So we decided to ask a further question of Cllr Miller.

Good morning Cllr Miller.

Thank you for your usual prompt response, it is much appreciated.

A further point if I may please.

I note it would appear that some of the Pre-Audit meetings were held on

21/1, 18/2, 11/3, 16/4, 16/8, 27/9 and 22/11.

It would appear some are, two days and three days prior to full Committee meetings and one on the day of the meeting.

Can you oblige and advise how members are made aware of when the Pre-Audit meetings are being held in order that they can be in attendance, like Cllr Grant?

Kind Regards

This was his response.

To answer your question, the secretary emails the chair and vice chair to enquire about availability when she has the names of all the people who are going to attend and we get back to her with suitable dates.

She then coordinates these dates and suggests a mutually convenient time.

As you suggest, sometimes it is three days, two days prior to the meeting and a few times it has been the same day

So we have now established that there are....

Agendas

Notes

Email invitations

Why did Eamonn Daly, the Democratic Services manager say there were no recorded information in relation to those?

and no minutes taken as no decisions are taken.

When was that rule invented?????????

Someone ought to tell the Clerk to the full council (Eamonn Daly) to stop producing minutes when they have a meeting that does not require a decision.

In addition we now find out for the first time that all committees has Pre Meetings.

We have now required to request a review of how our FOI was handled.

Mr Mahon,

I request a review of how East Renfrewshire Council have handled my request for information

My reasons for requesting a review are as follows.

I am of the opinion that I did not receive all of the information that I requested.

My request was " Could you oblige and please send me all recorded information in connection with the Audit Committee's Pre-meetings."

"I am particularly interested in the meetings of 21 January, 18 February and 11 March 2019."

"I am not requesting any recorded information prior to 2019 at this stage"

I received a response from your Mr Daly and I sought clarification.

"Thank you for confirming that there is no recorded information in respect of :-

Invitations to meetings

Agendas

Minutes /notes

................................."


I thereafter received a response from your Mr Daly that appeared to confirm there was no additional recorded information.

Whilst I would have thought that my request would have been understood, namely, all recorded information in relation to pre-audit meetings in 2019, I only received material in relation to the three narrated dates.

However that is not the point of my review request.

I have been informed by the chair of Audit & Scrutiny in respect of Pre - Audit Meetings "the secretary emails the chair and vice chair to enquire about availability when she has the names of all the people who are going to attend and we get back to her with suitable dates. She then coordinates these dates and suggests a mutually convenient time. "

There have been Pre - Audit meetings as follows according to Councillor Grants expenses claims, 21/1,18/2,11/3,16/4,16/8,27/9 and 22/11.

I have not been provided with these invitations of negotiations in respect of convenient dates / times for participants.

The chair of Audit & Scrutiny also informs me that he takes notes with regards to forthcoming attendees at meetings, whilst at the Pre - Meetings.

I have not been provided with these notes.

If we concentrate only on the three dates with regards material provided by your Mr Daly, one, the 11 March 2019 resulted in Cllr Grant requesting documentation which the clerk to the committee emailed later.

I have not received the note taken by the clerk to remind her to recover a dated article and email it to the councillor.

I also see that the Pre - Audit meeting of 21/1 was preempted by an agenda dated and issued on the 18/1 for the forthcoming meeting of 24/1.

Pre - Audit meeting of 18/2 was preempted by an agenda dated and issued on the 15/2 for the forthcoming meeting of 21/2.

Pre - Audit meeting of 11/3 was preempted by an agenda dated and issued on the 8/3 for the forthcoming meeting of 14/3.

I am at a loss to understand how the author of the agendas, Caroline Inness was in a position to formulate these without corresponding with the chair / clerk of Audit & Scrutiny.

Suffice to say I have not been provided with any material with regards the compilation of these agendas.

I understand that it is my right to have a response within 20 working days.

Four weeks passed from the submission of the first FOI before a response was made.

We will require to wait a further four weeks for a response to our review request.

What we have learned is that a Clerk (Linda Hutchieson), and two Cllrs (Miller and Grant) have to meet in order that Cllr Miller can be informed which member of staff will be speaking to which item on the forthcoming agenda.

Each time they have this very important meeting, which obviously cannot be conducted by email or telephone, Cllr Grant charges mileage to and from Council HQ.