Public speaking at council meetings

Members of the public are entitled to attend meetings of Harborough District Council, its Cabinet and Committee meetings and have the right to ask questions and speak at meetings.  

The procedures to do so are set out in Harborough District Council’s Constitution.  

Council 

Any person who lives or works within the Harborough District, or any organisation, may ask a question of the Council.  

The total time for questions by the public must not exceed 30 minutes and each member of the public is entitled to speak for no more than 5 minutes.   Questions may only be asked if they are submitted in writing to Democratic Services no later than midday on the seventh working day before the meeting.   Each question must give the name and address of the questioner.  A question may be rejected if it is: 

  • Defamatory, frivolous or offensive; 
  • Vexatious, abusive or otherwise inappropriate; 
  • Substantially the same as a question, petition or issue considered by the Council in the previous six months; 
  • Relates to a matter which is of purely personal concern to an individual or organisation 
  • Contains a statement which is untrue. 

You can submit a question by emailing - DemocraticServices@harborough.gov.uk  

Further information regarding public speaking at Council can be found in the Council’s Constitution, Sections 4.1.25 to 4.1.38 (Pages 144-146).  

The Council procedure rules apply to meetings of committees and sub-committees of Council, except for Planning Committee, which has different rules, detailed further on this page.

Cabinet 

The agenda for each meeting of the Cabinet normally comprises a dedicated agenda item reserved for questions submitted by the Public. 

Members of the public are entitled to address meetings of the Cabinet and will only be able to speak at the meeting with the consent of the Leader of the Council. 

You can submit a question by emailing - DemocraticServices@harborough.gov.uk 

Further information regarding public speaking at Cabinet can be found in the Council’s Constitution, Section 4.4.40 (Paged 193—194). 

The Cabinet procedure rules also apply to meetings of Cabinet Sub-Committees and Advisory Panels.  

Planning Committee 

Decisions on certain planning applications are taken at the Council’s Planning Committee.  

Members of the public are entitled to address the Planning Committee for up to 3 minutes as a representative of the following: 

  • An objector to a proposal. 
  • A supporter of a proposal (including applicant/agent). 
  • A Representatives of the Parish Council/Parish Meeting/Town Council/ another body (i.e. Market Harborough Civic Society) within which the site is located. 

There is a maximum of 3 speakers allowed to object or support and there shall be the same amount of time allowed for supporters and objectors to a proposal.  

For example, if there are 2 objectors and 1 supporter of a proposal, the objectors shall be entitled to two 3-minute slots, and the supporter one 6-minute slot. 

Ward Member(s) are entitled to address the Planning Committee for a maximum of 5 minutes. 

If you would like to speak at a Planning Committee, you must request to do so in writing or by telephone by 12 noon not less than 2 working days before the meeting (for example, if the Planning Committee is on a Tuesday and the day before is a bank holiday, you must submit your request by 12noon on the previous Thursday). 

You can request to speak by emailing - planningcommittee@harborough.gov.uk or by contacting Planning Admin on 01858 821008. 

Any request to speak must contain: 

  • The planning application reference; 
  • Your name and contact details; 
  • Whether you are an objector or supporter of a proposal, a representative of the Parish Council / Parish Meeting / Town Council / Market Harborough Civic Society.  
  • An indication of the topic area you wish to discuss. 

Requests will be accepted on a first come, first served basis. 

Requests to speak will not be accepted until after the publication of the relevant Planning Committee agenda, which is published 5 clear working days prior to the meeting. 

Further information regarding Public Speaking at Planning Committee can be found in Harborough District Council’s Constitution (Pages 351-354) and by following this link, which outlines Planning Committee Meeting Process and how it makes decisions on Planning Applications - Planning Committee Meeting Process | Decisions on planning applications | Harborough District Council. 

Exclusion of press and public 

Members of the public may be excluded from meetings whenever it is likely that the business of the meetings exempt and confidential information would be disclosed.