Part 4 - Cabinet procedure rules

9.1         At each meeting of the Cabinet there shall be up to 30 minutes set aside for written and urgent written questions.

9.2         A County Councillor or any person who lives or works in the county, or is affected by the work of the County Council, may ask the Leader of the Council or a Cabinet Member a written question on any matter which relates to any item on the Cabinet agenda for that meeting.

9.3         A written copy of the question must have been delivered to the Chief Executive by 4pm three clear working days before the date of the meeting. In the event that publication of a report is unavoidably delayed, the chair shall have the discretion to extend the deadline for questions that relate to that report.

9.4         An urgent written question may be asked by a member of the public about any item on the Cabinet agenda for that meeting, which the Chair considers could not have been reasonably submitted by the deadline for the receipt of written questions, provided that they give notice of the question to the Chief Executive by 12 noon the day before the meeting.

9.5         Response

            A written answer will be provided to a written question and will be given to the questioner and to Cabinet Members before the meeting. The question and answer will then be taken as read at the meeting itself and need not be read out.

9.6         A copy of all written questions and written answers circulated at the meeting will be attached to the signed copy of the minutes of the meeting.

9.7         Supplementary Questions

              A person who has put a written question may, with the consent of the person presiding, ask a supplementary question on the same subject.

9.8         An answer to a supplementary question will take the form of:

9.8.1       A direct oral answer;

9.8.2      Where the information required is contained in a Council document or other published work, the questioner will be given the name of that document and if the person presiding considers it appropriate the relevant part of the document will be read out;

9.8.3       If the information required is not easily available, a written answer will be sent to the questioner and circulated to all Cabinet Members. Supplementary written answers will be provided within 14 days and published as a supplementary document with the original meeting papers no later than 4 weeks after the meeting.

9.9         There will be no discussion on any question from a member of the public.

9.10       Written questions may be rejected and urgent written questions need not be answered when the person presiding considers that they:

              9.10.1            Are defamatory, frivolous or offensive;

              9.10.2     Are substantially the same as a question that has been put to a meeting of the Cabinet or Council in the past six months; or

              9.10.3           Would require the disclosure of confidential or exempt information.

In every case, the person presiding must specify the reason for rejecting a question or not requiring an answer to be given to it.

If the person presiding decides not to allow a further question as provided herein and has given reasons for the decision, then the decision shall be final.