This consultation is now closed.

Thank you to all who provided their feedback. The Live Streaming of Council Meetings Policy 2021 has now been adopted and can be found here.

Council aims to promote greater accessibility, transparency and inclusivity by providing the ability to view Council Meetings over a live-stream, as well as attend meetings in person. Through this approach, we can reach members of our community who might not ordinarily attend a Council Meeting if in-person attendance were the only option.

At the Council Meeting on 18 May 2021, Council endorsed the continued live-streaming of Council Meetings until the Streaming Council Meetings Policy 2020 was reviewed and revised.

The draft Policy proposes:

• That Council continue live-streaming all Council Meetings - with the exception of confidential items that are considered by Council after closing the meeting to the public.
• To continue to record Council Meetings and make the recording available on Council’s website as soon as practicable after the meeting.

If approved, the streaming of Council meetings will be outsourced to a professional firm.

The Local Government Act (the Act) currently provides councils with the ability to close meetings to members of the public if the council live streams the meeting on its internet site. The Act also provides Councillors with the ability to attend meetings electronically.

These provisions allowed Council to continue holding Council Meetings from early 2020, when COVID-19, risks to public health, the declaration of the State of Emergency and restrictions on public gatherings, prevent Councillors from attending Council offices in person.

Click the link to read the draft policy and share your comments in the space below.