Editor:
I was disappointed to read Coun. Doug Hockley's comments in response to Coun. Mike Shanks' concerns about council's improper use of in-camera meetings (Coast Reporter, Jan. 18).
Mr. Hockley stated, "There will be a continuation of that proliferation of in-camera meetings simply because some of us want to move Sechelt forward."
That statement seems to reveal a disturbing lack of understanding of section 90 of the Community Charter, the provincial legislation that controls the operations of municipal councils, and is at the heart of Mr. Shanks' concerns. Section 90 lists the very few legitimate reasons for meeting in-camera, and the expeditious advancement of council's agenda, however high their goals may be, is not on that list.
Council is not a group of corporate trouble-shooters, working in the private sector with the freedom to operate as they see fit. It is a group of public officials, democratically elected to conduct the people's business in an open and straightforward way and, as such, they must adhere rigorously to the letter and spirit of the Community Charter.
Tom Morris, Sechelt
