By Laura Michell
Whittlesea residents won’t be watching live streams of council meetings any time soon, with councillors backing away from the idea following almost two years of investigation.
A recent notice of motion from Cr Caz Monteleone asking the council to live stream meetings to the council website throughout 2019, and store the recordings for 12 months, failed to garner support from his colleagues.
The motion was voted down by mayor Lawrie Cox and councillors Stevan Kozmevski, Sam Alessi and Kris Pavlidis. Councillors Tom Joseph and Emilia Lisa Sterjova abstained from voting, while Cr Norm Kelly was not in attendance.
Cr Monteleone said live streaming would improve transparency, with the council known as one of the most secretive in Victoria.
Data from the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning shows that in 2017-18, 21 per cent of Whittlesea council’s decisions were made behind closed doors. The figure has fallen from 35 per cent in 2014-15.
“[Live streaming] isn’t just about informing the community, it is about embracing less secrecy,” Cr Monteleone said.
“Live streaming is not a luxury, it is a necessity.”
The issue of live streaming was first raised by Cr Sterjova in June 2017, with the council inviting Channel 31 to record two meetings in mid-2018 so councillors could review the footage before making a final decision.
Thirty-one of Victoria’s 79 council live stream their meetings, while a further 12 provide audio recordings after meetings.
