Call to broadcast Mayo council meetings live online

MEMBERS of the public may soon be able to watch meetings of Mayo County Council live online.

At the Castlebar Municipal District monthly meeting, Councillor Ger Deere suggested council meetings should be broadcast live online.

He commented: “I believe it is very important that these meetings are online not only to make it easier for elected members to attend during Covid, but for the public to be able to see the meetings for themselves and how our local authorities work and the work being done by their elected representatives.

“Mayo.ie has one of the finest online digital presence in Ireland and the recent Mayo Day and the Höchstadt 20th anniversary is testament to their capabilities so we have the resources available to us to do this.”

He highlighted how Cork City Council and Dublin City Council are already broadcasting live and it should be looked at too for Mayo County Council.

At the moment, members of the public can listen in to meetings, with arrangements done in advance of meetings.

Councillor Donna Sheridan agreed it was important from a transparency point of view.

She proposed the Castlebar area meeting goes online as a pilot.