Examination of Witnesses (Questions 40-43)
6 DECEMBER 2004
MS CLAER
LLOYD-JONES,
MR GORDON
MUSSETT AND
MR MIRZA
AHMAD
Q40 Chairman: Could I wind up by asking
you about your feelings about the link between the Code of Conduct,
if there should be a link, and the assessment of a local authority's
accountability through the Comprehensive Performance Assessment.
Mr Ahmad: Certainly I have seen
some changes to the Comprehensive Performance Assessment, the
key lines of inquiry by the Audit Commission. I have seen those.
Claer and I have certainly commented on those from the Association
of Council Secretaries and Solicitors. I think it has to come.
There is no question about it. If the local authority is serious
about improving performance, improving services, making sure citizens
are looked after appropriately in terms of what they have elected
them to do, then ethical framework is the mechanism by which it
is delivered by those who are in decision-making power
Ms Lloyd-Jones: It is an issue
that Hackney standards committee has explored in conjunction with
the partnership organisations, through the Raising Standards
Conference agenda—and, again, I will leave a copy of
this for you. The chief executive of the Audit Commission came
to speak as well as the chief executive of the Standards Board
for England. The theme is that high standards of behaviour by
both councillors and officers leads to better service delivery.
We therefore entirely see the connection and the way the CPA is
going. I think the Use of Resources Service Block—which
currently measures quite technical things like: Is there a code
of conduct? Is everyone signed up to it?—does not go far
enough, so I certainly welcome the development from the Audit
Commission in looking at the relationship between service delivery
and behaviour and we completely agree that that is the way that
councils will improve service delivery, and therefore their CPA
score, by having a robust ethical framework across their areas,
not just across their services.
Q41 Andrew Bennett: Is this not an element
of local authorities having to do more and more training and meet
higher and higher ethical standards but having less and less power
to do anything worthwhile for their communities.
Ms Lloyd-Jones: I do not think
that is right if you look at the influence which goes through
strategic partnerships. Indeed, part of the Raising Standards
agenda that we had in Hackney was that we had a number of our
partners there, health partners, the police, the voluntary sector
partners, housing associations and so on, and our standards committee
at the moment is being asked to extend its jurisdiction, if you
like, through the voluntary sector compact and the housing compact
with housing associations, so we are looking at a single ethical
platform, set of standards, code of conduct across the piece.
Local authorities using their influence in this way is very much
welcomed actually by our partners because the independent members
of our standards committee do have experience in local adjudications
and there is, therefore, belief that this is a legitimate role
for the local authority.
Q42 Mr Betts: Does that cover the private
sector members of local strategic partnerships?
Ms Lloyd-Jones: Yes, indeed.
Q43 Chairman: On that note, could I thank
you very much.
Ms Lloyd-Jones: Could I leave
these packs for you?
Chairman: Thank you.
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