Issue - meetings

The Committee heard from the Monitoring Officer who introduced the report. She explained that the quarterly report initially came to Committee in July 2024, and changes had been made since. Notably, the strategic risk relating to Scampton having an adverse impact on financial sustainability had been lowered to a three; the ownership of risks CO3 and OV1 had changed following a staff resignation; the risk relating to increased cyber threat during the General Election; and threat to UK democratic organisations and processes had been deleted, as this was specifically related to the General Election. In addition to this, risk CO4 relating to the impact of extreme weather had a change in ownership and had also been given a new score.

The Chair invited comments from Members, with a Member of the Committee thanking the Assistant Director for maintaining the report as a living document.

The Assistant Director responded to various questions from the Committee, explaining that the strategic risks will again be presented to the Committee in January 2025, and that risk surrounding the forthcoming County Council and Mayoral elections would be considered for inclusion. In response to this assurance, the Chair commented that in light of upcoming elections, risk related to individual Councillors should also be considered.

The Section 151 Officer responded to a comment regarding media reports of potential legal action against West Lindsey District Council, and whether this would appear on the risk register. She explained that no legal action had been taken at that point; she assured the Committee that a report would be brought to the Corporate Policy and Resources Committee regarding the matter, and that after receiving the litigation and subsequent legal advice, the Council would review their position.

In response to a question about the reported change in ownership of risks CO3 and OV1, Members sought clarity on whether the Management Team had appropriate resources to take on the work previously undertaken by a former staff member. The S151 Officer explained this change had not been identified as a risk, but the concerns would be raised with the Management Team; she assured the Committee that they were working hard to ensure they had the appropriate resources and capabilities to maintain service provision. In terms of specific queries regarding individual Officers, the S151 Officer noted that these should be raised with the Chief Executive. In response to this, the Chair asked for the concerns to be taken forward, dealt with appropriately, and reported back to the appropriate Committee in January 2025.

With no further comments or questions, and having been moved, seconded and voted upon, it was unanimously

RESOLVED that the register had been reviewed with the existence of any additional risks of a strategic nature and the robustness of current controls and proposed actions had been considered.