Councillor Vacancy Policy
For the purpose of openness and transparency, Horsington Council will endeavour to fill any vacancy (vacancies) at the earliest opportunity.
Qualifications
To be a Town Councillor, a candidate must be either:
• British;
• A Commonwealth National;
• An Irish or European Union citizen;
and
18 years of age or over, and fulfil one or more of the following criteria:
• being on and remaining on the register of electors for the Parish: or, during the whole of the twelve months preceding the nomination;
• have lived in, worked in or lived within 3 miles of the parish boundary.
Should a candidate only meet the criteria of point 1 above, on the nomination form and subsequently come off the register of electors, the qualification would lapse.
The other three qualifications remain valid for the four year term, so even if a successful candidate left the parish s/he would not be required to resign, although it might be considered appropriate to do so.
Resignation
A Councillor may resign at any time by giving written notice, addressed and delivered to the Chairman of the Town Council. The Chairman must accept the resignation and there is no legal procedure for withdrawing a notice of resignation once delivered and accepted.
Resignation takes effect immediately upon receipt and cannot be post-dated.
Disqualification
Reasons for disqualification include (but not limited to) bankruptcy; being employed by or doing paid work for the Council (except as a contractor); a criminal conviction with a prison sentence of three months or more; illegal expenditure; or being found guilty of corrupt or illegal practices in election law.
Other Causes of Vacancy
• Death;
• Failure to sign a Declaration of Acceptance of Office;
Failure to attend meetings for a three consecutive meetings without giving a justifiable reason.
Procedure for Filling Casual Vacancies
When a vacancy arises on the Town Council following:
• A Councillor’s Resignation;
• Disqualification or Failure to remain qualified;
• Death
the process to fill the vacancy is as follows:
1) The Town Clerk must notify the Returning Officer at East Lindsey District Council of the vacancy;
then,
2) The Town Council must display a notice informing the residents of the parish of the vacancy. The notice will run for 14 working days (excluding weekends and bank holidays) from the date it is displayed on Parish Council notice boards, giving the residents of the ward the opportunity to call for an election to fill the vacancy during this period. The Parish Council will also post the notice on the Parish Council website.
Calling an Election
During the period of fourteen days from the date the public notice of the vacancy was displayed, ten electors from the parish can call for an election to be held to fill the vacancy. They must make their request in writing to the Returning Officer (via the Parish Clerk if required).
If such a request is received within the 14 days, the Returning Officer will set a date for the election (which must be within 60 days of the date of the vacancy notice).
Notices will be displayed announcing the election and explaining how to apply to be a candidate for election. The cost of any election is borne by East Lindsey District Council. If there are not enough nominated candidates at the election to fill the vacancies, a further election must be called. Co-option is not an option.
If an Election is Not Called
The Town Council will be notified by the Returning Officer, and must fill the position by co-option as soon as practicable.
Co-option
Although the process for co-option is not prescribed in law, District Councils and Local Council Associations provide best practice advice and guidelines.
It is especially important that all applicants be treated alike so that the arrangements are seen as open, fair and transparent.
The co-option process adopted by Horsington Parish Council is as follows:
i) The Parish Council will only consider any interested applicants who have gone through the nomination / election process in the first instance;
If those persons do not wish to be considered for co-option, or those candidates are considered unsuitable by the Parish Council;
then:
ii) The Parish Council will advertise the vacancy on the Parish Council noticeboard, and the Parish Council website
The notices will include:
• The contact details of the Town Clerk to enable prospective co-option candidates to obtain further information on the role of a Town Councillor;
• Details of the co-option process;
• The closing date for all expressions of interest;
• The date on which the Parish Council intends to make a decision.
The Parish Council (or parishioner) can legally approach individuals to suggest that they might wish to consider putting their names forward for co-option.
i) When the applications are received, the Parish Clerk will review all application details and carefully check that applicants meet the qualification requirements, and confirm that, if successful, their willingness to accept the Code of Conduct and other obligations of a Parish Councillor.
ii) Candidates may be asked to submit a short letter with a brief CV giving reasons why they should be considered for the vacancy. These letters will be circulated to Elected Councillors before the meeting at which the decision will be made.
iii) Candidates will be informed of the date of the meeting at which the Parish Council will make its decision on the co-option.
Co-option Meeting
Notice of the intention to co-opt must be given in the appropriate agenda for a meeting of the Parish Council. Candidates may be invited to the meeting to introduce themselves and to provide Elected Councillors the opportunity to ask questions of them; the Parish Council retain the right to rely on written submissions alone.
If candidates are not invited to speak at the co-option meeting they are welcome to (but not required to) attend as members of the public. The Parish Council may only discuss each candidate’s suitability for the role when s/he and members of the public are not present.
Co-option Voting Process
i) A successful candidate should have received an absolute majority vote of those present and voting. If there are more than two candidates for one vacancy and none of them at the first count has an overall majority, the candidate with the fewest votes should be eliminated and the remainder put to the vote again. The process should be repeated as necessary until one candidate has an overall majority.
ii) Each vacancy should be filled by a separate vote or series of votes. In a small council there is a distinct possibility that there could be a tie for last place in the first round of voting, leaving the candidate for elimination to be decided by lots.
After the Vote
i) The Town Clerk will notify the candidates of the results by telephone and email, as soon as is reasonably possible (usually within 24 hours) this is not the duty of any Elected Member.
ii) Successfully co-opted candidates become Councillors in their own right with immediate effect, and are no different to any other member. As such, they must sign a Declaration of Acceptance of Office and complete and return a Register of Interests Form at their first meeting, or within 28 calendar days of election, whichever is the sooner.
Adopted at Parish Council Meeting 9 November 2016