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Closed Council Meetings Explained

Bass Coast Shire Council has defended its position on conducting certain matters in meetings closed to the public.

By Bass Coast Shire Council - 13th September 2005 - Back to News

Council’s Chief Executive Officer, Allan Bawden, said that the recent State Government investigation into allegations that a councillor had leaked information discussed in a closed session of Council had unfortunately been turned around to suggest that Council conducts secret business.

"Like all other municipal councils, Bass Coast will only close a meeting to the public if it believes it is warranted in accordance with the Local Government Act 1989.

"So far this year, Council has discussed 10 matters in a part of the meeting that is closed to the public. Each of those matters clearly meets the definition contained in the Act," Mr Bawden said.

Mr Bawden encouraged people to visit Council’s website to view the minutes meetings over the last five years so they can gauge for themselves just how little business is actually discussed in closed meetings.

"The minutes of each meeting will show whether any items were discussed in a closed session and the reason for it," Mr Bawden said.

All meetings of Council where decisions are made are conducted as public meetings. Advance notice of all meeting dates and times are provided as public notices in local papers, on Council’s website and in Council’s quarterly newsletter to the community.

Council does have the option to conduct business in meetings that are closed to the public only if that business deals with one of the following:

1. Personnel matters;

2. The personal hardship of any resident or ratepayer;

3. Industrial matters;

4. Contractual matters;

5. Proposed developments;

6. Legal advice;

7. Matters affecting the security of Council property; and

8. Matters which may prejudice the Council or any person.

The normal practise at Bass Coast Shire Council meetings is for all meetings of Council to be open to the public. Anyone interested in attending the meeting is welcome to sit in.

If there are any agenda items that are deemed to meet any of the confidential categories outlined above, then such items are discussed at the conclusion of the meeting once all members of the public have been asked to leave.

Meetings that are closed to the public may also be referred to as "in-camera" meetings.

Bass Coast’s CEO said that the purpose of discussing matters in meetings closed to the public is to ensure Council is provided with sufficient information upon which decisions can then be made.

"Matters are not discussed "in-camera" so that Council can be secretive. They are discussed "in-camera" for the greater good of our community," Mr Bawden said.

"If Council is expected to make a decision that is in the best interests of the community, then the more information that can be made available to councillors the more sound their decision will be. And, the reality is, there is information which will not be disclosed by other parties in public because it will be detrimental to them.

"If a member of our community is experiencing personal hardships and Council is considering how it may help, it would be highly embarrassing and inappropriate for this to be discussed in the public arena.

"If Council is to enter into a business contract with another organisation, then Council wants to know as much as it can about this other organisation and its current and future operations. No businesses want their competitive edge lost through public disclosure of their intimate plans.

"Where Council is being provided with legal advice or industrial advice, then it would not be prudent to disclose this in a public forum.

Mr Bawden said that the purpose of legislation that enables councils to meet in-camera is to improve the level of information required by councils to make decisions.

"Clearly, if absolutely everything was expected to be discussed in public then sensitive details just would not be disclosed. This would result in Council having to make decisions without the benefit of having received all the vital information," Mr Bawden said.

Source: www.gippsland.com

Published by: news@gippsland.com

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