New Format for Minutes (Submission)

NEW FORMAT FOR MINUTES Submission by Cllr. Michael Merrigan In response to the many queries and concerns raised over the presentation of the Minutes of the Council and Area Committee Meetings in a redacted or reformatted manner, I proffer the following observations and suggestions.

1. Proposed Scheme The rationale for the proposed scheme is set forth as follows: The format of the Minutes was changed so that a shortened version of the Minutes with links to pdf versions of all associated reports would be more reader friendly in that it would be easier to see the decision on each issue; be more concise; and be easier to navigate for both those familiar and unfamiliar with the workings of the County Council.

In addition, it was stated that the new format saved staff time in the preparation of the Minutes by removing the requirement to integrate several pdf documents into a single pdf document and allowing such to be attached or linked electronically to the heading of each section, motion or question.

The Minutes, it is proposed, would then be made available via eCouncillor in both a publicly accessible platform and in one accessible only to the Elected Members.

2. Previous Scheme The previous scheme provided the Minutes of each of the meetings in a single document which included the full texts of each report, motion or question and the replies thereto. This document was prepared as a Word Document and then converted into pdf format for circulation and uploading to the Council’s website for public access. It was also made available via eCouncillor.

3. Legislative Framework The legislative framework for the preparation of the Minutes of the Council or Area Committee meetings is set forth in Schedule 10 of the Local Government Act, 2001 as follows: Schedule 10 – Local Government Act, 2001 14.

Minutes.

14.—(1) Minutes of the proceedings of a meeting of a local authority shall be drawn up by the meetings administrator.

(2) The minutes shall include— (a) the date, time and place of the meeting, (b) the names of the members present at the meeting, (c) a list of the senior employees of the local authority present at the meeting, (d) reference to any report submitted to the members at the meeting, (e) where there is a roll call vote, the number and names of 1

members voting for and against the motion and of those abstaining, (f) particulars of all resolutions passed at the meeting, and (g) such other matters considered appropriate.

(3) A copy of the minutes of a meeting shall be sent or given by the meetings administrator to each member of the local authority.

(4) Minutes of a meeting shall be submitted for confirmation as an accurate record at the next following ordinary meeting, where practicable, or where not, at the next following meeting and recorded in the minutes of that meeting.

(5) When confirmed, with or without amendment, the minutes of a meeting shall be signed by the person chairing the meeting they were submitted to for confirmation and any minutes claiming to be so signed shall be received in evidence without proof.

(6) Until the contrary is proved, every meeting in respect of the proceedings of which minutes have been confirmed shall be deemed to have been duly convened and held and all the members at the meeting shall be deemed to be duly qualified.

(7) A copy of the minutes of a meeting when confirmed in accordance with subparagraph (5) shall be open to inspection at the principal offices of the local authority and any person may inspect and make a copy of, or abstract from, the minutes during the usual office hours of the authority.

(8) A copy of the minutes shall be provided to any person applying for them on payment of such reasonable sum, if any, being a sum not exceeding the reasonable cost of supplying the copy, as may be fixed by the local authority.

(9) Each local authority shall make proper arrangements for the safe keeping of the minutes of the authority.

This section has not, to my knowledge, been amended in any way by subsequent Acts of the Oireachtas and in particular by the Local Government Reform Act, 2014, as implied by paragraph two of the report prepared on the Proposed Scheme. Therefore, Schedule 10, section 14, of the Local Government Act, 2001 continues in force without amendment.

4. Custom and Practice The purpose, preparation, presentation, adoption and legal status of the Minutes of Meetings remains unchanged by the recent “reforms� to local government in Ireland and, indeed, the custom and practice that has evolved in this area over the past century or so has altered little since the enactment of the Local Government (Ireland) Act, 1898.

Therefore, Minutes are considered to be prima facie evidence of the proceedings of the Council Meetings and, as such, they are usually taken as accurate in legal proceedings until the contrary, for whatever reason, is proved.

Given the litigious nature of Irish society and the adversarial political framework, in which, that society conducts and executes its public business, it is essential that the Minutes of the Council Meetings contain a full and accurate account of all business transacted at these

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meetings. This must include, as per Schedule 10, section 14 (2) above, the text of all Motions adopted and the full texts of Members’ Questions and the replies thereto.

It is essential that the Minutes of the Council Meetings be impartial and above suspicion and, therefore, the procedures underpinning their preparation, presentation and publication should be such so as to render the Minutes, once adopted by the Elected Members and duly signed by the Cathaoirleach or Chairperson, to be preserved and published in an inalterable form and, in accordance with Schedule 10, section 14 (7) above, be made available for inspection by the public.

Understanding that the provision for public access to the Minutes of Council Meetings is now generally, though not exclusively, via the Council’s website, the need for the preparation, presentation and publication of an indisputably fixed and inalterable document (in electronic format) is of paramount importance for the maintenance of public confidence in the accuracy and veracity of the Minutes of Council Meetings.

Access to the Minutes of Council Meetings via the Internet should provide for the downloading or printing of a copy of the Minutes in its totality as a single document as it is clear that such would the public understanding of the recording of Minutes in accordance with custom and practice.

The provision of Minutes, whereby access to integral parts thereof, is only achieved through the provision of ‘running appendices’ in the form of attached pdf documents or even less stable web links, fails utterly to provide the essential ingredient of an inalterable or ‘final document’. The perception that such a system could possibly facilitate a situation, for whatever reason, where appendices can be changed, altered or deleted in a manner that is not possible with the standard format should be a matter of considerable concern. The latter point could lessen the evidential quality of the Minutes of the Meetings and leave such open to dispute whether in the Chamber or elsewhere.

Therefore, I strongly contend that the proposed scheme for the preparation, presentation and adoption of the Minutes of Council Meetings does not meet the requirements of Schedule 10 of the Local Government Act, 2001 and furthermore, it departs considerably from custom and practice in the production of Minutes of Meetings as understood by the public. The latter point is unacceptable in the conduct of public business.

5. Suggested Methodology The proposed scheme appears to have three levels of production, Word Document, PDF Document and HTML or Web Document. This contrasts with the previous scheme’s two step approach of creating Word Documents and then collating such into a single PDF Document.

Unless the staff concerned with the previous scheme have been ‘upskilled’ to complete the process through the three steps mentioned above, the new system would appear to be more onerous, time-consuming and labour intensive.

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As all documents are prepared initially in Word, it is not unreasonable to suggest that each official, having completed their own document (Report or Reply to Question or Motion) forwards such to a designated email in Word format for collation and conversation to a single PDF Document for circulation to the Elected Members and presentation at the Council or Area Committee Meeting.

The collated single PDF Document as the Draft Minutes should be presented in hardcopy to the Council or Area Committee Meeting for adoption and signature. It is this collated document as the approved Minutes of the Meeting that should be published as a single readable, downloadable and printable document.

The use of web links in the answers to Questions or in the Reports provided for Motions should be kept to a minimum and always cited with the proviso that such may be amended, altered or deleted by the web provider and that the information so provided is accurate at the time of the presentation of the Minutes and dated accordingly.

6. Conclusion The preparation, presentation, adoption and publication of the Minutes of the Council and of the Area Committee (and Strategic Policy Committees) meetings is a vitally important aspect of the work of the Council and therefore, alterations to the process by which such are produced should not be considered lightly or in any perceived haste demanded by the exigencies of temporary reductions in staff numbers or pressures on available resources.

As mentioned above, given the litigious nature of Irish society, it is essential that the proposed scheme does not expose the Council to potential legal difficulties occasioned by a possibility of its inability to ensure that the record of proceedings at the meetings, as presented, adopted and published, is in an inalterable and unitary document duly signed by the Cathaoirleach or Chairperson.

Given the doubts that could arise regarding the accuracy, veracity and completeness of the Minutes of the Council or Area Committee (and Strategic Policy Committee) meetings, the proposed scheme should not proceed pending a full investigation of the matter by the O.P. & P. Committee and the formulation by the Group Leaders of a framework for the consideration of this matter by the Council as a Headed Item at a future meeting.

Cllr. Michael Merrigan April 30th 2015

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