A WILTSHIRE councillor has complained about the times of the Northern Area Planning Committee being changed from 6pm to 3pm as he feels it will exclude working people from the meetings.

Cllr Simon Killane was outraged by the decision, as he already takes time off work unpaid to do his work as councillor and because it could exclude working people from proceedings.

He added that councillors were also expected to attend an officer briefing which takes place earlier than the public meeting, meaning he would need to be present at council up to an hour before the committee meets.

He said: “The thing is I already take two days off work to be a councillor and now I’ve got to take a half day off on Wednesday as well. I might as well just give up on the job I’m doing.

“Most of the people paying money into Wiltshire Council are working people and they should have the opportunity to be represented.

“How can it be right to make it more difficult for members of the public to attend meetings that we all know can be of immense interest and importance to them? "Surely this kind of decision just makes the council more inaccessible to working councillors and the public.”

Chairman of the Northern Area Planning Committee Cllr Anthony Trotman responded by saying that the change was due in part to the early closing of the building the meetings were held in but added that many committees met earlier and have done so successfully for some time.

Cllr Trotman explained that all the members were told that there was a chance the meetings could change time and were invited to give their opinion at the last meeting. Only two objected.

He said: “If members of the public wish to attend a public meeting they will always find the time to do so.

“Strategic planning always meets at 10 in the morning and is always full of people who want to object.

“I will say that the meeting on the 17th of September we had to have additional staff to let people in and out and it was very disruptive to our meeting.”

Cllr Trotman also added that the meetings only took place every third week and that each member had two or three substitutes who could sit in on the meeting in their place if they were unable to attend.