Public Questions Submissions and Registrations

We welcome members of the community to attend Darebin City Council Meetings to:

• observe the meeting (watch the livestream or attend in person)
• lodge and receive answers to public questions at an Ordinary Council Meeting 
• make a submission at an Ordinary Council Meeting to a specific agenda item 

Pursuant to Council's Governance Rules 2020(PDF, 962KB), Public questions and submissions can only be made at an Ordinary Council Meeting and cannot relate to Notices of Motion, petitions or items of urgent business.

Lodging a Question, Submission and Registering attendance

• Members of the public wishing to ask a question, make a submission or register to attend to observe the meeting in person, must register before 12 noon the day before the meeting (or, if the day before the meeting is a public holiday, by 9am on the day of the meeting).
• Due to limited seating capacity in the chamber, community members who have registered to attend will be given priority seating.
• Questions, Submissions and Registrations can be lodged using one of the following methods:
  • lodge a question or submission, or register your attendance using our online form
  • in person at the Preston Customer Service Centre, 274 Gower Street, Preston
  • by mail to PO Box 91, Preston 3072

• Questions, Submissions and Registrations that have not been lodged by 12 noon the day before the Ordinary Council Meeting will not be accepted
• No questions will be taken from people in attendance at the Council Meeting unless they submitted their questions in line with the Governance Rules

Asking a Question

1. A maximum of three (3) questions is permitted per person (with no sub-parts). If more than three (3) questions are received from one person, only the first three questions will be considered.
2. The Chairperson will not permit any introductory or background statements to be made in relation to their question.
3. When invited by the Chairperson, the person asking their question(s) may do so, without taking longer than two (2) minutes in total.

4. Questions must be directed through the Chairperson and must not be directed to individual Councillors or officers.

5. If a person submitting a question is not in attendance (including virtual attendance for a scheduled hybrid meeting) during Public Question Time, their question(s) may be read out and a response provided at the meeting.

Questions not permitted

In accordance with the Council Governance Rules 2020(PDF, 962KB), the Chairperson may disallow a question if it:

• relates to a matter outside the duties, functions or powers of Council
• is defamatory, indecent, abusive, irrelevant, trivial or objectionable in language or substance
• may lead to a breach of Council's statutory obligations
• relates to a Notice of Motion, Petition or item of urgent business
• deals with a subject matter already answered
• is aimed at embarrassing a Councillor or an officer
• deals with a matter that should be, or has been, considered as a confidential matter or relates to any matter in respect of which Council may close the meeting to the public under section 66 of the Local Government Act 2020.

No questions directed at an individual Councillor or officer will be allowed.

Submissions

Members of the public may make a 2-minute submission to a report listed on the agenda of an Ordinary Council meeting or a Hearing of Submissions meeting (unless not permitted pursuant to the Councils Governance Rules) prior to the item being debated.

Making a Submission

• Persons wishing to make a submission must be in attendance during the meeting, either in person or by representative (including virtual attendance if the meeting is a scheduled hybrid meeting).
• Submissions must be directed through the Chairperson and must not be directed to individual Councillors or officers.
• Submissions may be a maximum of two (2) minutes.
• The person making the submission must clearly state their name. The name of the submitter will be recorded in the Minutes of the meeting which are published on Council's website.

We welcome members of the community to attend Darebin City Council Meeting to:

• observe the meeting
• lodge and receive answers to public questions at an Ordinary Council Meeting
• make a verbal submission at an Ordinary Council Meeting to a specific agenda item

Council meetings may be held wholly in person, wholly online or hybrid. A hybrid meeting is one where councillors and members of the public may attend either in person or virtually.

Public questions and submissions can only be made at an Ordinary Council Meeting and cannot relate to Notices of Motion, petitions or items of urgent business. Registrations, questions and submissions must be submitted by 12pm the day before the meeting (or, if the day before the meeting is a public holiday, by 9am on the day of the meeting).

Refer to Council meetings webpage to see the list of meeting dates, which also indicates if a meeting will be wholly in person or wholly online or hybrid.

Note: use of electronic devices including mobile phones, laptops and iPads to record, video or photograph inside the Chamber is not permitted.