2019-08-06 Services & Organisation Committee Agenda

SERVICES & ORGANISATION COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA                                   6 AUGUST 2019


       year, depending on the location, live video streaming may not be possible but that
       recording should occur and subsequently be published via the Council website;
F.     Request the Chief Executive Officer to provide a report to Council after six months to
       review the technology and practices of the live video streaming and for Council to
       determine at that stage whether to extend the live video streaming technology to the
       Committee Room and/or the other committees; and
G.     Request the Chief Executive Officer to take such necessary action to implement the live
       video streaming as soon as practical.

Finance
The establishment of the current videoing and live streaming system cost $3,208. The
introduction of bookmarking will not incur an additional cost per se but will take time for the staff
who currently manage the Committee and Council meetings.

Risks & Opportunities
In my report to Council in December 2018, I identified a number of risks and opportunities. On
reflection, I have revisited some of those as they remain relevant.
1.     Councillors are reminded that there is no equivalent of parliamentary privilege for local
       government. Proceedings in the State and Commonwealth parliaments have legal
       protections for participants against defamation and other legal proceedings. Local
       governments currently have no such protection and statements or comments in meetings
       are subject to the laws of defamation etc. This has always been the case and the only
       difference now would be that there is a clear and concise record of what has been said
       which will be available for future reference.
2.     Some of our community may perceive that the video recording of the meeting is the official
       record of the meeting. That is not the case. Only the minutes of the meeting are the true
       record of the Council decisions.
3.     Councillors or staff may be quoted out of context based on their debate or response to
       questions at a Council meeting. As Councillors would be aware, debates may flow in a
       Council meeting with different points of view being put forward. In this social media age,
       there is a risk that a comment may be taken out of context with an intent to twist a
       comment into something that it was not meant to be. Unfortunately, we live in an age where
       this is becoming more frequent.
4.     There may be a perception that some will “play to the camera” as part of the meeting
       process. That is, of course, a matter of perception. The flipside is that the community will
       see Council meetings and the performance of Councillors “warts and all” and be able to
       make an informed judgement as to what they think of their elected representatives.
5.     Some staff remain cautious in responding to “on the spot” questions from Councillors and
       may wish to take such questions on notice to ensure that they are 100% correct before
       answering. Some staff continue to raise concerns about being on public video when they
       are not public figures. The location and direction of the camera in the Council Chambers
       has helped mitigate some of these concerns.
Consultation
External Consultation - Community & Stakeholder
Nil.
Internal Consultation
ICT Manager
Executive Assistant to the CEO
Cross-section of the Management group who provided input into staff and management issues


                                                                                    Page 50 of 170