10.1 General scheme of the council's decision-making

 

1. Every decision the council makes must be empowered by legislation. This means each decision is made under either:

   • a specific power given to the council by legislation

   • the council’s power of general competence (this broadly allows it to make any decision that an ordinary person or body corporate could make while carrying out the council’s role and purpose) [1].

2. The council’s shared governance structure means that both the governing body and local boards are responsible and democratically accountable for their decision-making [2]. Responsibility for specific decisions depends on the nature of the decision [3].

3. A broad range of decision-making obligations and principles apply to the council’s decisions, including statutory and public law requirements. How these principles apply to any particular decision depends on its nature and the context. 

 

 

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