Unadvertised meeting information.
Request:
I hear that councillors have been holding unadvertised meetings which are not available to the ratepayers.
Under the Local Government Act I would like to know:
- The number of such meetings held since the election in October
- Where and when meetings were held
- Reason for meeting, agenda of meeting
- Minutes or other notes taken of meeting
- List of who attended
Response:
Thank you for your request under the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 regarding informal meetings involving elected members since the October election.
Council staff made enquiries with the Mayor, elected members, and relevant staff seeking information within scope of your request, including dates, attendees, agendas, notes, recordings, and other related material.
The information identified through those enquiries is summarised below.
The Mayor advised that elected members had participated in “a couple of informal get-togethers” since the election, which he described as relationship-building or team-building in nature between newly elected members. The Mayor further advised that no decisions (whether formal or predetermined) were made at those gatherings.
In addition, a staff member advised that they recalled one or two occasions where discussions continued informally following the closure of formal meetings or workshops. Notes were taken on one such occasion, and those notes are attached.
The staff member also recalled a further informal discussion following a workshop on 10 March 2026, however no notes were taken and the specific topics discussed could not be confidently identified.
No formal agendas, minutes, or publicly notified meeting records relating to these informal discussions have been identified by Council.
Council requested further information including dates, locations, attendee lists, and any additional records relating to these discussions. While some information was provided, Council has not been able to obtain further confirmed information of that nature.
Council was also advised that recordings or AI-generated summaries may potentially exist in relation to some discussions. However, no such recordings or summaries have been provided to Council and Council is therefore unable to confirm whether any such records exist or are held.