I have had positive feedback from people that they are pleased that this Council has been getting meeting agendas out early and posting them on the website, thus allowing people time to contact their divisional Councillor before particular issues come up for decision-making.

We've also had good response to opportunities for groups and individuals to come and address the full Council after Council meetings. There have been around 40 deputations, including: opposition to the Mulgrave aquifer proposal; ideas for Sugar Wharf at Port; arguments for and against fluoridation; noise complaints north of the Daintree; a request to reduce rates for the Douglas Life Saving Club; views on dogs in parks etc.

Some suggestions have been in the media that the Council is conducting business in secret. This is not the case; however, the following 3 types of agenda items do go into closed sessions of Council. In these cases the title of the agenda item is always made public.

Contractual matters: when companies and businesses tender to deliver Council goods or services like coconut de-nutting, lawn-mowing, supply of vehicles etc, they do so on the understanding that their prices will not be divulged to their competitors. Businesses may suffer and/or Council might not get the best price for tenders if this information was made public.

Matters about organisations and individual ratepayers who have been unable to pay rates or charges for such a long period that Council action needs to be taken against them. It would be an invasion of privacy to discuss this in a public meeting.

Prejudicial matters: occasionally a closed session item might deal with arguments that Council may be using against a developer who is appealing a Council decision.