Minutes

Minutes of the Corporate Governance Committee of the Metropolitan Police Authority held on 08 April 2005 at 10 Dean Farrar Street, Westminster, London SW1H 0NY.

Present

Members

• Jennette Arnold (Chair)
• Toby Harris
• Elizabeth Howlett
• Rachel Whittaker (Deputy Chair)

MPA officers

• David Riddle (Deputy Chief Executive, Deputy Clerk and Solicitor to the MPA)
• Keith Dickinson (Head of Policing Policy), (items 1 to 7)
• Ken Hunt (Treasurer)
• Peter Ticker (Director, Internal Audit)
• Ruth Hastings Iqball (Committee Section)

MPS officers

• Louis Backwell (Head, Health and Safety) (items 1 to 7)
• Sharon Burd (Director of Finance)
• Nick Chown (Director of Risk Management)
• Nick Kettle (Team Leader, Health and Safety Branch) (items 1 to 7)
• Terry Price (Director of Strategic Finance)

Co-opted member

Richard Stephenson (Director, Group Health, Safety and Environment, Transport for London (Items 1- 7)

Also present: Neil Gray (Audit Commission)

31. Apologies for absence

(Agenda item 1)

Apologies were received from Richard Bryan (DAC, Chief of Staff and Strategic Development).

32. Declarations of interests

(Agenda item 2)

Toby Harris stated that he was an advisor to Transport for London. However, he did not feel that this necessitated him withdrawing from any part of the meeting.

33. Minutes of the Corporate Governance Committee – 2 December 2004

(Agenda item 3)

The Committee considered the minutes of the meeting held on 2 December 2004.

Resolved – That the minutes of the meeting held on 2 December 2004 be confirmed and signed as a correct record.

34. Chair and members update

(Agenda item 4)

It was noted that an officer had been charged with manslaughter arising out of the death of two juveniles in the swimming pool at the Police Training School, Hendon. Members were reminded that the matter was therefore sub judice. The Chair stated that the Committee’s thoughts were with the families of the deceased and the officer and his family.

Resolved - That the report be noted.

35. Update on MPS health and safety performance

(Agenda item 5)

(Note: Items 10 and 11 were heard before items 5 to 9.)

The Committee received a report on the MPS’s Health and Safety performance. The number of reported injuries had remained constant and there was a marked downward trend in major injuries, both set in the context of an increasing workforce. The MPS was currently on course to achieve its 5% reduction target of major accidents in 2004/5.

In an effort to reduce the number of assault injuries, CO11 had enhanced officer safety training for police officers and the Health and Safety Branch was producing a 12-minute training DVD (in consultation with other branches) on the subject. It was suggested that the Deputy Chief Executive discuss showing this at a full Authority meeting with the Chair of the Authority. The number of traffic-related accidents was high. The Health and Safety Branch was supporting the Safe Driver 2 Campaign aimed at reducing these accidents and, in conjunction with the Traffic OCU, was conducting detailed analysis to determine the underlying causation factors. Many changes would be taking place within the next 9 months to improve driving standards within the MPS. The Health and Safety Branch proposed, as one of its new sponsored objectives, to undertake a campaign to reduce slips, trips and fall accidents in the next financial year.

Following questions concerning a recent firearm incident where police had been criticised for delaying their response until a risk assessment had been undertaken, members were informed that the Health and Safety Branch had Branch had produced an aide memoir for generic high risk activities including firearms incidents. Relevant parties were presently considering a revised safety manual.

Resolved – That the report be noted.

36. MPS health and safety policy revision

(Agenda item 6)

This report provided members with the revised MPS/MPA Health and Safety Policy. As members had been provided with an incomplete copy of the policy, they were invited to submit any comments within the coming week. Members expressed concern that the Policy Statement appeared to give little recognition of the role of the MPA in relation to Health and Safety, and asked that suitable amendments be made to correct this.

Resolved - That the report be noted.

37. Airwave in London underground

(Agenda item 7)

Members received a progress report on the provision of the Airwave radio service in London Underground Stations. At the last meeting of the Corporate Governance Committee, concern had been expressed over the fact that neither Metradio nor the new Airwave system functioned in deep underground tunnels. It had been felt that there was a need for an overarching body to take public ownership of the problem and had been suggested that it be brought to the notice of the Minister for London and Chair of the London Resilience Committee. Members were informed that the Home Office had now taken charge of the issue and that by May temporary radio communication would be in place. It was agreed that a further report be received in six months time.

Resolved – That

1. the report be noted; and
2. a further report be received in 6 months time.

38. Corporate Risk Management Group update

(Agenda item 8)

Members received their first quarterly progress report on activity led by the MPS Corporate Risk Management Group in the three areas where it provided a professional lead for the Service, namely business risk management, business continuity management and insurance management. The MPS had been at level 2 in 2003/4, had moved to level 3 in this financial year, and hoped to achieve level 4 in 2005/6. Members were informed that the MPS had been short listed for a prize for the best risk management in the public sector, and the Chair requested further details of this achievement be forwarded to her.

Resolved - That the progress report for the final quarter of 2004/05 and the key achievements planned for 2005/06 be noted.

39. Statements on internal control - interim report

(Agenda item 9)

The Accounts and Audit Regulations 2003 requirement for a ‘sound system of internal control and risk management’ required the MPA as a public authority to have a sound system of internal control and risk management. As the majority of the controls were within the MPS, the MPA required the MPS to prepare its own Statement. To give the Commissioner the confidence to sign such a Statement, he required assurance that the MPS had a sound system of internal control and risk management. The CIPFA guidance on producing a Statement provided a risk-based and non-bureaucratic process, limited to key controls to mitigate principal risks to achievement of principal objectives. The first draft of MPS’s Statement MPS would be submitted the to Treasurer by 15 June. A draft set of accounts would be submitted to the Corporate Governance Committee on 11 July to enable the Statement be signed off by the full Authority on 28 July. The Statement of Internal Control was also scrutinised by the Audit Commission. The Chair asked to be provided with the names of the Risk Management Programme Board members at the next meeting.

Resolved - That

1. the development and deployment of the Service’s Statement on Internal Control be overseen by members;
2. members note that they had approved deployment option 2c at paragraph 10;
3. the setting up of a Statements on Internal Control Working Group, whose membership included a member of Internal Audit, to guide the assurance activity within the MPS be noted; and
4. a draft MPS Statement on Internal Control be submitted to the Treasurer by 15 June; and
5. a draft set of accounts be submitted to the Corporate Governance Committee on 11 July to enable the Statement be signed off by the full Authority on 28 July.

40. Internal Audit progress report

(Agenda item 10)

Members received a report setting out progress since December 2004 in achieving the 2004/2005 Internal Audit Plan. It also summarised significant Internal Audit work to date and the adequacy and effectiveness of control in MPS systems where Internal Audit had issued formal reports since April 2004.

In his Annual Report for 2003/2004, the Director of Internal Audit had noted that for the third year in succession MPS had shown an improvement in Internal Control, however this was not likely to be continued, due in part to findings of audits into the historical archives warehouse and two covert areas. Since the audits, control of the archives warehouse had shown improvement, and the covert operations had been the subjects of meetings with relevant senior MPS managers. If remedial action did not follow, a report would be made to committee members.

Eight audits of local Borough/Operational Command Unit financial and business systems had been carried out. A new way of working was making the audits even more productive for local senior managers.

Work was continuing on ensuring audit recommendations were actioned. Members were informed that there had been no response by the MPS to four high-risk recommendations made in relation to the Diversity Directorate. The Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Internal Audit would discuss how these could be pursued outside the meeting.

Members requested that MPA policy officers be informed of audit reports relevant to their areas of responsibility.

Resolved - That

1. the progress made in achieving the 2004/2005 Internal Audit Plan; and
2. the current Internal Audit evaluation of the adequacy and effectiveness of internal control in the MPS be noted.

41. Internal Audit plan for April 2005 to March 2006

(Agenda item 11)

A report was received setting out the proposed plan for the use of Internal Audit resources from 1 April 2005 to 31 March 2006. The annual plan was based on an updated Audit Needs Assessment and Risk Analysis for the next five years. The Director of Internal Audit informed members that the MPS’s Senior Management Team had considered the plan that morning during a joint presentation by MPA Internal Audit and the Audit Commission.

Members asked if the Director of Internal Audit was satisfied by ‘buy in’ to the plan by operational groups within the MPS. He stated that planned audit were always discussed and agreed in advance with relevant Senior Managers, however due to recent changes in senior MPS personnel he could not answer the question. Members were assured that past Internal Audit report recommendations would be considered by the Service Review that was taking place. It was suggested that members receive a case study of specific audit in order to increase their understanding of the audit process.

Resolved - That

1. the proposed use of Internal Audit resources be members approved;
2. the summary calculation of audit need and comparison to planned work set out in Appendices 1 and 2 be noted; and
3. the programme of Internal Audit work, set out in Appendices 3 to 6 be approved.

The meeting ended at 2:00 p.m..

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