Legality of town council meeting challenged

Legality of town council meeting challenged.

A challenge to the legality of a Penrith Town Council meeting held on the 19th of December 2022 has been made by a councillor after 10 councillors left the meeting for a private meeting lasting 32 minutes.

At the meeting of the town council on Monday evening 13 of the 15 town councillors were in attendance of the meeting that started at 6pm.

The town councils own agenda listed the legally required place of the meeting that business of the council would be transacted at as Unit 2, Church House, Friargate, Penrith.

During the meeting at approximately 6:28pm on Monday evening. 10 of the town councillors left the public meeting to hold a private meeting on one of the agenda item at the suggestion of the council chair who also left the meeting to take part in the private meeting along with 2 council staff members.

Members of the public attending the town council meeting, along with 4 town council staff members and 3 councillors remaining in the councils public meeting.

The grounds given for the challenge to the legality of the meeting after the 10 members left is given in a statement saying “that when 10 members of the council left the live public full council meeting for a private second meeting in parallel to the active public meeting for a duration of 32 minutes the public meeting became inquorate with only 3 members when 5 are required for a meeting of the full council to be quorate.”

It has emerged that this is not the first time a challenge the legality of a town council meeting has occurred with a town council meeting held on the 11th of July having to be rerun on the 18th July after it was called and held contrary to legislation and all business as a result was not legally transacted at the meeting held on the 11th July.

Penrith Town Council own standing orders state that: No business may be transacted at a meeting unless at least one-third of the whole number of members of the Council are present and in no case shall the quorum of a meeting be less than five for Full Council and three for committees. If a meeting is or becomes inquorate no business shall be transacted and the meeting shall be closed. The business on the agenda for the meeting shall be adjourned to another meeting.

Penrith Town Council have been asked for comment on the challenge but have so far given no comment on the issue or implications.