Prospect of virtual meetings back on the table as Government "keen" to discuss merits

The Minister for Local Government, Jim McMahon, has said the Government is "keen" to discuss the merits of hybrid council meetings.

Answering a question on Thursday (1 August) about bringing forward proposals to permit virtual meetings of councils and public bodies, McMahon said the Government "wants to ensure that local government is modern, efficient, flexible and diverse, and we are keen to break down barriers that prevent people from seeking to serve their communities".

He added: "Allowing hybrid meetings could be a helpful step in doing that and we are keen to work with the sector to have an evidence based discussion about its merits."

The District Councils' Network has since welcomed the Minister's interest in considering implementing hybrid meetings.

Trevor Holden, lead chief executive of the District Councils' Network, said: "We believe it should be for individual councils to decide whether meetings are held remotely so we very much welcome this discussion.

"We agree with the Government that barriers that limit participation - especially by women, working-age people and minority ethnic groups - must be overcome, and the ability to hold remote or hybrid meetings could be one way of doing this."

Previous efforts to allow councils to meet virtually were scuppered after the Conservative Government rejected an amendment in October 2023 to the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill that would allow the practice.

At the time, the Government said it would not waver from its "clear, strong and principled view that preserving in-person debate is important for maintaining the integrity of local democracy".

Adam Carey