This is how Lancashire is doing democracy under lockdown

Many of the gatherings of elected members across Lancashire ceased the week before the country officially went into lockdown.

The sudden closure of our local seats of power left committee rooms and council chambers relieved of their primary purpose – to hear debates and reach decisions about the future of the areas they serve.

As local authorities confronted the logistical reality of being at the heart of the emergency response to the outbreak, routine decisions were deferred and attention turned to the more pressing need to ensure that their most vulnerable residents had access to life’s basic essentials – and also received the care that many of them rely upon.

As with the virus itself, there is no end in sight to that challenge – and Covid-19 will surely serve up many more tests of council resolve in the months to come.

But with life under lockdown now bedding in, local authorities have been left to reflect on what decision-making and democracy should look like in the socially-distant world into which we have all reluctantly been pitched.

Earlier this month, the government made it lawful to hold council meetings – and binding votes – remotely.

But Lancashire County Council has not yet made the move to that system, opting instead to make use of an existing power in its constitution, allowing the leader and relevant cabinet member to take any urgent decisions which cannot await the next formal cabinet meeting. That was previously a monthly event, but the date of the next sitting remains unknown.

Council leader Geoff Driver said that officers were investigating the possibility of using technology to convene traditional-style meetings in these turbulent times – but stressed that it was not the only way of keeping councillors in the loop.

“If we can [stage remote meetings], we will do it – but it isn’t our highest priority at the moment.

“However, before we take decisions, we send reports to every member of the county council on the basis that if we had been holding a cabinet meeting, those documents would have been available to them and they could have commented.

“We’re just doing our best to remain as transparent as we can be and keep democracy going.”

Those reports are also available to the public at the same time – via the decisions page of the authority’s website – as they would be ordinarily.

DEMOCRACY IN THE DISTRICTS

At district council level in Central Lancashire, the picture is a little more varied – but the one common theme is that all face-to-face formalities have been cancelled for the foreseeable future.

Preston

Initial hopes at Preston City Council that socially distant gatherings could take place to make essential decisions were soon shattered by the lockdown – and the authority has now put in place alternative arrangements to ensure that its normal business can continue.

The council has not ruled out holding virtual meetings at some point, but for now, all executive decisions which would previously have been taken by cabinet will now be made by council leader Matthew Brown. However, they will remain subject to the usual “call-in” procedure under which any councillor can request that they are considered further before being implemented.

Chief executive Adrian Phillips will take non-executive decisions under emergency powers after consulting with all political group leaders, where time permits.

Details of all decisions taken under this temporary system – and the reports informing them – will be published online.

South Ribble

South Ribble Borough Council could be the first in Central Lancashire to hold virtual meetings, with the authority confirming that officers are investigating the possibility of staging remote gatherings from later this month. They would be called to allow members to have a say on “matters of high importance”.

For other decisions which have to be made urgently and would usually be the preserve of the cabinet or full council, the chief executive will make them in consultation with council leader Paul Foster or the relevant cabinet member. The chairman of the authority’s scrutiny committee – Liberal Democrat group leader David Howarth – will also be consulted to confirm that the issue is sufficiently urgent to be decided under these arrangements.

Deputy leader Mick Titherington said: “As these decisions will not be made at public meetings, it will be important to ensure that they are publicly accessible. We will be publishing all decisions made and the information provided to support them on our website.

“We’re also actively looking at ways we can use technology to conduct some meetings remotely, allowing the public to get involved by submitting questions.”

Chorley

Like neighbouring South Ribble, Chorley Council is also exploring the possibility of using new government-given powers to conduct meetings remotely.

In the meantime, urgent decisions are being taken by the chief executive in consultation with council leader Alistair Bradley and his deputy Peter Wilson. The usual reports will also be produced and decisions published.

All members from across the chamber will be invited to make comments on those decisions before they are taken.

Non-decision-making committees – scrutinising the council or investigating a particular issue – will only resume when it is once again deemed safe for members to meet in person.

Wyre and Fylde

Wyre Council says that it has drafted a report into the emergency decision-making powers which it will adopt for the duration of the coronavirus crisis and will publish details shortly. The authority is also investigating the use of remote technology.

Meanwhile, in Fylde, the borough council moved a month ago to delegate decision-making to officers.

The authority operates a system of governance under which individual committees usually have significant powers. Members have been consulted remotely on issues, with an “informal vote” being held and officers committing to attaching “almost overwhelming weight” to the outcome when making their decision.

It is not known whether official votes will be held now that they are permitted under the nationwide rule changes.

WHAT’S THE PLAN?

Planning decisions are one of the biggest responsibilities for district councils. In normal times, small-scale applications are decided by planning officers – a process which can continue under the current restrictions.

But larger or more controversial plans usually go before the councillors on an authority’s planning committee. This process could be resumed if and when virtual meetings are established.

However, in South Ribble, powers have been conferred on the director of planning to make decisions which would ordinarily have been taken by the committee, in consultation with its chair or the cabinet member for planning.

In Preston, emergency powers for the chief executive to make non-executive decisions also appear to cover planning committee matters.

But Chorley Council says that planning committee decisions in the borough will be delayed until a meeting of members can be convened - even if that is done remotely.

YOUR EYES AND EARS

Like most aspects of life under lockdown and the threat of coronavirus, democracy is set to take on a different meaning for some time to come – but it is still being done.

But while the democratic process necessarily adopts a more minimalist appearance, it is more important than ever that the decisions which are taken are exposed to public scrutiny.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service at the Lancashire Post and Chorley and Leyland Guardian will continue to be your eyes and ears in monitoring what is being done and why.

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