Issue - meetings

Matter for Decision: On 24^th July 2014 the Council resolved that:

 

“Cambridge City Council deplores the illegal practice of “blacklisting” within the construction industry and will ensure that any company known to have been involved in blacklisting practices and not to have indemnified their victims will not be invited to tender for contracts until they have:

 

(i)        Identified the steps taken to remedy the blacklisting for affected workers

(ii)       Identified the steps taken to ensure that blacklisting will not happen again; and

(iii)     Given assurances that they do not employ individuals who were named contacts for The Consulting Association

 

The Council asks officers to prepare a report for the Leader and Strategy and Resources Scrutiny Committee on implementation of this policy.

 

The report will develop the policy and consider how it will be embedded into the Council’s procurement process and practice”.

 

This report responded to that decision and set out, at Appendix 1, a draft of the Council’s policy toward the practice of blacklisting and explained how the policy would be embedded into the Council’s procurement processes.

 

Decision of the Leader

 

The Leader resolved to:

 

i.       Approve the draft policy with regards to Blacklisting set out at Appendix 1 of the officer’s report.

 

ii.     Approve the actions to embed the policy in the Council’s procurement processes set out at Section 6 of the officer’s report.

 

Reasons for the Decision: As set out in the officer’s report

 

Any alternative options considered and rejected: As set out in the officer’s report

 

Scrutiny Considerations:

 

The committee received a report from the Head of Legal Services.

 

In response to member’s questions the Head of Legal Services said the following:

 

       i.          Whilst the new Public Contracts Regulations had been published in draft no date had been given for a final version or an implementation timescale. It was likely that this would be within the next 12 months and at this point the City Council would review its Policy if required.

     ii.          The City Council’s policy could now be implemented.

 

The Scrutiny Committee considered the recommendations and endorsed them unanimously.

 

The Leader approved the recommendations.

 

Conflicts of Interest Declared by the Leader (and any Dispensations Granted):

 

Not applicable.