Council puts cap on public meetings

PUBLIC meetings will be less frequent and committees abolished under a suite of changes at Cairns Regional Council.

A final decision to dissolve the council’s portfolio structure is expected to be passed following a meeting behind closed doors on Monday.

The council is now forced to meet three times a month – twice for committees and once for the ordinary meeting.

Only two general meetings will be held a month under the new scheme. Councillors will no longer be assigned heads of specific portfolios.

A report provides a list of disadvantages to the current structure, which includes six standing committees.

“The committees which do not have full decision making delegation are still public forums, however, their decisions are not binding,” it says.

“This creates a layer of red tape from a public perception viewpoint.”

Mayor Bob Manning (above) said the change was about freeing up time for council officers and elected officials.

“You ring 10 councils and you will find that no two are operating under the same system,” he said.

“This has been discussed on and off over the past 15 to 18 months.

“We’ll get this officially (today), but I think you’ll find that councillors support this.

“It’s not a decision made by me – it’s a decision that’s been discussed extensively among ourselves.”

The council will also introduce strict new additions to its media policy blocking employees from speaking to media, writing letters to the editor or posting on social media for any issue relating to the local government.