In the last week there was only one City of York Council meeting.
Seven were provisionally scheduled for the week, including a meeting of the executive, but six have been cancelled.
The one remaining meeting – a corporate appeals panel – went ahead on Friday morning.
In February as a whole, a total of 36 council meetings were provisionally in the diary for the month.
But 20 of these have been cancelled, including a meeting of the executive. And one – the vital Budget Council – has been moved. That leaves just 16 meetings across the month.
Next week there are no meetings at all. Three provisional meetings were cancelled as it’s school half term.
In comparison, in February, North Yorkshire Council has 44 meetings scheduled, with seven of these cancelled.
Leeds City Council has 25 meetings and one cancellation in February.
So why are there so few meetings and so many cancellations at City of York Council?
Bryn Roberts, director of governance at the council, explained.
He said: “We have a number of monthly meetings scheduled for most of the council’s decision-making bodies throughout the year.
“These are more frequently scheduled than most other authorities, as it provides opportunity for decisions to be taken in a timely manner. However, it does increase the risk of meetings being ‘stood down’”’ when they are not required.
“Even with these cancellations, there remains a wide range of meetings taking place across the council and a very active democratic process, where decisions are planned, taken, and then implemented. Particularly at this time of year, when our focus is on the Budget.”