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Councillors and democracyNorth Yorkshire County Council consists of 72 County Councillors, each of whom represents the residents of one of the electoral divisions in the County. Elections are held every four years, the latest being in June 2009. The next County Council elections will be held in 2013.
If you are dissatisfied with, or wish to get more information about, a service provided by the County Council, your local County Councillor can advise you. They may direct you to someone who can help with the issue, or may progress the case on your behalf. As community leaders, County Councillors seek to address issues of concern arising in their division and can put forward proposals to improve services in the division. Independent panel on members' remuneration vacanciesAre you interested in issues relating to Local Authority Members' remuneration and expenses? Why not become a member of North Yorkshire County Council's Independent Panel on Members' Remuneration? The Panel, which consists of four members, makes recommendations and provides advice to the County Council about its Members' Allowances Scheme, which sets the amounts elected Members are paid to carry out their duties and the expenses they can claim. Before the Council makes or amends its Members' Allowances Scheme it must have regard to, and publicise, the Panel's recommendations. We are currently seeking to fill two vacancies for members of the Independent Panel. The positions attract an annual allowance. A panel member should expect to attend at least one meeting of the Panel per year and consider draft papers. Meetings are held during office hours. The successful applicants will have an interest in Members' remuneration and expenses in the public sector, be confident communicators and capable of dealing with complex issues. Interviews for the positions are likely to be held during the week commencing 17 June 2013. For more information, please contact Carole Dunn, Assistant Chief Executive (Legal and Democratic Services) (tel: 01609 532173 or email carole.dunn@northyorks.gov.uk) or, for an information pack, please contact Julie Robinson (tel: 01609 532237 or e-mail julie.robinson@northyorks.gov.uk).
Applications should be received by 31 May 2013. Councillor conductCounty Councillors are the elected representatives of North Yorkshire, who make the most important decisions on behalf of the authority. North Yorkshire County Council believes in a strong ethical organisational culture. It aims to promote the highest levels of conduct by its members and officers, to increase public trust in the delivery of its vision and its objectives, by:
A number of safeguards are in place, through the 'ethical framework', to ensure that when Councillors make decisions, they do so in the public interest and without regard to personal advantage. The requirements relating to local Councillors are tighter than those for Members of Parliament. Find out more about councillor conduct in the pages below. Becoming a councillorElections for all 72 seats on the County Council are held in all electoral divisions every four years on the first Thursday in May. County Councillors represent electoral divisions on the County Council whereas District Councillors represent wards on their councils. You can be a candidate if you are 18 or over, and are on the electoral register, or have lived, worked or owned a property in the area for at least the past 12 months. You may be disqualified as a candidate if you work for the Council or hold a politically restricted post with another local authority. Being the subject of a bankruptcy restriction order or a previous criminal conviction with a three-month or more prison sentence within the last five years would also disqualify you as a candidate. Most candidates are nominated through a political party. However, individuals are able to stand in their own right. Before you can be accepted as a candidate you must get one person to agree to propose your nomination, another person to agree to second the proposal and eight other persons to assent to your nomination. All must be received by the Deputy Returning Officer by the date fixed. The chief executives of the seven district councils in the County act as deputy returning officers for the County Council elections and administer those elections on the County Council's behalf. For details of election processes and timetables please access the website of the relevant district council for the electoral division you are interested in. Online mappingYou can find a range of information about the services we provide by using our online mapping.
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Be a councillor
 Find your councillor
 Listen to the Council
 Registration of interests
 The constitution
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