DATE: 27 September 2017

LETTER TO MSC RE: Request for changes to council meetings

Dear CEO, Mayor and Councillors,

Request for changes to council meetings

With Ipswich council chief executive officer Jim Lindsay being charged with official corruption last week, ratepayers’ attention has been focused once again on local government practices.

So it is more important than ever that local councils follow transparent processes to show that councils are operating honestly.

We therefore request that

• detailed minutes are taken in council meetings that outline key points of any discussion,
  and if voting was unanimous- and if not, how individual councillors voted
• council meetings encourage public attendance by a better seating arrangement so the
  public can see how councillors are voting and hear them better
• a more participatory approach is taken to chairing to enable more open discussion of
  complex issues by councillors
• more of council business is conducted in public as is the case in many other local councils in
  Queensland (we understand that Mareeba Shire council meetings in 2017 lasted on
  average 56 minutes with the rest of council business being conducted behind closed doors)

We would be very interested in your opinion of these matters and are always delighted to receive individual responses from councillors as well as the standard official response.

Yours,

Sarah Isaacs
Friends of the Earth FNQ