Section 59 – Remote attendance at meetings of principal councils
78.Section 4 of the Local Government (Wales) Measure 2011 provides that the reference in any enactment to a meeting of a local authority includes members attending remotely (i.e. not being at the actual meeting place but connecting to the meeting electronically), and the standing orders of a local authority must ensure that the number of members attending remotely must not be equal or greater to those in actual attendance for the meeting to be quorate. Section 59 amends section 4 of the Local Government (Wales) Measure 2011 so that, unless principal councils make different provision in their standing orders, at least 30% (instead of the original requirement in the Measure for at least 51%) of the total number of members at a remotely attended meeting of a council will have to be present at the main meeting place for that meeting to be quorate.