Letter: Petitions give people a voice

Petitions are part of the democratic process of participation by the people.

There are some misapprehensions being propagated that petitions ought to be refused by Council if the content is not correct, and that councillors should declare conflicts of interest if they have been in contact with those presenting the petition.

But that’s not what petitions are about. Members of the public have a right to express their views and speak to elected representatives.

Petitions about any topic of concern relating to council’s responsibilities can be presented at an Ordinary Meeting of Council. There is no scrutiny about whether statements in the petition are right or wrong.

The only requirement is that the wording be respectful and not contain any offensive language or content. Noosa Council’s website has instructions about how to prepare a properly made petition.

Petitioners can ask any councillor to present their petition at an Ordinary Meeting. Generally councillors do this as a courtesy for members of the community. It would be disrespectful for a councillor to refuse.

When a councillor presents a petition, he or she is allowed to make a brief speech of no more than one minute.

Under Council Standing Orders (meeting rules) no further debate is allowed and Council does not make a decision about the content of the petition.

Because there is no debate about the content of the petition and no substantive decision to be made, there is no need for councillors to declare conflicts of interest. Under the Local Government Act, declarations of conflicts of interest are only required where a council will be making a decision about a matter. Of course, councillors are free to declare a conflict and leave the room if they wish to make a symbolic gesture.

Noosa Council meeting practice is to use a standard motion when it comes to petitions, which is: “That the petition with [insert number] signatories by [insert proponent] about [insert topic] be received and referred to the Chief Executive Officer to determine appropriate action."

The simple content-free motion then gets voted on and the petition gets ceremonially handed to the CEO.

That’s democracy at work.