Outgoing Mayor of Causeway Coast and Glens Council proposes live streaming of future meetings

At May’s Corporate Policy and Resources Committee meeting, outgoing Mayor and Sinn Féin Councillor Ciarán McQuillan, proposed that council “explore the feasibility and logistics of introducing live recording for future council meetings”.

The proposal added: “It is important for us to align with other local governments and institutions across the north in adopting this technology.

“Live recording offers an excellent opportunity to engage with the community, particularly younger residents, and allows us to highlight the positive actions and progress we are making each month.

“Given the recent damage caused by storm Éowyn, which has affected our current technology, it is clear that we need to invest in updated equipment.

“This would ensure that we are prepared to live stream and record our meetings moving forward.”

Sinn Féin Councillor Leanne Peacock seconded the proposal and noted that a similar motion had been passed by members before, but was unable to progress due to “issues with trade unions” that have since been resolved.

Cllr Peacock added: “As Ciarán has said, a lot of other councils already undertake the live streaming of council meetings, as does the Assembly plenary and their committees as well.

“So this is something that’s already done right across different councils, it’s quite a cumbersome process for people to get onto the meetings as it is, [and] this will make it much more straightforward.

“Given the equipment already needs to be upgraded, I think it’s timely to bring this back.”