Notices Of All Meetings For Newspapers

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29388, 15 December 1960, Page 7

Notices Of All Meetings For Newspapers

All meetings of the Lyttelton Harbour Board in future will be notified to the press, the board decided yesterday. Two meetings have been held in recent months by the full board and no report has been issued to the public. No comment was made by any member of the board yesterday when the minutes of a special meeting of the board on November 24 “in re dredge Peraki” came up for confirmation. No notification of the special meeting was given to the press. The Peraki was held up by bad weather until. December 6.

When “supplementary business” was reached on the order paper, Mr L. G. Amos said that a notice that newspapers be advised of meetings was required under the board’s standing orders; the secretary-manager had made nice timing by placing copies of the orders on members’ desks that morning.

“Or someone has blundered pretty badly,” said Mr Amos. Referring to the special meeting in November, Mr Amos said the chairman (Mr A. A. Macfarlane)* must have thought it prudent to withhold certain information.

“I have heard members of this board voluble about public relations—Mr F. I. Sutton wanted special treatment for the board in the way of a special page or booklet,” said Mr Amos. “We get on fine with the press, and we want to keep that going by proper co-operation.”

The Transport Board had invited the press to be present at committee meetings, said Mr Amos. “I should not be the one to glorify the press because they have on occasions given me a verbal beating—and probably rightly,” said Mr Amos. “I want to see every action of this board put on the table and in the open for press comment and criticism-” Mr Amos moved that the deliberations of the last meeting of of the board be made available to the press. Answering a later question, Mr Amos said he meant the decisions of the board. Questions By Reporter Seconding Mr Amos’s motion pro forma, Mr W. P. Glue said he had been questioned by a reporter of “The Press” and, after telling the reporter what had happened at the meeting, expressed the opinion that nothing of any interest to the newspapers had happened, even if reporters had attended. “I don’t think they had much to complain about,” said Mr Glue. “We cannot give them committee business.” Mr Amos: Why not? Mr Glue: Because it is not ’air to the public. Mr Amos: I cannot see that. Answering a question by Mr Amos, the secretary-manager (Mr A. L. Burk) said there was nothing in the board’s standing orders to compel the board to notify the press of a meeting of the board. Mr Macfarlane moved, as an amendment: “That the press be informed of all meetings.” “And it ’is then over to the board to go into committee if it

thinks it is justified,” added Mr Macfarlane. “I think it is the only fair way; and I think it is correct.” Mr G. Manning seconded the motion. “Does that suit you?” Mr Macfarlane asked Mr Amos. Mr Amos: No. I happened to be the only dissident to what was decided at the last board meeting. Free Discussion Mr J. Brand said the whole business of the special meeting was taken in committee. Mr Amos: No. The' board met in open. “But we knew there were no reporters to take the discussion down,” continued Mr Brand “There was a free discussion, because reporters were not here.” The reason the board did not go into committee was because “no-body was here,” said Mr W. W. Laing. Mr F. W. Freeman: I brought up the question. I asked: “Where was the press?” The chairman, said Mr Laing, had pointed out that the business before the meeting was very private between the board, the engineers, and the contractors for the dredge. If any reporters had attended the meeting the chairman would have moved that the board go into committee. The motion by Mr Amos was defeated and the amendment by Mr Macfarlane was carried. The board decided, in principle, after a discussion earlier, that the Harbours Act should be amended to make provision, as in the Municipal and Counties Act, that minutes of meetings, other than committee business, be open to the press.