Acceptable Use Policy

This Acceptable Use Policy defines the purposes for which Members cannot use the site. Members may not:

promote any political party or campaigning organisation
promote personal campaigns
promote their personal financial or commercial interests
process personal data other than for the purpose stated at the time of capture
introduce content that may result in actions for libel, defamation or other claims for damages
use the site in an abusive or hateful manner

Political Publicity

Members' web pages on the Council's site are subject to the Code of Practice on Local Authority Publicity published by the Secretary of State under the aegis of the Local Government Act 1986. The Code of Practice provides that:

"Publicity about individual councillors may include the contact details, the positions they hold in the Council (for example a member of the Executive or Chair of Overview and Scrutiny Committee) and their responsibilities. Publicity may also include information about individual councillors' proposals, decisions and recommendations only where this is relevant to their position and responsibilities within the council. All such publicity should be objective and explanatory and whilst it may acknowledge the part played by individual councillors as holders of particular positions in the council, personalisation of issues or personal image-making should be avoided.

Publicity should not be, or liable to misrepresentation as being, party political. Whilst it may be appropriate to describe policies put forward by an individual councillor which are relevant to her/his position and responsibilities within the council, and to put forward his/her justification in defence of them, this should not be done in party political terms, using political slogans, expressly advocating policies of those of a particular political party, or directly attacking policies and opinions of other parties, groups or individuals".

Consequently, Members may not use their web page(s) on the Council's site to promote political campaigns or advocate political stances on issues. They may not use the site to promote a political party or persons identified with a political party. They may not use it to promote or oppose a view on a question of political controversy which is identifiable of the view of one political party and not of another.

However, Members may use the 'My Politics' section of their website to link to external websites of a political nature.

Data Protection

Members may publish or refer to material from a wide range of sources, including information drawn from within the Local Authority. Members may receive e-mails through their websites containing comments, enquiries or complaints from members of the public, and visitors to the site may register to receive occasional mailings.

Anyone processing personal data must comply with the eight enforceable principles of good practice. Data must be:

Obtained and processed fairly and lawfully
Used only for a defined purpose
Adequate, relevant and not excessive
Accurate and up to date
Deleted when no longer required
Processed in accordance with the data subject's rights
Kept secure
Not transferred to other countries without adequate protection

For further advice and guidance on Data Protection issues please contact:

Jackie Leesons

Information Manager

Tel: 452295

e-mail: jackie.leesons@peterborough.gov.uk

Members are also directed to the Council's Data Protection Policy which is available on the Council's website. Members will be required to confirm that they have read the Council's policy and code on data protection and accept the provisions of it.

Defamation

Members are provided with the tools to edit their web page(s) by the Council and are personally responsible for the content of those web pages. They are only permitted to publish information in the context of their official role and in respect of matters of general public interest. Members may not use their web page(s) on the Council's site to publish defamatory statements or material.

The primary legislation governing the law of defamation is the Defamation Act 1996. Briefly, a defamatory statement is a false statement that causes harm to a person's reputation. It may be spoken (slander) or written (libel) but must be said or published to a third person and refer to the defamed individual whether by name or by implication. A false statement is defamatory if it exposes a person to hatred, ridicule or contempt, or causes him to be shunned or avoided, or which has a tendency to injure him in his office, trade or profession in the estimation of right-thinking members of society generally. In the case of libel, as a general rule it is not necessary for the defamed person to have suffered actual loss or damage in order to bring proceedings it is enough that that person has been exposed to the risk of such loss or damage.

Anyone who believes that they have been defamed by a Member, whether as the originator or subsequent publisher of a defamatory statement or material, will be able to take legal action directly against the Member concerned.

The Council is not responsible for approving the content of Members' websites. However, for the avoidance of any doubt, Members should note that the Council does not authorise or in any way sanction, but rather strongly deprecates the publication of statements which might be construed as defamatory.

For these reasons, Members must also take reasonable steps to ensure that they do not include links in their web pages to other websites or web pages that themselves contain defamatory or potentially defamatory statements or materials. Where such links are placed in their web pages, Members should include a statement disclaiming responsibility for anything that is published on the sites or pages to which those links direct the user. However, Members should be aware that such a disclaimer may not protect a Member where the presence of a defamatory statement or defamatory material on the linked page or site would or should have been obvious to them.

Other Statutory Issues

Care should be taken to ensure compliance with Local Government legislation and Local Authority's policies on the following issues

The particular legislative requirements relating to discrimination/incitement to racial hatred etc. (Anti-Terrorism, Crime And Security Act 2001 & Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000)
Publication of obscene material (Obscene Publications Act 1959, Protection of Children Act 1978, Criminal Justice Act 1988)

Members Code of Conduct

Members should take care that nothing in their use of this site would place them in breach of their Code of Conduct. For instance, the site must not be used:

in a way that will bring Elected Members or their Local Authority into disrepute;
to disclose information given to any Member in confidence, or acquired and believed by the Member to be of a confidential nature, without the consent of a person authorised to give it.
to disclose information which the Council has considered in exempt session, or which a Member is on notice is confidential for any other reason
to secure personal advantage or secure for any Member or others use of the resources of the Council
to do anything that compromises the impartiality of those who work for or on behalf of the authority.

Tainting of Decision Making

Members who are in positions of determining quasi-judicial processes, particularly planning and licensing applications, or determining the outcome of consultation exercises must exercise care to keep an open mind on issues which he or she may be required to make decisions.

The use of individual websites to set out a clear position on a particular issue could well provide evidence of bias based on a particular personal interest or view, or a closed mind. This would demonstrate the artificiality of the councillor then purporting to consider openly all issues in the determination of that matter.

To have regard to all relevant advice when reaching decisions and to give reasons for decisions.

Members must give an accurate and even-handed account of discussions or processes that lead to decisions being taken. For example, they must not give a one-sided account of the reasons for a planning application being refused.

Representation of the People Act

During election times (from the 'notice of an election' to the election itself), most parts of Councillors' websites will be suspended. Visitors will still, however, be able to contact them through the website.