Hello, im new here and new to mace bearing/ civic officers, can someone confirm the following for me, i have been unable to find anything. In a full Council Meeting , is the civic officer/ mace bearer able to step in if the elected Members need bringing to order? Thank you
That should usually be your Chairman to bring them to order not the Mace Bearer/Civic Officer. You may want to check your Constitution but ours says;
STANDING ORDER 24
DISORDERLY CONDUCT
(1) If in the opinion of the Chair, at a meeting of the Council, (which shall include Committee, Sub-Committee and Executive) a member misconducts him/herself by:-
(a) Persistently disregarding the ruling of the Chair,
(b) Behaving irregularly, improperly or offensively,
(c) Wilfully obstructing the business of the Council.
the Chair or any other member may move “That the member named be not further heard”, and the motion if seconded shall be put and determined without discussion.
(2) If the member named continues his/her misconduct after a motion under Standing Order 24(1) has been carried the Chair shall either:-
(a) Move “that the member named do leave the meeting” (in which case the motion shall be put and determined without seconding or discussion);
(b) Adjourn the meeting for such period as he/she in his/her discretion shall consider appropriate.
(3) In the event of general disturbance, which in the opinion of the Chair renders the due and orderly dispatch of business impossible, the Chair may without discussion adjourn the meeting of the Council for such period as he/she in his/her discretion shall consider expedient.
STANDING ORDER 25
DISTURBANCE BY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC
(1) If a member of the public interrupts the proceedings at any meeting (which shall include Committee, Sub-Committee and Executive meetings), the Chair shall warn him/her. If he/she continues the interruption, the Chair shall order his/her removal from the Council chamber or other meeting room. In case of general disturbance in any part of the chamber open to the public the Chair shall order that part to be cleared.
My understanding is it the Mayor/Chair that would bring to order, but should the Mayor leave the Chamber (which I have witnessed due to warnings not been adhered to) then the Mace bearer leaves the Chamber with the Mayor.
Hi
Chamber discipline is a key role of The Mayor/Chair - understanding, interpreting and enforcing Council Procedure Rules. In complex cases he/she may consult the Monitoring Officer. The Macebearer has no role in this aspect of Chamber discipline.
The Mayor/Chair should not be asking a Macebearer to eject individuals, even if a motion to exclude a Member has been passed, as this could escalate into unpleasantness and physical contact must be avoided. An ejected Member needs to be persuaded to leave by their group leader and/or whip.
Hope that helps.
Phil
I agree with the other comments, Mace Bearer’s role is to process the Mayor in and out of the chamber. One of our Cllrs does this role. We have the Chief Executive and Monitoring Officer on the platform with the Civic Mayor and they would provide guidance and advice to the Civic Mayor on what to do. If this did not work then one of them could intervene. many thanks Teresa