10.5 Meeting procedure

 

  1. Many of the council’s significant formal decisions are made by resolution of the governing body, a local board or a committee.

  2. Such resolutions are made at formal meetings, the procedure for which is governed by [1]:

    • the relevant Standing Orders [2]

    • the rules in the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987

    • the rules in Schedule 7 of the Local Government Act 2002.

  3. The aspects of council meetings governed by these rules include the following:

    • how meetings are called, including the amount of notice required [3]

    • meeting quorum [4]

    • the chairs of meetings [5]

    • how items arise from discussion at the meeting, including how resolutions are proposed and voted on (see Standing Orders)

    • rules about the conduct of members at the meetings [6]

    • requirements for public notification of meetings and agendas [7]

    • the right of the public to attend meetings and the ability to exclude people in some circumstances [8]

    • requirements to keep minutes and make these publicly available [9].

  4. The council must hold meetings that are necessary for the good government of its region or district [10].

  5. Each council meeting follows an agenda [11]. Matters usually appear on the meeting’s agenda by way of officer reports, usually drafted by staff and approved by managers or a member of the council’s executive leadership team. The reports are uploaded onto the council intranet before a scheduled meeting and an agenda is published on the council website two days before the meeting takes place.  

  6. Unless the Local Government Act 2002 or the Standing Orders provide otherwise, any act or question coming before the governing body, local board or its committee must be decided by an open vote, by the majority of the members present and voting [12]. This reflects the fact that the governing body or local board is democratically responsible for the council’s decision-making.

  7. The public can have input into the council’s decisions at meetings of the governing body, local boards and their committees. Ordinarily, an item is included on the agenda at the start of meetings open to the public (see Standing Orders).  Each speaker may talk for five minutes during this section of a governing body meeting and for three minutes during a local board meeting.  However, a resolution to exclude the public may apply to the whole or a relevant part of a meeting.

 

 

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