How to ask a question at a Full Council Meeting

• We will process your question as set out in the Council's Constitution.
• We will publish your full name along with your question.
• By submitting your question, you are indicating your consent for your personal data to be used for this purpose.
• Questions will be taken in the order received, within the time available.
• They will be asked exactly as submitted.
• It is assumed that you wish the question to be answered at the next meeting of the Council unless otherwise stated. 

Questions must also fit the following criteria:

• No question must exceed 1 minute (no answer will exceed 3 minutes)
• The question must refer to an issue which affects wards in Wolverhampton or falls within the council’s responsibilities.
• The question must not be substantially the same as a question which has been asked at a meeting of the council in the past 6 months.
• The question must not be defamatory, frivolous, vexatious, or offensive. (It must not insult anyone and must be serious in nature)
• The question must not require the disclosure of confidential or exempt information.
• The question must not refer to individual planning or licensing matters, or any matter of a personal nature.
• The question must not relate to complaints made under statutory provisions which have not been finally dealt with.
• The question must not be a matter subject to litigation or could place the Council at risk of litigation.

Please note that priority will be given to those who have not previously asked a question in the last 6 months. 

The Monitoring Officer has the power to reject a question if it fails to meet the above criteria.

To submit a question, it must be submitted in writing in one of the following ways:

• Completing the online form below 
• Via email to Democratic.Services@wolverhampton.gov.uk 
• Or by post in writing to: Democratic Services, City of Wolverhampton Council, Civic Centre, St Peter's Square, Wolverhampton, WV1 1RG

The deadline for questions to be submitted to be asked at a Full Council meeting is, no later than noon seven clear working days before the meeting (e.g. Friday for a meeting on the Wednesday – 12 days later) – e.g Friday 3 June for a meeting on Wednesday 15 June. If you can give us more notice than this, we can help you to prepare your question as well as offering general advice and information.
 
If your question has been approved, the question will be read out to the Council meeting by an officer from Democratic Services. (You are welcome to attend the meeting and observe from the public gallery, alternatively you can watch the live stream)
 
When submitting your question you must give your name, address, and where possible an email address. The address must be the address at which you live and be within the City boundary. Please note that by submitting a question and your address, you are giving approval for the Council to check this address against the electoral register or council tax records if required. Should we be unable to validate your address we may contact you for proof of address. 

Questions will be taken in the order received, within the time available. Only a suitable number of questions will be considered within the allocated time and added to the agenda. No questions will be rolled over.

Any question that has been submitted in time and that cannot be dealt with during public question time (either because of lack of time or because of the Councillor who is required to answer the question is unable to attend the meeting) will be dealt with by a written reply.

Please arrive at least 15 minutes before the start of the meeting so that you can be shown to the public gallery if you wish to attend in person to hear your question read. You will be sent a copy of the agenda for the meeting about a week in advance. You are welcome to stay for the remainder of the meeting that is open to the public or you may leave after your question has been dealt with.

Members of the public or journalists attending any public meetings may record the meeting, including either audio or video recordings. This will include any public questions. The Council cannot prevent the recording taking place so please consider this possibility before submitting your question.
 
The Council also webcasts the meeting live and a copy is available on the Councils website for up to six months.

Your name will be included in the agenda pack with your question, which will be publicly available information. Your name will also be included in the minutes, along with the question asked and who responded. Your address and contact details will not be given out but will be stored by the Democratic Services Team at the Council for up to one year.

By submitting a question for a meeting, you are giving your consent that your name, address and postal town and any other personal details will only be used by the Democratic Services Team to process a question you have asked and shall appear in the minutes of the meeting. This is under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

You are not obliged either by statute or by contract to provide your contact details, but we will be unable to process your question without them.

If you submit a question, we will email you the updates and responses relating to that question only. For more information, please refer to our detailed privacy notice. 

All other information you provide will only be shared with Democratic Services staff dealing with the Committee. Following the approval of the minutes, any additional information - other than your name and postal address - will be destroyed.

The Data Controller is The City of Wolverhampton Council, and its Data Protection Officer is Anna Zollino-Biscotti who can be contacted at dpo@wolverhampton.gov.uk.

Please note that if you are unhappy with the handling of your data you have the right to complain to the Information Commissioners Office.