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‘(1) An order for elections by halves in relation to a council must make provision for the election and retirement of councillors in accordance with this section.
(2) In the case of the ordinary elections held in the year determined in accordance with section (Order for elections by halves: years in which elections are to be held)(2)(a)—
(a) all of the councillors are to be elected;
(b) on the fourth day after the elections are held—
(i) the councillors elected in those elections are to come into office, and
(ii) all of the sitting councillors are to retire.
(3) In the case of ordinary elections held subsequently—
(a) one half (or as nearly as may be) of the councillors are to be elected;
(b) on the fourth day after the elections are held—
(i) the councillors elected in those elections are to come into office, and
(ii) the specified sitting councillors are to retire.
(4) The order must include provision for identifying which councillors are to retire in each year in which ordinary elections are to be held (other than the first), including provision for identifying—
(b) the councillors affected within particular wards.
(5) In this section “specified sitting councillors”, in relation to ordinary elections, means the sitting councillors who are to retire in the year of those elections by virtue of the order.’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
‘(1) An order for elections by thirds in relation to a council must secure that the ordinary elections of councillors of the council are held in years determined in accordance with this section.
(2) Ordinary elections of the councillors of the council are to be held in—
(a) the first relevant year after the year in which the Electoral Commission makes the order, and
(b) each subsequent year, unless it is a fallow year.
“fallow year” means 2013 and every fourth year afterwards;
(c) in relation to a metropolitan district council: 2014 and every fourth year afterwards;(d) in relation to a non-metropolitan district council: 2011 and every fourth year afterwards.’— [Mr. Woolas.]Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
‘(1) An order for elections by thirds in relation to a council must make provision for the election and retirement of councillors in accordance with this section.
(2) In the case of the ordinary elections held in the year determined in accordance with section (Order for elections by thirds: years in which elections are to be held)(2)(a)—
(a) all of the councillors are to be elected;
(b) on the fourth day after the elections are held—
(i) the councillors elected in those elections are to come into office, and
(ii) all of the sitting councillors are to retire.
(3) In the case of ordinary elections held subsequently—
(a) one third (or as nearly as may be) of the councillors are to be elected;
(b) on the fourth day after the elections are held—
(i) the councillors elected in those elections are to come into office, and
(ii) the specified sitting councillors are to retire.
(4) The order must include provision for identifying which councillors are to retire in each year in which ordinary elections are to be held (other than the first), including provision for identifying—
(b) the councillors affected within particular wards.
(5) In this section “specified sitting councillors”, in relation to ordinary elections, means the sitting councillors who are to retire in the year of those elections by virtue of the order.’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
‘(1) An order under section (Electoral Commission to make order for new electoral scheme) (order for elections by halves or for elections by thirds) may include provision about the transition to the council’s new electoral scheme.
(2) Provision made by virtue of this section may, in particular, include provision for the retirement of some councillors after their initial election at times different from those otherwise applying, and for identifying which of them are so to retire.’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
‘The Commission may by order make incidental, consequential, transitional or supplemental provision in connection with provision made by order under section (Electoral Commission to make order for new electoral scheme) (order for elections by halves or for elections by thirds).’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
(a) the Commission give the Boundary Committee a direction to conduct an electoral review (see section (Electoral Commission to consider whether electoral review is necessary)(2)), and
(b) in response to that request the Boundary Committee make recommendations to the Commission for electoral changes,
nothing in this Part requires the Commission to make any provision in relation to matters dealt with, or to be dealt with, by the Commission in an order under section 17 of the Local Government Act 1992 (c. 19) giving effect to those recommendations.’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
‘(1) A council must comply with this section as soon as practicable after the Electoral Commission have made an order under section (Electoral Commission to make order for new electoral scheme) (order for elections by halves or for elections by thirds) in relation to it.
(2) The council must produce an explanatory document.
(3) The council must make the explanatory document—
(a) available for public inspection at the council’s principal office at all reasonable times, and
(b) available to the public by such other means as the council thinks appropriate.
(4) The council must publicise these matters—
(a) that the council has become subject to the new electoral scheme;
(b) how the explanatory document is available in accordance with subsection (3);
(c) the address of the council’s principal office.
(5) It is for the council to decide how these matters are to be publicised.
(6) An explanatory document is a document which sets out details of the new electoral scheme.’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
‘(1) This section applies if a council passes a resolution under this Part.
(2) The council may by order make provision that changes the years in which the ordinary elections of parish councillors for any parish situated in the council’s area are to be held.
(3) The power may only be exercised so as to secure that those elections are to be held in years in which ordinary elections of district councillors for a ward in which any part of the parish is situated are to be held.
(4) The order may include transitional provision—
(a) for the retirement of existing parish councillors at times different from those otherwise applying;
(b) for the retirement of some parish councillors after their initial election after the order comes into force at times different from those otherwise applying.’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
‘(1) The terms of reference of a community governance review are the terms on which the review is to be undertaken.
(2) The terms of reference of a community governance review must specify the area under review.
(3) Sections (No review being undertaken: duty to respond to petition) and (Review being undertaken: duty to respond to petition) make further provision about the terms of reference of community governance reviews.
(4) Subject to subsection (2), and sections (No review being undertaken: duty to respond to petition) and (Review being undertaken: duty to respond to petition), it is for a principal council—
(a) to decide the terms of reference of any community governance review which the council is to undertake; and
(b) to decide what modifications (if any) to make to terms of reference.
(5) As soon as practicable after deciding terms of reference, the principal council must publish the terms.
(6) As soon as practicable after modifying terms of reference, the principal council must publish the modified terms.’.— [Angela E. Smith.]
Brought up, and read the First time.
Angela E. Smith: I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time.
Mr. Deputy Speaker: With this it will be convenient to discuss the following:
Government new clause 57— Council’s power to undertake review.
Government new clause 58— No review being undertaken: duty to respond to petition.
Government new clause 59— Review being undertaken: duty to respond to petition.
Government new clause 60— Power to respond to petition.
New clause 63— Parish councils: power to issue guarantees—
‘(1) A parish council may make and issue a guarantee for a sum, incidental to its support for an activity which is within its powers under this or any other Act.
(2) A guarantee under subsection (1) may be made—
(a) in respect of membership of a company incorporated under the Companies Act;
(b) in respect of membership of an association of local authorities; or
(c) to a voluntary organisation operating in its area.
(3) In exercising the power to make a guarantee under subsection (1), the council must have regard for any limit on the maximum sum that may be guaranteed that the Secretary of State may by order prescribe.’.
Amendment No. 164, in clause 57 page 43, line 37, leave out ‘an eligible’ and insert ‘a’.
Amendment No. 165, page 44, line 1, leave out subsection (4).
Amendment No. 166, in clause 58 page 44, line 8, leave out ‘an eligible’ and insert ‘a’.
Amendment No. 167, in page 44, line 13, leave out ‘an eligible’ and insert ‘a’.
Amendment No. 168, in page 44, line 14, leave out ‘an eligible’ and insert ‘a’.
Government amendments Nos. 228 to 233.
Government amendments Nos. 234 to 245.
Amendment No. 169, in clause 78 page 54, line 6, at end insert ‘or’.
Amendment No. 170, in page 54, line 8, leave out from ‘councils’ to end of line 9.
Government amendments Nos. 246 and 247.
7.15 pm
Angela E. Smith: The new clause and the associated amendments provide clarity about handling community governance petitions and reviews generally. In future, the Secretary of State will have no role in decisions about the creation, abolition or modification of parish councils. Those will be truly local decisions, as they should be.
The Bill provides for local people to petition their local authority to conduct a community governance review. When a council receives a valid petition, it must conduct a review except in the following circumstance: when a petition is received within two years of the receipt of an earlier petition that related to the whole or a significant part of the same area as the recent petition. In such a case, the council need not treat the petition as valid. However, even in those circumstances, a council may treat the later petition as valid and conduct a review in relation to it, if it chooses.
In contrast, when the principal council currently initiates a community governance review, it has no power to treat a petition received while it is undertaking the review or following the conclusion that a review is invalid. That inconsistency should be corrected. Accordingly, we want to give the principal council the flexibility to choose whether to conduct a review when a petition is received within two years of the conclusion of a review of the whole or a significant part of the petition area.
The flexibility is necessary because we want to avoid a position whereby a local authority conducts a community governance review, recommends the creation of a parish council but, the following day, receives another petition requiring it to conduct another review of the same area. Providing a two-year discretionary period will allow authorities to be secure in the knowledge that they will not be required to conduct a review of the same area immediately after the completion of the initial review, but that they have the flexibility to do so if they choose.
I hope that I have convinced the House of the merits of ensuring that the community governance review processes are consistent. The new clauses and amendments will deliver that. We have also tabled several technical amendments. I ask the House to accept the new clause to ensure that the devolved community governance review process works effectively.
Mr. Syms: First, I broadly welcome the thrust of the Government’s actions, which are to devolve power to parish and town councils. I suspect that, when the power is implemented, local authorities will conduct a review of the authorities in their area, especially if they are brave. I remember that, as a county councillor, I had approximately 15 parishes in my county council ward. Some of our areas—I think especially of Wiltshire—have hundreds of parish councils. Many have strong links but, because of the passage of time, many villages have died out since the parishes were instigated. There will, therefore, be a good argument for a review.
I shall outline my only concerns about the regulations. There is a duty on local authorities to respond to a petition within the terms that the Minister set out. It is, effectively, after two years, but I believe that that is not long enough. Two years is not a great length of time for reviewing all the parishes in an area. Some parishes meet only annually and might have had two or three meetings between the time of the review and the time someone brings forward a petition to change the arrangements yet again.
I suspect that petitions are most likely when a town has expanded and a new estate finds itself in a parish but wants to belong to the town to which it is appended. Even over a period of two or three years, one could easily foresee substantial change in house building as strategic planning takes place and planning permissions are granted, so two years is much too quick. My concern is that the local authority will always have to undertake a review or respond to a particularly vociferous group that is regularly raising petitions. In those circumstances, a longer term of more than two years—perhaps five or 10 years—would be more sensible. Nothing changes substantially, except perhaps where a town is growing and a new estate is expanding into a parish adjacent to a new town. The Government are too generous in allowing these petitions, which may well cause a problem for some authorities.
Is a petition time limited? Clause 60(3) stipulates that if the area has
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