Terms of Appointment

Terms of Appointment

Status

Inspectors and Commissioners are not employees of the Department. Accordingly, nothing in their terms of appointment shall be construed as, or taken to create, a contract of employment between themself and the Department.

Costs and expenses

The Secretary of State has set the standard fee for Inspectors and Commissioners at up to £1,200 per day. Fees are subject to discussion at the point of appointment and will be dependent on the roles.

The Secretary of State reserves the right to vary the fee at any time during the Term by agreement with Inspectors and Commissioners. For Commissioners, fees are normally payable up to a maximum of 150 days per annum for the first year and are normally expected to reduce in year two and further thereafter (unless otherwise specified).

It will be for the Authority subject to the inspection or intervention to cover the costs of that inspection or intervention. As such, payments should be made directly from the Authority to Inspectors and Commissioners. In the case of those concurrently serving as Council officers, payments would likely be made directly to their home council.

Costs for Commissioners will also include “reasonable expenses”. As the Authority is meeting the costs, the Department normally expects that “reasonable expenses” will be those as stated in the Authority’s handbook, unless otherwise agreed with the Department and or Authority.

Tax

Inspectors are required to pay the correct amount of tax according to their fees.

Statutory Commissioners, in accordance with the 2017 off-payroll changes (IR35), are given ‘Office Holder’ employment status. This means that they must be on the Authority’s payroll and are required to pay the correct amount of tax.

Notice

The Secretary of State reserves the right to terminate an Inspector or Commissioner’s appointment with immediate effect if they determine in their absolute discretion, that they are no longer a suitable person to hold the appointment.

If an appointment is terminated before the end of the Term for a reason other than the Secretary of State’s determination of suitability for a role, four weeks’ notice of that termination will be given. If Inspectors or Commissioners themselves decide to terminate their appointment, they will be required to give the Department one month’s written notice.

The appointment may be terminated with immediate effect for any reason by mutual agreement.

On termination of an appointment, Inspectors and Commissioners shall only be entitled to reimbursement of any expenses properly incurred prior to that date.

Conduct

It is essential that Inspectors and Commissioners are, and are seen to be, honest and impartial in the exercise of their duties. The Seven Principles of Public Life apply to them in their appointment.

Conflicts of interest

Inspectors and Commissioners must declare to both the Secretary of State and the Authority, any personal or business interest which may, or may be perceived to influence their judgement in performing their duties.

All information on potential conflicts of interest could be disclosed to the public under the Freedom of Information Act (2000). In entering into an agreement and accepting an appointment, Inspectors and Commissioners consent to this disclosure.

Personal liability

In any legal proceedings brought against Inspectors or Commissioners by a third party with regards performance of their duties, the Authority will meet any civil liability which the Inspector or Commissioner incurs, provided that they acted diligently and honestly. With this in mind, the Authority should ensure that Inspectors and Commissioners are covered by any professional indemnity insurance that they carry.

Inspectors and Commissioners may be personally liable if they make a fraudulent or negligent statement which results in a loss to the third party, and they may commit a breach of confidence under common law or a criminal offence under insider dealing legislation if they misuse information gained through holding the offices.

Data protection

By accepting an appointment, Inspectors and Commissioners consent to DLUHC holding and processing information about them for legal, personnel and administrative purposes, including any sensitive personal data (as defined in the Data Protection Act 2018).

When handling personal data in connection with their appointment by DLUHC, Inspectors and Commissioners will comply with their obligations under the Authority’s data protection, criminal records information and information security policies.