Council meetings in Gwynedd set to resume over the web allowing councillors to contribute from home

Gwynedd is set to become of the first Welsh councils to resume formal meetings since the lockdown measures were first introduced.

Tuesday’s planned cabinet meeting will be held “virtually” with all members contributing from the comfort of their own homes via the Microsoft Teams online system.

It follows new Welsh Government guidelines issued to authorities in light of the pandemic and its effect on such social occasions.

This will represent the first official council meeting since early March, after the leaders of the political groups agreed that such technology should be used to hold meetings online where key decisions are needed.

Councillor Nia Jeffreys, the cabinet member for corporate support services said: “Throughout this crisis, staff across Gwynedd Council have been, and continue to make a heroic effort to keep key services going.

“We have reached a point where some key decisions need to be taken, and so the council’s democracy service has identified an alternative way for members to hold some key constitutional meetings from home.

“Over recent weeks, people across the world have embraced new ways of communicating using new technology, and we will continue to seek to develop these temporary arrangements to ensure that the council’s vital democratic work continues.

“It seems that Gwynedd is one of the first councils in Wales to take this innovative step of holding an online meeting during the coronavirus crisis, which is clearly something we are proud of.”

While Tuesday’s cabinet meeting will not be webcast live, it is hoped that a recording of the meeting will be posted publicly on the website in due course.

The agenda, meanwhile, is expected to rubber stamp a £180,000 transfer to the education department to hire additional capacity, as well as update on the authority’s response so far to the Coronavirus pandemic.

By Gareth Williams – Local Democracy Reporter