Process
First Round of Appointments - 2006
57. Councillor members are appointed by the constituent councils (see Annex A). The new statutory RTPs will have their full membership after Scottish Ministers appoint the first set of other members (see below). These first non-councillor member appointments will expire sometime after the local government elections in May 2007 (see paragraph 64).
58. The Scottish Executive will manage the process and advertise in consultation with the RTPs. The RTPs will sift the applications and produce of a short list of appointable candidates. The process will consist of (1) advertising in January 2006, (2) a paper sift, if necessary, to produce a long list, (3) a further paper sift, to produce a short list, (4) interview (or telephone discussion interview) by the RTP, and (5) Ministerial selection and appointment in March 2006. Recruitment consultants will be available to support the process.
59. The Scottish Ministers will invite recommendations from RTPs of individuals whom they have appraised as meeting the published criteria and consider to be suitable for appointment.
60. Each RTP should recommend a number of individuals, whom they consider to be suitable for appointment, related to the range set out in the Order i.e. if an RTP wishes to appoint 4 other members it should recommend between 6 and 8 individuals from whom Ministers can select and appoint. Nominations should be supported with information on each nominee - their professional skills and knowledge - an assessment of their strengths and weaknesses based on the selection process - and a supporting statement. The supporting statement should set out the reasons for nominating this person based on the process used to select them and the benefits that they are expected to bring to the RTP. This should demonstrate how their skills and knowledge measure against the criteria for the post together with a brief overall summary of their suitability for appointment. It should also be made clear that the nominated person has agreed to serve, if appointed. Public appointment processes may no longer include ranking of candidates put before Ministers.
61. All appointments to RTPs should be made on the basis of fair, open and transparent processes based on public advertising (with slightly different arrangements for single-authority RTPs), and all appointments should be made in a way that is consistent with Nolan principles. It is open to RTPs to seek candidates to be other members by inviting them to apply. This might include:
- inviting applications from current non-councillor members or member organisations of voluntary RTPs;
- inviting applications from representative groups or organisations for membership;
- inviting applications from the Chairperson of a regional consultative forum, or other member of the forum elected for the purpose of seeking appointment as a member of the RTP.
62. A number of simple steps that can be followed to draw up a short list of suitable candidates are listed at Annex D.
63. The only anticipated exception to appointment through public advertising will be in the case of single-authority RTPs. Scottish Ministers have decided that the membership of single-authority RTPs ( i.e. South-West of Scotland Transport Partnership and Shetland Transport Partnership) should include other members drawn from the corresponding health board and Local Enterprise Company. This in effect means that the criteria for selecting the best person for the 2 places available in each of these RTPs will include being part of either of these bodies. It would therefore be artificial and misleading to go through a public advertising process, and only the health board and the LEC would be invited to seek membership. The individuals to be considered by the RTP and appointed by the Minister should nevertheless be assessed against all the other criteria for appointment. Given the special status of these appointments, the members would be expected to give up their appointment on the RTP if they ceased to be members of their sponsoring organisation - health board or LEC.
64. Those other members appointed by the Scottish Ministers will remain members until the date indicated in their appointment letter - this will be around 6-12 months after May 2007 to support continuity and stability as there is likely to be quite a number of changes in the councillor membership following the May 2007 elections, conducted for the first time under a system of proportional representation.
65. The RTP will, when deciding on its own first appointments of other members after May 2007, be able to consider those already in post. It should carry out an appraisal of each other member's contribution before considering any re-appointment. There is no limit to the number of times an other member can be appointed, or the number of years he or she can serve. However, a balance between continuity and refreshment should be struck.
Subsequent Rounds of Appointments
66. After the local government elections in May 2007 the non-councillor members will be appointed by the RTP but subject to the consent of Scottish Ministers. The RTP should send to the Scottish Ministers the names of the other members it proposes to appoint along with a brief summary of the benefits they will bring to the partnership and of the process used to select them. Consent, or any other response, will be given within one calendar month.
Guidance for Board Members
67. On Board: A Guide for Board Members of Public Bodies in Scotland 7provides a comprehensive standard induction pack covering generic issues such as roles and responsibilities of public bodies, and accountability and governance arrangements to supplement tailored induction and training.