West Kelowna council to give code of conduct another look

On Tuesday, West Kelowna council will take another look at a proposed code of conduct.

Municipal councils across the province are now required under the community charter to consider whether to establish a code of conduct or whether to review an existing code within six months of its first regular meeting after a general election, says a staff report.

West Kelowna council currently has a code of ethics policy that was adopted in August 2012.

A draft code of conduct was presented in mid-March, however, council wanted the draft document to be shortened and blended with the existing policy.

During a meeting on March 14, council asked staff to go back to the drawing board and make the document more “concise and to the point.”

That draft was five pages long, however, staff have revised it down to two pages.

The code of conduct still includes five principles of “responsible” conduct, including integrity, respect, accountability, leadership and collaboration.

“Responsible conduct is founded on four foundational principles that provide a basis for how Members fulfill roles, responsibilities, and relationships with one another, staff and with the public,” states the staff report.

“The four foundational principles will guide acceptable behaviours to assist with providing good governance and decision making.”

The Code of Conduct requires council members to adhere to the principles, perform their duties in a fair, open and honest manner, not use city resources not available to the public for private gain and treat other members, the public and city staff with respect.

West Kelowna council will review the revised draft and make a decision to either further amend it, adopt it or decide to not adopt a code of conduct. They will discuss the matter on Tuesday at 1:30 pm.