Moved by
Lord Shipley
42A: Before Clause 8, insert the following new Clause—
“Access arrangements to combined authority meetings for the press and public
(1) The Secretary of State shall, by regulations, provide that, where a meeting is held—
(a) between a mayor established under the provisions of this Act and the relevant combined authority;
(b) by the leaders of a combined authority;
(c) by an overview and scrutiny committee of a combined authority,
arrangements must be made, so far as is reasonably practicable, to allow reasonable access to the meeting for the public and the press.
(2) For the purposes of this subsection (1) “so far as is reasonably practicable” means to the extent possible to allow transparency of proceedings and decisions, while taking into account—
(a) the need for unencumbered advice from officials, and
(b) the need to protect commercial confidentiality.
(3) For the purposes of subsection (1), “reasonable access” may include but is not restricted to—
(a) attending and viewing the meeting,
(b) taking notes of the meeting, and
(c) taking a visual or audio recording of the meeting.”