Issue - meetings

To consider the motion referred by Council.

The Committee considered the following motion which had been proposed by Councillor B Murphy and seconded by Councillor P Edwards at the Council meeting on 19^th July 2012 and referred to the Committee for consideration:

“In the light of the ever-growing demand for public accountability in public services and the need to sustain public trust and confidence in democratic governance, this Council calls for a review of its policies and protocols in relation to confidentiality.”

Councillor Murphy stated that his aim was to maximise transparency and openness and that there needed to be greater clarification as to why something should be treated as confidential or commercially sensitive.

In considering this matter, Members also considered the merits of including addition areas of information in the Council’s publication scheme, such as departmental structures and information on the Council’s land holdings and assets.

RESOLVED

That the officers review the approach to confidentiality and the publication of information in this and other local authorities and consult all members of the Council and appropriate Council decision-making bodies before reporting back to the Committee.