At present, members of the public wishing to speak to items on the agenda at MidCoast Council's ordinary meetings must do so in a public forum before the council meeting takes place.
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Public forums usually take place at 9.30am on the morning of the day of the ordinary council meeting, which does not start until 2pm.
Councillor Kathryn Bell has put forward a notice of her intention to move a motion at the next council ordinary meeting that a review of council's Code of Meeting Practice take place and a report made to council to change the provisions in the code to allow for greater transparency regarding public speakers.
Cr Bell presented two options for the motion: that public speakers addressing council on agenda items can address council at the council meeting; or, if public speakers address council in a public forum that it be live streamed and a recording made for accountability purposes, with the name and subject of the public address noted in the minutes.
"Regardless of whether members of the public address council during, or prior to, a council meeting, the identity of the speaker and the content of their speech is often mentioned during a formal meeting," Cr Bell said in her Notice of Motion.
"Accordingly, it appears consistent with the principles of accountability and transparency that when public speakers present outside of a council meeting on a matter council will determine at that meeting, that a recording be made, retained and be publicly accessible. Otherwise, there is no accountability regarding the way in which the speech has been represented versus what was said or how it may have influenced debate and a decision."
Options relating to public speakers in the Local Government Act are optional non-mandatory provisions, and Cr Bell said there is no bar "to councils having public speakers at a council meeting and the overwhelming majority of councils in the Hunter Joint Organisation do so."
The next MidCoast Council ordinary meeting is on Wednesday, October 27 and will be livestreamed from 2pm. To register to watch the livestream go to www.midcoast.nsw.gov.au/Council/Council-Meetings/Meeting-Agendas-and-Minutes.
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