Does the printing of Apologies for Absence count as an acceptance

Question

In the minutes each month there is a list of councillors present but also a list of ‘Apologies for Absence’. Does the printing of this Apologies for Absence count as an acceptance from the council of my apology and that the six month rule is then reset

Answer 1

To complete the procedure the council must also vote ( and record) to accept the apology given by the councillor and it should be duly noted. It would be of course efficient for a council to inform the councillor if their reason given was not acceptable to the council to allow them to " mend their ways" or explain their absence more fully.

Answer 2

As Mentorman states, the acceptance of apologies has to be positively acted on in the form of a resolution and vote to approve and not just recorded.  If the vote takes place and your reason for absence has been accepted, then the 6 month clock restarts.

Answer 3

So, is it your apology (s) that you are concerned about or somebody else’s??

If it is your own, and you are approaching or have passed the 6 months, maybe you’d be better deciding if you can continue to contribute to the council or it would be better to stand aside and let someone else do it that can attend.

Answer 4

Printed or otherwise is irrelevant.  There needs to be a clear resolution to accept apologies for it to be effective under Section 85.  My own council "notes" but doesn't approve apologies unless there is a specific request for the reason for an absence to be approved.

Comments

Surely noting is a pointless exercise. Why bother? The reason a councillor gives an apology for not attending a meeting should be the starting point of a procedure that can if not followed correctly, end with one of  the few reasons an elected member can be removed from office.
If this isn't a reason for the council to vote on acceptance or not of an apology and recording that vote then I would see that as a failure on that council's part. It could be seen in certain circumstances as being complicit in getting rid of a councillor if not applied across the board at every meeting. Also highlights the need for a publicly available councillor attendance record.

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It is a decision the whole council made and was based upon a number of factors including concerns that a discussion on the fact that Cllr. X is on holiday might highlight the individual is not at home or that councillors felt they were not qualified to judge whether a reason for an absence is valid or not.  To give context, it is also policy that any councillor who is approaching a six month absence is contacted so warned and given an opportunity to formally request that his or her absence is approved.

Answer 5

No.
you have to formally resolve to accept the reason for the apology, not ‘ I give my apologies’ which is what most say. LGA1972 s85