boundary changes in 2021. 

It was explained that all responses to the consultation on the review would be collated and assessed, would be reported to the Committee at its next meeting, and if changes were then approved the revised electoral register would be published on 1 December 2023. The consultation would seek the views of the public, key stakeholders, partners, and elected members. Any new community buildings which could be used in future elections would be a useful outcome.

Details were provided on the consultation including paper copies available from council hubs, that representations were required to be published, and that people could phone and make a verbal representation. The consultation would run from 2 October to 31 October 2023, as set out in appendices A, B and C to the report included within the agenda.

The importance of where people vote was discussed, and clarity was sought on whether the review encompassed changes from recent community governance reviews. It was explained where these were complete, they could be taken into account, however the most recent would take effect from May 2025, and in some cases had not received final consent for division changes, so minor adjustments would be made through a rolling programme of changes. There were also questions relating to updating all elected members and engaging with parish councils.

At the conclusion of discussion, it was,

Resolved:

1)    To authorise the Director, Legal and Governance, in consultation with the Chairman of the Electoral Review Committee, to carry out the consultation in accordance with the arrangements outlined in the report.

2)    To consider for approval at a future meeting, the final recommendations following the conclusion of the consultation.

To receive a verbal update on the Community Governance Review.

The Democracy Manager and the Senior Democratic Services Officer provided verbal updates on the progress of the 2023/24 Community Governance Review.

It was confirmed the terms of reference for the 2023/24 review was published on 11 September 2023. This listed the areas for review, the limited nature of the review in respect of North Bradley and Lacock, and the capability to include additional areas to correct minor anomalous boundaries which may be identified. A briefing note would be circulated shortly, and sessions arranged for potentially impacted parishes for the more significant proposals, and with unitary members.

The Committee discussed the update, seeking clarity on local members being able to flag up any anomalous boundaries in their area, and confirmation that in many areas this might require subsequent electoral division changes, which was the responsibility of the Local Government Boundary Commission for England. The Committee also reviewed the information sheets for each area, including details of currently received proposals and electorate information.

Resolved:

To note the update.

To confirm the date of the next meeting of 22 November 2023.

The date of the next meeting was confirmed as 22 November 2023.

Any other items of business which the Chairman agrees to consider as a matter of urgency.

There were no urgent items.