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Decision making on Cornwall Council

Much of the decision making on Cornwall Council, as with any council, is concerned with ensuring that the normal day-to-day processes of running a large public sector body continue to function. The officers are delegated with authority to take many decisions up to specified limits such as financial impact. Decisions not within the authority of the officers are made by the elected members in a number of ways.

Full council: there is a meeting of the full council about 10 times a year. Only a few decisions are reserved for the full council, e.g. setting the annual budget, constitutional matters and some others.

Cabinet: the Cabinet is the body that makes most of the key decisions taken by the Council. The Cabinet formally meets once a month. Individual Cabinet members have authority to make decisions on certain day-to-day matters without having to seek approval from the full Cabinet.

Planning and licensing committees: minor planning applications are often determined by planning officers. However, major planning applications and more controversial minor applications are decided by planning committees comprising elected members. There are 3 regional planning committees (west, central, east) and a strategic planning committee that determines applications that have significance for the whole county. Licensing committees deal with issues such as alcohol licence applications, taxis etc.

Overview and scrutiny committees: these committees scrutinise policies and proposals being made by the Cabinet or by officers, or they can study areas of interest to them. Recommendations will go from scrutiny committees generally to the Cabinet for final decisions to be made.

All meetings of the above committees are public meetings, although sometimes, some items are discussed with the press and public excluded where confidential information is being discussed. Agendas are published on the Council website at least 7 days in advance of meetings. At full council, Cabinet and scrutiny committee meetings, there is an opportunity for members of the public to ask questions. Questions have to be submitted in writing prior to the meeting and time limits apply to this part of the agenda. At planning meetings, members of the public may be allowed to speak if they register in advance and say what their interest is in the application.

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