Division 3Division 3 Procedure for the conduct of council meetings
236 Councillor to be elected to preside at certain meetings
(1) If no chairperson is present at a meeting of a council at the time designated for the holding of the meeting, the first business of the meeting must be the election of a chairperson to preside at the meeting.Note. Section 369 (2) of the Act provides for a councillor to be elected to chair a meeting of a council when the mayor and deputy mayor are absent.(2) The election must be conducted:(a) by the general manager or, in his or her absence, an employee of the council designated by the general manager to conduct the election, or(b) if neither of them is present at the meeting or there is no general manager or designated employee—by the person who called the meeting or a person acting on his or her behalf.(3) If, at an election of a chairperson, 2 or more candidates receive the same number of votes and no other candidate receives a greater number of votes, the chairperson is to be the candidate whose name is chosen by lot.(4) For the purposes of subclause (3), the person conducting the election must:(a) arrange for the names of the candidates who have equal numbers of votes to be written on similar slips, and(b) then fold the slips so as to prevent the names from being seen, mix the slips and draw one of the slips at random.(5) The candidate whose name is on the drawn slip is the candidate who is to be the chairperson.
237 Chairperson to have precedence
When the chairperson rises during a meeting of a council:(a) any councillor then speaking or seeking to speak must, if standing, immediately resume his or her seat, and(b) every councillor present must be silent to enable the chairperson to be heard without interruption.
238 Chairperson’s duty with respect to motions
(1) It is the duty of the chairperson at a meeting of a council to receive and put to the meeting any lawful motion that is brought before the meeting.(2) The chairperson must rule out of order any motion that is unlawful or the implementation of which would be unlawful.(3) Any motion, amendment or other matter that the chairperson has ruled out of order is taken to have been rejected.
(1) At a meeting of a council (other than an extraordinary meeting), the general order of business is (except as provided by this Regulation) as fixed by the council’s code of meeting practice or (if the council does not have a code of meeting practice or its code of meeting practice does not fix the general order of business) as fixed by resolution of the council.(2) The order of business fixed under subclause (1) may be altered if a motion to that effect is passed. Such a motion can be moved without notice.(3) Despite clause 250, only the mover of a motion referred to in subclause (2) may speak to the motion before it is put.
240 Agenda and business papers for council meetings
(1) The general manager must ensure that the agenda for a meeting of the council states:(a) all matters to be dealt with arising out of the proceedings of former meetings of the council, and(b) if the mayor is the chairperson—any matter or topic that the chairperson proposes, at the time when the agenda is prepared, to put to the meeting, and(c) subject to subclause (2), any business of which due notice has been given.(2) The general manager must not include in the agenda for a meeting of the council any business of which due notice has been given if, in the opinion of the general manager, the business is (or the implementation of the business would be) unlawful. The general manager must report (without giving details of the item of business) any such exclusion to the next meeting of the council.(3) The general manager must cause the agenda for a meeting of the council or a committee of the council to be prepared as soon as practicable before the meeting.(4) The general manager must ensure that the details of any item of business to which section 9 (2A) of the Act applies are included in a business paper for the meeting concerned.(5) Nothing in this clause limits the powers of the chairperson under clause 243.
(1) A council must not transact business at a meeting of the council:(a) unless a councillor has given notice of the business in writing within such time before the meeting as is fixed by the council’s code of meeting practice or (if the council does not have a code of meeting practice or its code of meeting practice does not fix that time) as is fixed by resolution of the council, and(b) unless notice of the business has been sent to the councillors in accordance with section 367 of the Act.(2) Subclause (1) does not apply to the consideration of business at a meeting if the business:(a) is already before, or directly relates to a matter that is already before, the council, or(b) is the election of a chairperson to preside at the meeting as provided by clause 236 (1), or(c) is a matter or topic put to the meeting by the chairperson in accordance with clause 243, or(d) is a motion for the adoption of recommendations of a committee of the council.(3) Despite subclause (1), business may be transacted at a meeting of a council even though due notice of the business has not been given to the councillors. However, this can happen only if:(a) a motion is passed to have the business transacted at the meeting, and(b) the business proposed to be brought forward is ruled by the chairperson to be of great urgency.Such a motion can be moved without notice.
(4) Despite clause 250, only the mover of a motion referred to in subclause (3) can speak to the motion before it is put.
242 Agenda for extraordinary meetings
(1) The general manager must ensure that the agenda for an extraordinary meeting of a council deals only with the matters stated in the notice of the meeting.(2) Despite subclause (1), business may be transacted at an extraordinary meeting of a council even though due notice of the business has not been given to the councillors. However, this can happen only if:(a) a motion is passed to have the business transacted at the meeting, and(b) the business proposed to be brought forward is ruled by the chairperson to be of great urgency.Such a motion can be moved without notice but only after the business notified in the agenda for the meeting has been disposed of.
(3) Despite clause 250, only the mover of a motion referred to in subclause (2) can speak to the motion before it is put.
(1) If the mayor is the chairperson at a meeting of a council, the chairperson is, by minute signed by the chairperson, entitled to put to the meeting without notice any matter or topic that is within the jurisdiction of the council or of which the council has official knowledge.(2) Such a minute, when put to the meeting, takes precedence over all business on the council’s agenda for the meeting. The chairperson (but only if the chairperson is the mayor) may move the adoption of the minute without the motion being seconded.(3) A recommendation made in a minute of the chairperson (being the mayor) or in a report made by a council employee is, so far as adopted by the council, a resolution of the council.
244 Report of a Departmental representative to be tabled at council meeting
When a report of a Departmental representative has been presented to a meeting of a council in accordance with section 433 of the Act, the council must ensure that the report:(a) is laid on the table at that meeting, and(b) is subsequently available for the information of councillors and members of the public at all reasonable times.
245 Notice of motion—absence of mover
In the absence of a councillor who has placed a notice of motion on the agenda for a meeting of a council:(a) any other councillor may move the motion at the meeting, or(b) the chairperson may defer the motion until the next meeting of the council at which the motion can be considered.
A motion or an amendment cannot be debated unless or until it has been seconded. This clause is subject to clauses 243 (2) and 250 (5).
247 How subsequent amendments may be moved
If an amendment has been rejected, a further amendment can be moved to the motion to which the rejected amendment was moved, and so on, but no more than one motion and one proposed amendment can be before the council at any one time.
(1) A councillor can, without notice, move to dissent from the ruling of the chairperson on a point of order. If that happens, the chairperson must suspend the business before the meeting until a decision is made on the motion of dissent.(2) If a motion of dissent is passed, the chairperson must proceed with the suspended business as though the ruling dissented from had not been given. If, as a result of the ruling, any motion or business has been discharged as out of order, the chairperson must restore the motion or business to the agenda and proceed with it in due course.(3) Despite clause 250, only the mover of a motion of dissent and the chairperson can speak to the motion before it is put. The mover of the motion does not have a right of general reply.
249 Questions may be put to councillors and council employees
(1) A councillor:(a) may, through the chairperson, put a question to another councillor, and(b) may, through the general manager, put a question to a council employee.(2) However, a councillor or council employee to whom a question is put is entitled to be given reasonable notice of the question and, in particular, sufficient notice to enable reference to be made to other persons or to documents.(3) The councillor must put every such question directly, succinctly and without argument.(4) The chairperson must not permit discussion on any reply or refusal to reply to a question put to a councillor or council employee under this clause.
250 Limitation as to number of speeches
(1) A councillor who, during a debate at a meeting of a council, moves an original motion has the right of general reply to all observations that are made by another councillor during the debate in relation to the motion and to any amendment to it, as well as the right to speak on any such amendment.(2) A councillor, other than the mover of an original motion, has the right to speak once on the motion and once on each amendment to it.(3) A councillor must not, without the consent of the council, speak more than once on a motion or an amendment, or for longer than 5 minutes at any one time. However, the chairperson may permit a councillor who claims to have been misrepresented or misunderstood to speak more than once on a motion or an amendment, and for longer than 5 minutes on that motion or amendment to enable the councillor to make a statement limited to explaining the misrepresentation or misunderstanding.(4) Despite subclauses (1) and (2), a councillor may move that a motion or an amendment be now put:(a) if the mover of the motion or amendment has spoken in favour of it and no councillor expresses an intention to speak against it, or(b) if at least 2 councillors have spoken in favour of the motion or amendment and at least 2 councillors have spoken against it.(5) The chairperson must immediately put to the vote, without debate, a motion moved under subclause (4). A seconder is not required for such a motion.(6) If a motion that the original motion or an amendment be now put is passed, the chairperson must, without further debate, put the original motion or amendment to the vote immediately after the mover of the original motion has exercised his or her right of reply under subclause (1).(7) If a motion that the original motion or an amendment be now put is rejected, the chairperson must allow the debate on the original motion or the amendment to be resumed.
251 Voting at council meetings
(1) A councillor who is present at a meeting of a council but who fails to vote on a motion put to the meeting is taken to have voted against the motion.(2) If a councillor who has voted against a motion put at a council meeting so requests, the general manager must ensure that the councillor’s dissenting vote is recorded in the council’s minutes.(3) The decision of the chairperson as to the result of a vote is final, unless the decision is immediately challenged and not fewer than 2 councillors rise and demand a division.(4) When a division on a motion is demanded, the chairperson must ensure that the division takes place immediately. The general manager must ensure that the names of those who vote for the motion and those who vote against it are respectively recorded in the council’s minutes.(5) Voting at a council meeting, including voting in an election at such a meeting, is to be by open means (such as on the voices or by show of hands). However, the council may resolve that the voting in any election by councillors for mayor or deputy mayor is to be by secret ballot.Note. Part 11 of this Regulation provides that a council is to resolve whether an election by the councillors for mayor or deputy mayor is to be by preferential ballot, ordinary ballot or open voting (clause 394 and clause 3 of Schedule 7). Clause 3 of Schedule 7 also makes it clear that ballot has its normal meaning of secret ballot.
252 Representations by members of the public—closure of part of meeting
(1) A representation at a council meeting by a member of the public as to whether a part of the meeting should be closed to the public can only be made for a fixed period immediately after the motion to close the part of the meeting is moved and seconded.(2) That period is as fixed by the council’s code of meeting practice or (if the council does not have a code of meeting practice or its code of meeting practice does not fix that period) as fixed by resolution of the council. Different periods can be fixed according to the different types of matters to be discussed or received and discussed at closed parts of meetings.
253 Resolutions passed at closed meetings to be made public
If a council passes a resolution during a meeting, or a part of a meeting, that is closed to the public, the chairperson must make the resolution public as soon as practicable after the meeting or part of the meeting has ended.
254 Matters to be included in minutes of council meeting
The general manager must ensure that the following matters are recorded in the council’s minutes:(a) details of each motion moved at a council meeting and of any amendments moved to it,(b) the names of the mover and seconder of the motion or amendment,(c) whether the motion or amendment is passed or lost.Note. Section 375 (1) of the Act requires a council to ensure that full and accurate minutes are kept of the proceedings of a meeting of the council (other provisions of this Regulation and of the Act require particular matters to be recorded in a council’s minutes).