Council and Committee Meetings

This page outlines requirements for Council and Committee meetings, and provides the dates for the 2013 Council and committee meetings.

Council's standing committee, known as Te Komiti, meets on a fortnightly basis.  Meetings of the full Council are held on a four-weekly basis.

Meetings are usually held in the Council Chambers, Level 2, Administration Building, 16 Cobham Court, Porirua City. After hours access for the public to attend Council meetings is gained from the door on Hagley Street. A security guard is usually on duty.

Meeting start times are as follows unless otherwise stated:

Location of Council Offices

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Legal Requirements

The legal requirements for Council meetings are set down in the Local Government Act 2002 and the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987.

All Council and Committee meetings must be open to the public unless there is reason to consider some item with the public excluded. The Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 contains a list of the circumstances where Councils may consider items with the public excluded. (These circumstances generally relate to protection of personal privacy, professionally privileged or commercially sensitive information, and the maintenance of public health, safety and order). The Council agenda is a public document, although parts may be withheld if the above circumstances apply.

Although meetings are open to the public, members of the public do not have speaking rights during Council and Committee meetings, apart from the public speaking time allocated at the beginning of the meeting. Members of the public may speak during public speaking time at Committee meetings regarding any item within the terms of reference of the committee, if prior arrangements are made with the Committee Chairperson. Members of the public may speak during public speaking time at Council meetings without prior arrangement with the Chairperson but may only speak regarding an item that is on the agenda for consideration at that meeting.

The Mayor or Committee Chairperson is responsible for maintaining order at meetings and may, at his or her discretion, order the removal of any member of the public for disorderly conduct, or remove any member of Council who does not comply with Standing Orders.

Minutes of meetings must be kept as evidence of the proceedings of the meeting. These must be made publicly available, subject to the provisions of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987.

Notice of Meetings

For a meeting of Council or a Committee (except Extraordinary meetings), at least 14 days notice of the time and place of the meeting must be given to elected members. Public notification of the scheduled meetings for each month is given in local weekly newspapers, at least five days before the first meeting on the calendar, and are found on the link below.

Other Meetings

Extraordinary meetings may be called when required. Less notice is required for extraordinary meetings, which can generally be called on 3 working days notice, or 24 hours notice if the decision to hold the extraordinary meeting was made by resolution at a Council or Committee meeting. Public notification of these meetings is given as soon as practicable in the local weekly newspapers, including specifying the topic to be considered. The text of any decision made at an extraordinary meeting is advertised in a local newspaper following the meeting, unless the decision is made in a public excluded session.

Workshop Meetings

The Council holds workshop meetings regularly throughout the year. Workshops are held to enable Elected Members to take in, understand and exchange ideas on matters involving complex information, in an environment that is less structured than a formal meeting.

No decisions are made at workshop meetings, and as such the requirements of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 regarding public notification and access to agendas and minutes of these workshop meetings, do not apply.

However, the Council makes available publicly, in the agendas for Council meetings, copies of the minutes of Council workshops. The minutes of the most recent meetings are also published on the home page of this website, and can also be viewed in the Meeting Document Search System from the link below.

Attending Meetings

All meetings of Council and its Committees are open to the public. Members of the public may speak during the public speaking time about any item that is on the agenda for consideration at that meeting. Members of the public may also speak at a Committee meeting to put forward their ideas or requests, regarding items within the terms of reference for that committee. Go to Systems for Public Access from the link below for information on how to make a deputation to a committee meeting or speak at a public forum at a Council meeting.

Please note that anyone wishing to speak at a Committee meeting, either as an individual or as part of a group deputation, must advise the Chief Executive or contact the Democratic Services Unit on (04) 237 5089 or email meetings@pcc.govt.nz to make your request. No prior notification is required for participating in the public speaking time at a Council meeting.

Public Excluded Meetings

Sometimes the Council or Committee will pass a resolution to close a meeting to the public and consider items in a public excluded session. The Council or Committee has the right to do this under certain circumstances that are set out in the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987. When the Council or Committee passes a resolution to go into a public excluded session, members of the public present must leave the meeting.

However, members of the public are able to make an Official Information Request to the Chief Executive for minutes or papers of a public excluded meeting. The Chief Executive will consider the request according to the principles of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987, that information should be provided unless there is good reason to withhold it.

Conduct at Meetings

During meetings the Mayor and Councillors must follow Standing Orders (a set of procedures for conducting meetings). The Council may suspend standing orders by a vote of 75 per cent of the members present.

Behaviour at meetings is also governed by the Code of Conduct from the link below.

Where can I get agendas for meetings?

Agendas (also known as Order Papers) for all Council and Committee meetings are available for public inspection two working days before the meeting date. The agendas for the next round of meetings can be viewed on the home page of this website, or in the Meeting Document Search System.

Detailed information about the Meetings Document Search System is published in the Search for Meeting Documents page in the navigation list to the left.

Printed copies of all Agendas can also be inspected at:

  • Customer Services, Ground Floor, Administration Building, 16 Cobham Court, Porirua City
  • All Council Libraries

Where can I get the minutes of meetings?

The minutes are always in draft form until they have been confirmed as correct at the next meeting.

Minutes of all Council and Committee meetings are usually available within five working days after the meeting, and can be viewed in the Meeting Document Search System.

Links to more information

Porirua City Council links: