Council Meetings

Let’s talk about Council Meeting etiquette, filming and photography, and more!

Watch our short video or take a read below.

Council Chambers play a central role in the democratic process for local municipalities, serving as a dedicated meeting space to conduct decision-making, welcome diverse community perspectives, experiences, and opinions, and foster meaningful engagement. That is why it is important to have clear rules governing the activities that take place within Chambers to ensure we can provide a respectful, safe, and welcoming environment for all participants.

How are Council and Committee Meetings, conduct of Council Members, and the calling of meetings governed?

The Municipal Act mandates that municipalities have a Procedure By-law to govern the calling, place, and proceedings of meetings. For Pickering, Procedure By-law 8019/23 outlines rules for all meeting types, including responsibilities for chairing a meeting, recordings, points of privilege, motions, voting, and more. Adherence to these rules ensures proper decorum during official meetings and provides the framework for Council’s decision-making process.

Enhanced Safety & Security Measures

Over the past year, we’ve received feedback from Members of Council, staff, and meeting attendees, expressing concern and discomfort around increasingly unruly, disruptive, and intimidating behaviours from visitors to the Council Chambers.

The City takes these concerns very seriously and has implemented measures to ensure meetings are free from discrimination, harassment, intimidation, and conflict.

Consequently, to ensure the safety and security of attendees and officials, the City has introduced paid, off-duty police officers in addition to regular contracted security personnel at various Council and Committee Meetings, which has cost the City over $18,000.

While substantial, this measure underscores our commitment to a secure and respectful environment for all participants.

Filming/photography in Council Chambers

To further ensure the comfort and protect the privacy of all in the public gallery, visitors are not permitted to take pictures or video of the proceedings, or of other attendees, inside the Council Chambers. 

We appreciate that guests to our Chambers do not want to be unknowingly filmed, with the potential of having their image posted to social media afterward.

This rule does not apply to City staff, and exceptions can be made for credentialed media outlets by a two-thirds majority vote of Members present.

For the convenience of those who cannot attend in person, all Committee and Council meetings are directly livestreamed to YouTube, unedited. 

Credentialed Media Filming/Photography Request

Filming and photography are not generally permitted in the Council Chambers during Committee and Council Meetings.

Credentialed Media who wish to film or take photos at an upcoming Committee or Council Meeting are asked to submit their request by 12:00 pm on the date of the Meeting. Requests must include a scanned copy of media credentials.

Email requests to Corporate Communications

At the discretion of Council and/or Committee, permission may be granted by a Two-Thirds majority vote of the Members present, at the beginning of the meeting being considered for filming.

Delegations

Members of the public who wish to provide verbal comments or opinions on a matter before a Standing Committee or Council are known as delegations.

Delegations may only speak to matters that are listed on the meeting agenda (with limited exceptions).

Who is eligible to speak at Council/Committee meetings?

• residents of the City of Pickering;
• an owner of a business in Pickering; or,
• a Pickering taxpayer.

Those that are not eligible to make a delegation at a Council or Committee meeting may submit written comments or email the Clerk's Office.