Plymouth councillors to consider five-minute speech time limit

Councillors have expressed frustration at council meetings being adjourned to consider amendments

Plymouth City Council is considering shortening the length of debates by limiting the time councillors can speak on an issue.

It comes after councillors expressed frustration at council meetings being adjourned to consider amendments.

Amendments are put forward by members to modify motions and usually involve debate for and against.

The proposed time limit for how long councillors can speak on an issue is five minutes.

New rules for debates were drawn up after a five-and-a half-hour meeting in November was subject to two amendments and confusion over how to bring the subject to a close.

The meeting had to be stalled briefly to get clarity, the Local Democracy Reporting Service reported.

'Bite the bullet'

Councillor Bill Stevens (Labour, Devonport) told the council's audit and governance committee meeting no party was to blame for the length of debates.

"The number of adjournments to examine amendments is what frustrates me," he said.

"I want to spend council meetings talking about economy, transport and healthcare, all the things that people out there want us to talk about, rather than internal workings like this.

"We need to bite the bullet on this."

Councillor John Mahony (Conservative, Peverell) suggested amendments could be given in advance.

"Amendments being put on the day lead to adjournments," he said.

Councillor Lee Finn (Conservative, Budshead), committee chairman, said proposed rules to limit debate time could first be discussed by political groups so the full council could consider them "without too much debate".

Full council meetings involving all of Plymouth's 57 councillors usually take place every two months during the day and last between five and seven-and-a-half hours.