Members Information

Standards Committee Form and Procedures

This note has been prepared to assist Members who wish to attend in person at a Standards Committee meeting in order to present an application for dispensation. The application form should be completed in all cases with full details of the reasons in support of the application

A Member who has a personal and prejudicial interest in a matter under discussion would ordinarily be expected to disclose that interest and leave the meeting. The Standards Committee has resolved however to grant all Members dispensation to appear before the Committee to make an application for dispensation in person.

Proposed Procedure

• A Dispensation Application form must be completed and submitted to the Monitoring Officer or the Committee Services Clerk to the Standards Committee prior to the meeting in all cases, regardless of whether or not the Member will be attending the meeting in person. Save for exceptional circumstances, the form should be submitted at least ten working days before the Standards Committee meeting. Copies of the form (available in electronic or paper format) can be obtained from the Monitoring Officer or the Committee Services Clerk for the Standards Committee, whose contact details are noted below.
• At the meeting, the Member will be invited by the Chairman to present their application to the Standards Committee.
• Members of the Committee may address questions to the applicant in order to clarify any matters relating to the application.
• Applicants are not permitted to address any questions to the Committee, other than questions to the Chairman regarding procedure.
• Applicants are asked to limit their presentation to a maximum of five minutes.
• After presenting the application and responding to questions from the Committee (if any), applicants must leave the meeting room and remain out of the meeting during the Committee’s deliberations.
• Applicants will not be called back into the meeting after the Committee’s deliberations to be advised of the decision. Applicants who wait until the meeting has ended will be advised of the Committee’s decision in person by the Monitoring Officer or the Committee Services Clerk to the Standards Committee. Applicants who are unable to wait until the meeting has ended will be advised of the outcome in writing.

Please note that Members are not required to attend in person and may continue to use the Dispensation Application form only, if preferred.

Please note that failure to comply with the above procedures may affect the Committee’s ability to make a prompt and final decision. 

Further guidance 

If you have any further queries in relation to the above procedures, please do not hesitate to contact the Monitoring Officer on 01437 776564 / rhian.young@pembrokeshire.gov.uk or the Democratic and Scrutiny Support Officer on 01437 776241 / isabelle.moorhouse@pembrokeshire.gov.uk