ECan votes against opening workshops and briefings to public

Councillor Greg Byrnes says it’s “ridiculous” that the regional council didn’t back a motion to make workshops and briefings more open to the public.
PETER MEECHAM / THE PRESS

Environment Canterbury (ECan) councillors have voted down a move to make their work more open to the public.

On Wednesday, councillor Greg Byrnes moved a motion that would have seen ECan match a recent decision by the Christchurch City Council to ditch secret meetings.

The motion aimed to make ECan’s briefings, workshops and meetings open to the public by default, with grounds to close them to the public if required.

A 2023 bid to make meetings more open by livestreaming them ended up being handled behind closed doors, but has since been given the nod.

ECan’s general manager governance, Lisa Goodman, said there was no date set for livestreaming to begin, but the council was keen to “progress this as soon as possible”.