Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Newcastle Herald
Newcastle Herald
National
Michael Parris

Newcastle council meetings go ahead, but don't get too close

Councillors, staff and the public have been told to keep their distance at Tuesday night's meetings.

City of Newcastle's council meetings will go ahead on Tuesday night with coronavirus social distancing measures in place.

The council is due to hold development applications and public voice committee meetings at City Hall from 6pm.

Council chief executive officer Jeremy Bath said councillors, staff and members of the public gallery would be asked to keep one to 1.5 metres apart and must not shake hands, kiss, hug or otherwise touch each other.

"We acknowledge that the chamber is not configured to permit councillors to sit 1.5m apart. Instead we are confident that councillors will restrict their actions in a manner to minimise unnecessary movement towards another person," he wrote in an email to councillors.

RELATED NEWS

Members of the Save Our Ocean Baths community campaign are due to address the council at the public voice session.

Mr Bath said the public gallery would be limited to half capacity to maintain the distancing guidelines.

Council staff would ask development committee and public voice participants to "uninvite" friends, family and supporters.

He said a decision regarding banning the public from council meetings would continue to be reviewed in light of continuing advice from health authorities.

Mr Bath said the local government Code of Meeting Practice did not allow councils to meet remotely but the NSW government was reviewing whether to allow decision making via video link.

We have removed our paywall from our stories about the coronavirus. This is a rapidly changing situation and we need to make sure our readers are as informed as possible. To support local journalism, subscribe here.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.