Virtual meetings ‘should go on’ as council weighs up the savings
A COUNCIL that was among the first to announce it would suspend face-to-face meetings with members due to Covid-19 should not return to holding all meetings in person, leading councillors have agreed.
North Yorkshire County Council’s executive has recommended to a full meeting of the authority next month that its in-person meetings – which shape key services ranging from education to road maintenance – should be limited to only those that committee chairs believe are necessary.
While most councillors believe the quality of debate is stifled due to the nature of online meetings, in practice the recommendation is likely to mean all but most full authority, planning and scrutiny of health committee meetings will continue to be held virtually.
Since March 2020 almost every major decision on many public services for the county’s 605,000 residents have been made by its chief executive officer, Richard Flinton, who has used emergency powers granted under the pandemic.
The majority of the council’s committees have been held online and broadcast on YouTube, leading to a cut in mileage claimed by councillors of 131,338 miles – a saving in travel claims of £55,221, a saving of 668 working days in travel time and 36.774 tonnes fewer in carbon dioxide emissions a year.
The broadcasting of its meetings, which are held during the normal working week, has led to a sharp upturn in the number of people watching proceedings.
The authority’s executive member for education, Councillor Patrick Mulligan, said the pandemic had proved “an absolute eye-opener” in terms of the advantages the council could reap from remote working.
The meeting heard that while the Government was encouraging people to return to their workplaces, executive members warned against losing the advantages that remote meetings have brought in “a rush back to the office by some quarters”.
Councillor Janet Sanderson, executive member for children’s services, added: “Setting Covid aside, going back to anything other than virtual meetings in a blend would be a retrograde step.”