The Mayor and Executive and the Executive Procedure Rules
Chapter 3: Mayor’s Executive Scheme of Delegation
Section 3.1: The Composition of the Executive
The Executive shall consist of ten (10) people, namely the Mayor and nine (9) Cabinet Members as set out below:-
Portfolio | Name |
|---|---|
Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for Education, Youth and Lifelong Learning (Statutory Deputy Mayor) | Cllr Maium Talukdar |
Resources and the Cost of Living | Cllr Saied Ahmed |
Regeneration, Inclusive Development and Housebuilding | Cllr Kabir Ahmed |
Safer Communities | Cllr Abu Talha Choudhury |
Environment and the Climate Emergency | Cllr Shafi Ahmed |
Health, Wellbeing and Social Care | Cllr Sabina Akhtar |
Jobs, Enterprise, Skills and Growth | Cllr Musthak Ahmed |
Equalities and Social Inclusion | Cllr Bodrul Choudhury |
Culture and Recreation | Cllr Kamrul Hussain |
Where Cabinet roles are held by job share Cabinet Members one of the two councillors for the portfolio will be appointed as the official Cabinet Member who will retain official responsibility for the whole portfolio for the first six months. Following this, the second Cabinet Member will take up the official role for the second six-month period. Only the Councillor designated as the ‘official’ Cabinet Member at any given time may vote at the relevant meeting of Cabinet but both Job Share Members may introduce reports and take part in discussions.
Job share Cabinet Members will have day to day advisory responsibility for distinct areas of the portfolio. These responsibilities will be published on the council’s website.
Special Responsibility Allowances for both job share Cabinet Members will be paid monthly with each receiving the equivalent of half a Cabinet Member Special Responsibility Allowance.
For the purposes of the Constitution, both job share Cabinet Members will be treated as if they were members of the Executive. For example, they would not be able to serve on Overview & Scrutiny Committee during the six months they were not the ‘official’ Cabinet Member.
The Council has the power to appoint Councillors to Junior Cabinet Positions to provide support to specific Cabinet Members and their portfolios or Ambassador roles to give specific focus and to cross cutting themes and mayoral priorities, communities or projects. Junior Cabinet Positions and Ambassador roles are not Executive positions. Once appointed the Mayor will determine the areas of responsibility for the appointees.
Section 3.2: A visual representation of the Executive Structure
Section 3.3: Delegations
The Mayor may, in accordance with Paragraph 4 above, establish such Committees/Sub-committees of the Executive as he considers appropriate from time to time and these are set out in Paragraph 6 above.
The Mayor has not delegated his decision-making powers to the Executive acting collectively as the Cabinet or as the Housing Management (Cabinet) Sub-Committee. He has delegated decision-making powers to the Grants Determination (Cabinet) Sub-Committee and also the King George’s Field Charity Board as it is a Charitable Body.
Subject to the Mayor's prerogative to make decisions on all matters relating to all of his statutory powers, including as individual mayoral decisions taken outside of Cabinet, the Mayor delegates to each Cabinet Member individually the power to make decisions on matters within their portfolio after consultation with the Mayor and subject to the Mayor raising no objection to the proposed decision. Any such decision by a cabinet member will be subject to a written report and the same procedure as applies to individual mayoral decisions.
In accordance with section 14(6) of the Local Government Act 2000 (as amended), any arrangements made by the Mayor for the discharge of an executive function by an executive member, Committee/Sub-Committee or officer does not prevent the Mayor from exercising that function.
Section 3.4: Delegations to officers
The Mayor has delegated to officers decision making powers in relation to executive functions as set out at Parts B and D of the Council’s Constitution.
Officers may not take Key Decisions unless there has been a specific delegation by the Executive.
Any officer executive decision resulting in (revenue or capital) expenditure or savings over £250,000 must only be taken following consultation with the Mayor.
Executive decisions delegated to officers will be taken in accordance with the Corporate Scheme of Delegation, council-wide operating procedures and directorate/service schemes of delegation as appropriate.
Section 3.5: Exceptions to Standard Delegations
For clarity, the following sets out a number of situations where the standard delegation rules do not apply (in particular that officers are delegated to take decisions which are not key decisions). Where there is a clash, this paragraph overrides other rules.
Item | Title | Details |
|---|---|---|
1. | Grants | The Grants Determination Cabinet Sub-Committee retains significant additional decision-making authority in relation to certain grant areas and these are set out in the Sub-Committee Terms of Reference. |
2. | Any collective enfranchisement disposal pursuant to The Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 as amended from time to time. | There are no delegations to officers in relation to these decisions. |
Section 3.6: Other Delegations
The Mayor has not delegated any executive powers to any area committee, or to any ward Councillor in accordance with section 236 of the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007.
The Mayor has delegated executive powers to joint arrangements with other local authorities as set out in Part A, Section 12 and Part B Section 21 of the Council’s Constitution.
Subject to paragraph 30 above, the Mayor has not delegated any executive powers to any other local authority.
Section 3.7: Sub-Delegation of Executive Functions
Where the Mayor, the Executive, a Committee/Sub-Committee of the Executive or an individual Member of the Executive is responsible for an executive function, they may delegate further to an area Committee, through joint arrangements or an officer.
Unless the Mayor directs otherwise, if the Mayor delegates functions to the Cabinet then Cabinet may, following consultation with the Mayor, delegate further to a Cabinet Committee/Sub-Committee or an officer.
Unless the Mayor directs otherwise, a Committee/Sub-Committee of the Executive to whom functions have been delegated may, following consultation with the Mayor, delegate further to an officer.
Where executive functions have been delegated, that fact does not prevent the discharge of delegated functions by the person or body who delegated them.
Permanent delegations should be added to the relevant Schemes of Delegation.
Section 3.8: Non-Executive Decisions
No delegated power in this Executive Scheme of Delegation applies to any decision that relates to a matter that is not an executive function either by law or by the allocation of local choice functions under the Council’s Constitution.
Section 3.9: Confirming the Executive Scheme of Delegation
At the Annual Meeting of the Council directly after the Local Elections (and every subsequent Annual Meeting) the Mayor will present to the Council a copy of this Section as a written record of delegations made by the Mayor (‘The Executive Scheme of Delegation’) for inclusion in the Council’s Constitution. The document presented by the Mayor must set out who of the following are responsible for particular executive decisions (along with any limitations on those responsibilities):
The Mayor and Cabinet collectively; or
an individual Cabinet Member; or
a Committee/Sub Committee of the Cabinet; or
an officer; or
a ward councillor in accordance with Section 236 of the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007; or
through joint arrangements.
The document must also contain the following information in so far as it relates to executive functions:
(a) The extent of any authority delegated to any individual Executive Member or ward Councillor including details of the limitation on their authority.
(b) The terms of reference and membership of such Executive Committees/Sub-Committee as the Mayor appoints and the names of Executive Members appointed to them.
(c) The nature and extent of any delegation of executive functions to area Committees, any other authority or any joint arrangements and the names of those Executive Members appointed to any joint Committee for the coming year.
(d) The nature and extent of any delegation of executive functions to officers not already specified in Part B of this Constitution, with details of any limitation on that delegation and the title of the officer to whom the delegation is made.
Section 3.10: Amending the Executive Scheme of Delegation
The Mayor may update the Executive Scheme of Delegation at any time and may amend or revoke any delegation of an executive function at any time.
If the Mayor amends the Executive Scheme of Delegation they will provide the Monitoring Officer with a copy of the Executive Scheme of Delegation (this Section of the Constitution) setting out the amendments and any reasons for the change(s) within five working days.
In the event that the Mayor wishes to delegate executive decision-making powers to an individual Cabinet Member or Members; or to a ward councillor in accordance with Section 236 of the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007, they will first take advice from the Monitoring Officer as to the appropriate rules that will need to be in place to govern the exercise of such powers before they are so exercised.
Whenever the Monitoring Officer receives notification from the Mayor of any change(s) to the Executive Scheme of Delegation (including Cabinet appointment(s) or portfolio(s)), the Monitoring Officer will inform all Councillors of the change(s) made and any reasons given by the Mayor. Where the Monitoring Officer considers the changes to be significant, they will present the updated Scheme to the next appropriate meeting of Council for information.