Agenda, decisions and draft minutes

Apologies for non-attendance were received from Councillors Carr and McGhee. Councillor Jelley substituted for Councillor Carr and Councillor Lee substituted for Councillor McGhee.

Any requests to speak on an item on the agenda should be notified to the Chair (c/o the Committee Manager) by 12 noon two working days before the date of the meeting.

None received.

Members are asked to declare any interest and the nature of that interest which they may have in any of the items under consideration at this meeting.

None declared.

To receive communications from the Chair.

The Chair advised Panel Members that the Police, Fire and Crime Panel Budget and Precept Workshop had been organised to take place on 17January 2023.

The Chair welcomed Mr Nick Adderley to the meeting and Panel members introduced themselves.

The Democratic Services Assistant Manager presented the report on the confirmation hearing procedure and outlined the purpose, format and possible outcomes from this function, highlighting the following points:

·         The Panel was required to review and make a report on the proposed appointment of a Chief Constable by the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner (PFCC) as one its statutory functions.

·         The Panel was required to hold a public confirmation hearing to put questions to the candidate. Guidance recommended that these questions should focus on the areas of the candidate’s professional competence and personal independence.

·         The confirmation hearing was not intended to repeat the recruitment and selection process carried out by the PFCC to identify the candidate but served more as a safeguard in the overall process.

·         The Panel had the power to recommend that a candidate not be appointed, and to veto a proposed appointment if this was agreed by two-thirds of Panel members. Both of these resolutions were significant decisions that should not be made lightly.

·         The Panel’s report resulting from the confirmation hearing would be sent to the PFCC by the end of the following day and published in liaison with the Office of the PFCC (OPFCC).  

The Chair invited Panel members to raise any questions regarding the confirmation hearing process. There were none.

The Chair invited the PFCC to introduce Mr Adderley as his proposed appointment to the role of Chief Constable of Northamptonshire Police and to comment on the background to the proposed appointment. The PFCC made the following points:

·         Mr Adderley had been appointed as the Chief Constable in 2018 on a five-year contract, which was due to end in summer 2023.

·         As PFCC he believed that it was in the best interests of Northamptonshire for Mr Adderley to continue in the role. Mr Adderley had provided effective leadership that had contributed to the development of the force and perceptible improvements in its performance during his tenure.

·         He proposed to offer Mr Adderley a further contract for two and a half years with an option to extend beyond this point by mutual agreement.

·         The current pension scheme for police officers could result in a detrimental financial impact for senior officers when they had exceeded their lifetime contributions. There was a precedent for police officers being able to retire and be re-employed in order to abate their pension. The appointment proposed by the PFCC would involve Mr Adderley technically retiring for a short period. The OPFCC had received legal advice confirming that this approach could be taken. The National Police Chiefs Council and the Chief Police Officers’ Staff Association were also supportive of this approach.

·         Mr Adderley was the right person to lead Northamptonshire Police through its continuing improvement journey. Mr Adderley had clear plans to make further progress and it was important to maintain momentum.

·         Mr Adderley’s original appointment had resulted from a rigorous selection process over two days during which he  ...  view the full minutes text for item 111.

The Chair to advise whether they have agreed to any items of urgent business being admitted to the agenda.

There was none.

In respect of the following items the Chair may move the resolution set out below, on the grounds that if the public were present it would be likely that exempt information (information regarded as private for the purposes of the Local Government Act 1972) would be disclosed to them: The Panel is requested to resolve: “That under Section 100A of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following item(s) of business on the grounds that if the public were present it would be likely that exempt information under Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Act of the descriptions against each item would be disclosed to them.”

The Chair requested the Panel to agree that the remainder of the meeting be held in private session.

RESOLVED that: under Section 100A of the Local Government Act 1972, the public and press be excluded from the meeting for the following item of business on the grounds that if the public and press were present it would be likely that exempt information under Part I, Paragraph 1 of Schedule 12A to the act of the descriptions would be disclosed to them.

The remainder of the meeting took place in private session.

Exemption under Paragraph 1 – Information relating to any individual.

RESOLVED that:

a)    The Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Panel recommends that the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Northamptonshire appoints Mr Nick Adderley as the Chief Constable of Northamptonshire Police.

b)    The Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Panel recommends that the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Northamptonshire considers the contract length and terms for the appointment of Mr Nick Adderley to ensure that these best support the aim of retaining an excellent Chief Constable in Northamptonshire for as long as possible.

The Panel considered its report and recommendation on the proposed appointment.

At the conclusion of discussion the Chair invited the Panel to reach a resolution on the proposed appointment.

RESOLVED that:

a)    The Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Panel recommends that the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Northamptonshire appoints Mr Nick Adderley as the Chief Constable of Northamptonshire Police.

b)   The Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Panel recommends that the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Northamptonshire considers the contract length and terms for the appointment of Mr Nick Adderley to ensure that these best support the aim of retaining an excellent Chief Constable in Northamptonshire for as long as possible.