Public kicked out of Sheffield Council chamber meeting over row about questions

Members of the public who came to ask questions at a Sheffield Council cabinet meeting were kicked out of the council chamber.
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It happened after councillor Terry Fox, deputy leader and chair of the meeting, said he would group questions together and answer in one response, which prompted Justin Buxton, member of the public, to refuse to ask his until previous ones were answered.

Coun Fox then ordered the meeting to be stopped before he and all other cabinet members walked out.

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The press and public were forced to leave too and told to wait in the Town Hall lobby.

Members of the public were kicked out of a Sheffield Council cabinet meeting at the Town Hall yesterday afternoon over a row about questionsMembers of the public were kicked out of a Sheffield Council cabinet meeting at the Town Hall yesterday afternoon over a row about questions
Members of the public were kicked out of a Sheffield Council cabinet meeting at the Town Hall yesterday afternoon over a row about questions

Then a member of staff told the public they were barred from coming back in and would have to wait for written answers to their questions.

Mr Buxton said: "What constantly happens is questions get grouped together and specific questions get lost in the miasma of others and I was wanting specific answers to those I asked, rather than being drowned out."

Russell Johnson, one of those who came to speak, said: "They never answer questions properly, either verbally or in writing, but I regard this exercise as part of my accountability right.

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"They treat us with contempt because they don't want to answer."

Gillian Duckworth, director of legal and governance at the council, explained why they made the decision and said: "The chair has a right to adjourn the meeting if there is any disruption from the public.

"The business of the meeting couldn't continue while that member of the public remained in the chamber, so the easiest way to do it is for the chair to adjourn the meeting and for us to vacate the chamber and remove the member of the public civilly so the meeting can continue.

"This is disruption that has happened previously so we have had to create a rule today to not allow members of the public back into the room.

"That's not something we want to do, it's against the fundamental principles of the council to be as open and transparent as it can be."

The full meeting was webcast and can be viewed here.