Board of Governors/Minutes/6th September 2011
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Contents |
Attending
- Jack Allnutt (JA) - Meeting Chair
- Graham Hope (GH)
- Will Macdonald (WM)
- Andrew Robinson (AR)
- Chris Monteiro (CM)
- Will Tovey (WT)
- Finlay Archibald (FA)
Apologies
- Shaun Dyer (SD)
- Stephen Ogden (SO)
- John Barron (JB)
Quorum
This meeting was quorate
Actions from this Meeting
- CM to draft changes to the disciplinary section of the CoP and send to the board mailing list.
- CM to draft a brief for the disciplinary panels and send to the board mailing list.
- FA to write a report for the Board and NEC regarding the disciplinary action against him by Monday morning.
- JA to compile a list of options for increasing communications and oversight of the NEC and send to the board mailing list.
- CM to organise, chair and take minutes of the next meeting.
Welcome New Governors
The Board welcomed the new members, JA directed them to the induction pad and asked them to add their details to the contact details pad.
Refreshing the Code of Practice
CM raised concerns regarding the disciplinary aspect of the CoP, stating that a panel should not be formed unless an escalation process had been followed. JA stated that the party already has too much bureaucracy for its size. AR noted that the formation of a panel is not indicative of guilt. WT noted that although the code of practice is a guideline, the disciplinary part is binding due to the wording of the constitution.
Action: CM to draft changes to the disciplinary section of the CoP and send to the board mailing list for further discussion.
AR noted that the CoP may back the Board into a corner when there are less than 5 governors who do not have a conflict of interest in a disciplinary or arbitrary issue. JA suggested adding a clause to mitigate this factor. Issue to be discussed along with CM's draft changes.
Request for Disciplinary Action
Peter Liddell
E-mails from the NEC regarding the issue were discussed. JA pointed out that the Board had already voted to set up the panel on the mailing list. CM wanted more information about action taken by the NEC prior to requesting a disciplinary panel before voting in favour. CM also in favour of a broader remit for the panel than investigating one person. AR stated that all the Board should do is form the panel and appoint the members. JA stated again that there is too much bureaucracy in the party.
Action: CM to draft a brief and send it to the mailing list.
It was noted that AR, JB and PB had conflicts of interest regarding the panel. GH, WM, CM and WT volunteered for the panel, SO was also mooted as the 5th panel member.
Finlay Archibald
E-mails from the NEC regarding this issue were discussed, extra information given by JA and FA himself. JA noted that, obviously, FA has a conflict of interest and in addition that as Dept. Campaigns Officer he should recuse himself as well. CM and WM suggested waiting for FA to produce a report to be sent to the Board and NEC before opening the panel. JA noted that the Board had already voted to open and then adjourn the panel, and that the CoP states that a panel "will" be opened on request. WM suggested both the report and panel opening be done in parallel.
Action: FA to produce a report on the situation to be sent to the Board and NEC no later than Monday morning.
Constitutional Amendments
Data Controller/Party Secretary
JA noted that the NEC are quite insistent that this change goes to a party vote ASAP, and that Miah wishes to leave the role of DC as soon as a replacement is found. WM raised the issue of changing the role during an election. JA and AR stated that as there had been no nominations to date that this was not an issue. CM wanted a better rationale for changing the role.
Motion: "To proceed with the amendment process" passed 6/1/0.
Removal of RAOs
Motion: "To proceed with the amendment process" passed 6/0/0
Board Communications
Internal
JA reiterated the call to put contact details into the pad. CM raised the issue of document ownership. It was agreed that each member should take responsibility of keeping their own details up to date. CM refused to put his contact details in the pad until one person took operational ownership.
With NEC
JA stated that communications are rather ad-hoc and informal and mentioned the suggestions made during the board election. WT asked if informal was such a bad thing. WM suggested having the NEC write to the Board periodically. JA noted that the NEC's minutes are open and on the wiki.
Action: JA to compile a list of options and report back to the mailing list.
Any Other Business
CM raised the possibility of having future board meetings on Mumble, like the NEC do. JA agreed, WT, WM and AR disagreed. FA suggested an AFK meeting at the conference, consensus was this is a good idea.
Next Meeting
Action: CM will organise, chair and take minutes for the next meeting