The 2023 Annual General Meeting is asked to consider a proposed amendment to Rule 56 of the HCSA Governing Document.

The context for the proposed change to the rule is the decisions, subsequent to receipt of legal advice, of both the Executive Committee and Council to have Executive Officers (rather than Council Members) elected by an externally scrutinised ballot of all members.

In future, Council Members would be elected by an internally managed process. In addition to the reduction of legal risk, these changes are expected to facilitate the creation of a Council that is better able to meet constituent members’ needs by filling Council Member vacancies as and when they arise due, for example, to them moving away from their constituencies.

To achieve the changes referred to above, it will be necessary to make substantial amendments to the HCSA Governing Document and have these reviewed by HCSA’s lawyers.

It had been planned to complete this process prior to 2024, when the current Council is due for re-election, but a combination of illness and the demands on the organisation due to industrial action, have delayed the process. This raises the likelihood that the draft changes to the Governing Document referred to above will not be complete in time to present to the 2024 Annual General Meeting, before the constitutional term of the current Council lapses.

Therefore, the purpose of the following proposed change to Rule 56 of the Governing Document is to extend the legal life of the current Council by up to a year to ensure that there is sufficient time for changes to be submitted for approval to the next Annual General Meeting and thereafter for elections to be held.

Current Rule 56 (partial extract detailing section subject to proposed amendment):

The Council shall consist of the prescribed number of Members as defined in Regulation 1, elected every four years from each Constituency.

Council recommendation to AGM for amendment of Rule 56 (partial extract detailing section subject to proposed amendment):

The Council shall consist of the prescribed number of Members as defined in Regulation 1, elected every four years, save that the Council members elected in 2020 shall have their term of office extended to five years, from each Constituency.

The full current HCSA Governing Document as of April 2022 is available for download