Councillor John Goddard proposed and Councillor Ben Lloyd-Shogbesan seconded, that there being no other nominations, Council resolved that Councillor Alan Armitage be elected as Lord Mayor of Oxford for the Council Year 2012/12.

Councillor Armitage took the Chair from Councillor Benjamin and then made and subscribed the Declaration of Acceptance of Office.

Councillor Bob Price proposed and Councillor David Williams seconded, and there being no other nominations, Council resolved that Councillor Mohammed Niaz Abbasi be elected Deputy Lord Mayor of Oxford for the Council Year 2012/13.

Councillor Abbasi then made and subscribed the Declaration of Acceptance of Office.

Councillor  Laurence Baxter proposed and Councillor Craig Simmons seconded, and there being no other nominations, Council resolved to appoint Councillor Dee Sinclair Sheriff of Oxford and Conservator of Port Meadow and City Fisheries for the Council Year 2012/13.

Councillor David Williams proposed and Councillor Jim Campbell seconded a vote of thanks to the outgoing Lord Mayor, Councillor Elise Benjamin, for her services as Lord Mayor of Oxford for the Council Year 2011/12.

Councillor Craig Simmons proposed and Councillor Oscar Van Nooijen seconded a vote of thanks to the outgoing Sheriff, Councillor Jean Fooks, for her services as Sheriff of Oxford for the Council Year 2011/12.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Ruth Wilkinson and Dick Wolff.

The Lord Mayor congratulated the newly elected Members of Council and welcomed back those Members who had retained their seats in the recent local elections.

He announced that his chosen charities his Mayoral Year would be Arts at the Old Fire Station and Asylum Welfare.

The Chief Executive formally presented the results (previously circulated, now appended) of the local elections held on 3^rd May 2012.

Councillor Ed Turner proposed and Councillor Sajjid Malik seconded, and there being no other nominations, Council resolved that Councillor Price be elected Leader of the Council for the Council Years 2012-2016.

The Head of Law and Governance has submitted a report which invites Council to appoint committees for the Council Year 2012/13 and members to serve upon them and recommends a change to the carrying out of council responsibilities in respect of licensing.

Council is recommended

(1)       To appoint a Licensing Committee (last year called the Licensing and Gambling Acts Committee) to discharge the responsibilities contained in the Licensing Act 2003 and the Gambling Act 2005, with powers and duties as set out in paragraphs 5.4 and 5.5 of the Constitution (amended as referred to in recommendation 7 below), and members to it.

(2)       To consider the appointment of an East Area Planning Committee, a West Area Planning Committee, a Planning Review Committee, an Audit and Governance Committee, a General Purposes Licensing Committee, an Appointments Committee and a Disciplinary Committee for the Chief Executive, Directors and Heads of Service (each of these committees were appointed for the 2011 - 12 Council Year), with powers and duties as set out in Sections 5 and 7 of the Constitution, and members to serve upon them.

(3)(a)   Subject to Council agreeing the report on standards arrangements that appears as item 13 on the agenda of this Annual Meeting of council, to appoint a politically balanced Standards Committee with powers and duties as set out in the report, the Committee to come into being when the law is changed (expected to be on 1^st July 2012)

 (3)(b)  Until the law is changed (expected to be on 1^st July 2012) to appoint a Standards Committee with the composition and membership as shown in Appendix 2 to this report and powers and duties as set out in Section 7 of the Constitution.

(4)       To appoint at least one scrutiny committee and members to serve upon it.

(5)       To consider whether to appoint a pool of members to be the observer representative on appeals bodies as described in paragraph 9 of this report.

(6)       To appoint a member to the Oxfordshire Joint Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee – paragraph 10 of this report refers.

(7)       That responsibility for recommending all licensing policies to full Council become that of the City Executive Board.

(9)       To authorise the Head of Law and Governance to make any changes to the Constitution in consequence of Council’s decisions on committee appointments and powers and duties.

The Head of Law and Governance submitted a report (previously circulated, now appended) which invited Council to appoint Committees for the Council Year 2012/13 and members to serve upon those Committees.

Council resolved:

(a)       To appoint a Licensing Committee to discharge the responsibilities contained in the Licensing Act 2003 and the Gambling Act 2005, with powers and duties as set out in paragraphs 5.4 and 5.5 of the Constitution, and with a membership as set out in the appendix to these minutes;

(b)       To appoint an East Area Planning Committee, a West Area Planning Committee, a Planning Review Committee, an Audit and Governance Committee, a General Purposes Licensing Committee, an Appointments Committee and a Disciplinary Committee for the Chief Executive, Directors and Heads of Service, with powers and duties as set out in Sections 5 and 7 of the Constitution and memberships as set in the appendix to these minutes;

(c)        To appoint a politically balanced Standards Committee with powers and duties as set out in the report, to come into being when the law is changed with regard to the Standards regime, and with a membership as set out in the appendix to these minutes;

(d)       that until the law is changed (expected to be on 1^st July 2012) to appoint a Standards Committee with the composition and membership as set out in Appendix 2 to the report and with powers and duties as set out in Section 7 of the Councils Constitution;

(e)       To appoint a Communities and Partnership Scrutiny Committee and a Value and Performance Scrutiny Committee with powers and duties as set out in Section 8 of the Constitution, and with memberships as set out in the appendix to these minutes;

(f)         That all members of Council should constitute the pool of members from which an observer representative would be invited to observe at Appeals Panels into disciplinary sanctions or grievance decisions;

(g)       To appoint Councillor Susanna Pressel to the Oxfordshire Joint Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee;

(h)        That responsibility for recommending all licensing bodies policies to full Council, becomes that of the City Executive Board;

(i)         To authorise the Head of Law and Governance making any changes to the Constitution in consequence of Council’s decisions on committee appointments and powers and duties.

Council will receive a report from the Leader on the appointment of the Deputy Leader of the Council, the appointment of Board Members and the Executive Scheme of Delegation.

Councillor Bob Price, Leader of the Council informed Council of the Board Members for 2012/13 along with their portfolios:

Councillor Bob Price (Leader)

Councillor Ed Tuner (Deputy Leader)

Councillor Colin Cook – City Development

Councillor Van Coulter – Leisure Services

Councillor Stephen Curran – Young People, Education and Community Development

Councillor Mark Lygo – Parks and Sports

Councillor Scott Seamons – Housing

Councillor Dee Sinclair – Crime and Community Safety

Councillor Val Smith – Customer Services and Regeneration

Councillor John Tanner – Cleaner, Greener Oxford

The Chief Executive recommends Council to reaffirm for the Council Year 2012/13 its agreement to the Council’s Scheme of Delegation set out in Section 5 of the Council’s Constitution and to note the Executive’s Scheme of Delegation as set out in Section 4 of the Constitution.

Council resolved:

(a)       To re-affirm for the Council Year 2012/13 the Council’s Scheme of Delegation as set out in Section 5 of the Constitution;

(b)       To note the Executive’s Scheme of Delegations as set out in Section 4 of the Constitution as presented by the Leader to Council.

The Head of Law and Governance/Monitoring Officer has submitted a report which presents the recommendations of the Standards Committee in relation to the adoption of a new Code of Conduct and standards arrangements in consequence of the Localism Act 2011.

Council recommended:

(1)       That the draft Code of Conduct and complaint handling arrangements be adopted to take effect immediately on the statutory repeal of the present Code and arrangements.

(2)       That Council establishes a non-statutory Standards Committee with terms of reference as set out in this report.

(3)       That the Head of Law and Governance be authorised to make any consequential amendments to the Constitution.

(4)       That Council records its thanks to all Independent and Parish Council Members who have served on the statutory Standards Committee for their significant contribution to its work over the period 2001-2012.

The Head of Law and Governance/Monitoring Officer submitted a report (previously circulated, now appended) which presented the recommendations of the Standards Committee in relation to the adoption of a new Code of Conduct and standards arrangements in consequence of the Localism Act 2011.

Council resolved:

(a)       To adopt the draft Code of Conduct and complaint handling arrangements to take effect immediately on the statutory repeal of the present Code and arrangements;

(b)       To establish a non-statutory Standards Committee with terms and references as set out in the report (resolution (c) of minute 10 refers);

(c)        That the Head of Law and Governance be authorised to make any consequential amendments to the Constitution;

(d)       To record its thanks to all of the Independent and Parish Council Members who had served on the statutory Standards Committee for their significant contribution to its work over the period 2001-2012.