The Openness of Local Government

Bodies Regulations 2014

Liz Howlett, SolicitorOctober 2014ehowlett@ejhlegal.co.uk

Recording meetings, decisions, blogging and

tweeting• Part of the transparency agenda• Open and accessible democracy – “Councils

should open their digital doors and not cling to analogue interpretations of Council rules”

• Watch and comment on council meetings from anywhere

• Culture change• You need to talk about this within your

Council, not ignore it

Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014

section 40• Amends Public Bodies (Admission to Meetings) Act 1960

and section100A of the Local Government Act1972

• “reporting” means “filming, photographing or audio recording of proceedings or using any other means for enabling persons not present to see or hear proceedings of a meeting as it takes place or later” – can be just sound or sound and visual

• And “reporting or providing commentary on proceedings of a meeting orally or in writing so that the report or commentary is available as the meeting takes place or later to persons not present” that is, blogging, tweeting or emailing

Guidance• Draft guide for the press and public on

attending and reporting meetings of local government – issued 30th June 2014

• “Facilities” will be available – that means space to view and hear the meeting, seats and, ideally, a desk

• Limits – existing laws of defamation and public order offences

• What is criminal off-line is criminal on-line (House of Lords communications committee)

Defamation

• A civil wrong• You can defame by circulating ( “making

public”) something you haven’t written• Defamation is “exposing a person to hatred,

ridicule or contempt, or which causes them to be shunned or avoided, or which has a tendency to lower them in the estimation of right thinking members of society or injure them in their office, profession or trade”

Recording of meetings

• Agree Council policy – revise Standing Orders

• Provisions for maintaining control and dealing with disruption – guidance is clear that chairman can exclude to maintain order and prevent disruption

• Chairman needs to explain policy at beginning of meeting – agree standard wording

• Public need to know if meeting is being recorded

• Should mobiles be switched off?

Recording of meetings

• No requirement to give notice

• No entitlement to film confidential sessions or meetings which are not public – guidance expects this for discussion on conduct of employees, negotiations of contracts or terms of tender and early stages of legal dispute

• Recordings could be used in legal challenge

• Produce guidance/leaflet for public?

What now?

• To do list……… • Talk about implications• Revise standing orders• Think about recording your meetings (just sound on

a mobile?)• Think about notices in room to say meeting is being

recorded• Consider how long you will keep recordings

available and how long you will keep them for (and cost)

Any Questions?