Standing Orders

RULES made by the Goole Fields District Drainage Board with the approval of the Secretary of State under Paragraph 3(1) of the Second Schedule to the Land Drainage Act, 1991.  The relevant statutory provisions governing the proceedings of an Internal Drainage Board are set out in the Annex to these Rules for reference purposes

 

Regulations as to Proceedings

 

  1. Meetings of the Board will be open to the public and press who will on the invitation of the Chairman be able to speak at the meeting. The Board can name a resolution to exclude the public and/or press from a meeting or part thereof:-

 

(a)       Every third year, following an election of members, the Board will hold a Meeting at which the election of Chairman and Vice Chairman will be made.

 

(b)       The Board will hold a meeting at which the drainage rate and special levies will be set to enable the latter to be served on the special levy council by no later than the 15th February in respect to the following financial year.

 

(c)        In the event of the need for an emergency meeting the notice will be waived.

 

  1. For each meeting, other than one arranged as an emergency meeting, members will receive an Agenda and any accompanying papers by post or other means despatched at least seven days before the meeting.

 

  1. No business shall be transacted by the Board, other than that which appears on the Agenda, unless 75% of the members present agree to any such additional issue being discussed.

 

  1. (a) A formal meeting of the Board cannot be conducted unless one third of the current members, but a minimum of three, are present at the start of and during the meeting (currently three).  If departures reduce the number below three then the Chairman will terminate the meeting at that point.

 

(b)       All resolutions and proposals will be decided by a majority of votes of the members present.

 

(c)        In the case of an equality of votes at any meeting, the Chairman for the time being of such meeting shall have a second or casting vote.

 

  1. The Board shall meet at a venue to be determined from time to time with such venue being confirmed in the agenda for that meeting.

 

  1. The Board shall, as soon as they conveniently can, appoint a Chairman and Vice-Chairman. The term of office of such Chairman and Vice Chairman shall continue until the first meeting of the Board after the next election following his appointment

 

  1. If any vacancy occurs in the office of Chairman or Vice-Chairman, the Board shall as soon as they conveniently can after the occurrence of such vacancy, choose some one of their number to fill such vacancy.

 

  1. (a) At any meeting of the Board  the Chairman, if present, shall preside.

 

(b)       If the Chairman is absent from a meeting of the Board, the Vice-Chairman, if present, shall preside.

 

(c)        If at any meeting of the Board both the Chairman and Vice-Chairman are not present at the time the members present shall choose from someone of their  number to be Chairman of such meeting.

 

  1. The Board shall cause Minutes to be made of all meetings and recorded in an

appropriate form:-

 

 

(a)       of all appointments of Officers made by the Board

 

(b)       of the names of the members present at each meeting of the Board and Committees or Sub-Committees of the Board

 

(c)        of all orders made by the Board and Committees or Sub-Committees of the Board, and

 

(d)       of all resolutions and proceedings of meetings of the Board and of Committees or Sub-Committees of the Board

 

The Board will approve, with or without amendments, the minutes of the preceding meeting and these will be duly signed by the Chairman together with any financial statements presented at the meeting

 

  1. All proceedings, resolutions and reports of every Committee or Sub-Committee intended to be laid before the Board shall be circulated among the members of the Board at least seven days before the meeting of the Board at which the same are to be submitted

 

 

Committees or Sub-Committees

 

  1. The Board may appoint such Committees or Sub-Committees as they think fit but all acts of any Committee or Sub-Committee shall be subject to the approval of the Board unless the Board has delegated its powers to that Committee or Sub-Committee to deal with specific issue

 

  1. A Committee or Sub-Committee may elect a Chairman of their meetings. If no such Chairman is elected, or if he is not present, the member present shall choose from one of their number to be Chairman of such meeting.

 

  1. A Committee or Sub-Committee may meet and adjourn as they think proper. Proposals at any meeting shall be determined by a majority of votes of the members present, and shall be decided by a show of hands.  In case of any equal division of votes the Chairman shall have a second or casting vote.

 

  1. Regulations 9 and 10 shall apply to Minutes of Committees and Sub-Committees

 

 

Standing Orders

Order of Debate

 

  1. Every proposal or amendment, other than a proposal for the approval of a Committee or Sub-Committee, shall be proposed and seconded and shall, if required, be written out and handed to the Chairman who shall read it out before it is further discussed or put to the meeting.

 

  1. The Chairman will invite members to speak on the subject under discussion.

 

  1. Members must declare whether they have an interest in a matter to be discussed, the Chairman then deciding what if any part of the member can take in any ensuing discussion and whether the member can vote.

 

  1. A proposal or amendment once made shall not be withdrawn without the consent of the Board.

 

  1. Every amendment shall be relevant to the proposal to which it is applied.

 

  1. Whenever an amendment upon an original resolution has been proposed and seconded, no second or subsequent amendment shall be moved until the first amendment shall have been dealt with, but notice of any number of amendments may be given.

 

  1. If an amendment is rejected then other amendments may be proposed on the original resolution or proposal.

 

  1. If an amendment is carried the proposal as amended shall take the place of the original proposal and shall become the question upon which any further amendment may be moved.

 

  1. No proposal to rescind any resolution which has been passed within the preceding six months, nor any proposal to the same effect as any proposal which has been negatived with the preceding six months shall be in order unless; (a) notice thereof has been given and specified in the Agenda and (b) the notice bears, in addition to the name of the member who proposed the resolution, the names of two other members; and when such resolution or proposal has been disposed of by the Board, it shall not be competent for any member to propose a similar proposal within a further period of six months.

 

  1. Order 23 shall not apply to proposals which are moved by the Chairman or other members of the Committee or Sub-Committee in pursuance of the report of the Committee.

 

 

Common Seal

 

  1. The Common Seal of the Board shall be kept in some safe place. All deeds And other documents to which the Common Seal of the Board shall require to be affixed shall be sealed in pursuance of the Board, and in the presence of both the Chairman and the Clerk of the Board.

 

  1. Copies of all sealed documents must be retained.

 

 

Suspension of Standing Orders

 

  1. Any one or more of the standing orders, in any case of urgency or upon resolution or proposal made on a notice duly given, may be suspended at any meeting, so far as regards any business at such meeting, provided that 75% of the members of the Board present and voting are in agreement

 

 

 

 

STATUTORY PROVISIONS REGARDING THE PROCEEDINGS OF AN INTERNAL DRAINAGE BOARD SET OUT IN PARAGRAPH 3 OF SCHEDULE 2 TO THE LAND DRAINAGE ACT 1991.

 

 

Proceedings of Internal Drainage Board

 

  1. (1) An Internal Drainage Board may, with the approval of the relevant Minister, make Rules:-

 

(a)       for regulating the proceedings of the Board, including quorum, place of meetings and notice to be given of meetings;

 

(b)       with respect to the appointment  of a Chairman and Vice-Chairman.

 

(c)        for enabling the Board to constitute committees; and

 

(d)       for authorising the delegation to committees of any of the powers of the Board and for regulating the proceedings of committees, including quorum, place of meetings and notices to be given of meetings.

 

(2)        The first meeting of an Internal Drainage Board shall be held on such day and at such time and place as may be fixed by the relevant Minister; and the relevant Minister shall cause notice of the meeting to be sent by post to each member of the Board not less than fourteen days before the appointed day.

 

(3)        Any member of an Internal Drainage Board who is interested in any company with which the Board has, or proposes to make, any contract shall

 

(a)       disclose to the Board the fact and nature of his interest; and

 

(b)       take no part in any deliberation or decision of the Board relating to such contract;

 

And such disclosure shall be forthwith recorded in the Minutes of the Board.

 

(4)        A Minute of the proceedings of a meeting of an Internal Drainage Board, or of a Committee of such a Board, purporting to be signed at that or the next ensuing meeting by a describing himself as, or appearing to be, the Chairman of the meeting to the proceedings of which the Minute relates:-

 

(a)       shall be evidence of the proceedings; and

 

(b)       shall be received in evidence with further proof

 

(5)        Until the contrary is proved –

 

(a)       every meeting  in respect of the proceedings of which a Minute has been so signed shall be deemed to have been duly convened and held;

 

(b)       all the proceedings at any such meeting are the proceedings of a committee, the committee shall be deemed to have been duly constituted and to have had power to deal with the matters referred to in the minute.

 

(6)        The proceedings of an Internal Drainage Board shall not be invalidated by any vacancy in the membership of the Board or by any defect in the appointment or qualification of any member of the Board.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At the Meeting of the Board held on 13th January 2011 the Board Resolved to accept the foregoing Standing Orders.

 

 

 

Signed and Sealed on 13th January 2011

 

 

 

………………………………………………………………………. Chairman

 

 

 

 

………………………………………………………………………. Clerk