A £17,000 webcasting scheme to cover meetings in the chamber at the Civic Offices, Epping, and at other venues across the district is set to be trialled this month and go live' in September.
In a House of Commons-style set-up fixed cameras have been installed in the council chamber with a mobile unit ready for use elsewhere in the district. Material, which will be recorded onto DVDs, will be available to view on the council's website for six months.
Notices will be put up inside and outside the chamber or meeting venue explaining that the meeting will be broadcast live or recorded. The scheme will also be highlighted on council agendas.
For meetings at the Civic Offices members of the public will be told that by entering the chamber and using the lower public seating area, at meetings when the public can speak, "they are consenting to being filmed and for the images and sound recordings to be used for webcasting and-or training purposes".
Anyone who does not want to be caught on camera will be told to sit in the upstairs public gallery.
The council has approved a one-year pilot webcasting scheme and entered into a contract with a specialist webcasting company "to increase public access to its democratic process".
The project is part of the council's 2005-06 e-Government Strategy, The council's customer services, media, communications and ICT portfolio holder Stephen Metcalfe told the Guardian: "It's really to open up democracy and make it more accessible to people. This will bring council debates to a wider audience."
Autor(en)/Author(s): David Jackman
Quelle/Source: Wanstead and Woodford Guardian, 14.08.2006
