Manitoba municipal council warned not to ban recordings of public meetings

SPRINGFIELD, MB: The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms announces that a legal warning letter has been sent to the Mayor and Council of the Rural Municipality of Springfield, Manitoba, demanding that they end their prohibition against members of the public recording council meetings. The right to record public meetings of local governments is an essential component of democratic accountability.

On February 4, 2025, Karen Insley, a Springfield resident, went to a Rural Municipality of Springfield Council (RM Council) meeting and recorded the proceedings on her phone. Mayor Patrick Therrien noticed her recording the meeting and asked her to stop, stating that it was against a new bylaw to record meetings.

The Chief Administrative Officer Colleen Draper added that the bylaw permitted media to record meetings but only if they made arrangements with her office 48 hours in advance. Ms. Draper stated that the RM Council would publish audio recordings of the meeting within two days. Curiously, Mayor Therrien then said it was permissible for people watching remotely via Zoom to record the meeting.

The warning letter, sent on March 20, 2025, states that the bylaw does not, in fact, prohibit recordings and that the province’s Municipal Act says “that a council can only act through resolution or by-law.” It also states, “A proposed by-law or resolution to completely ban the public from recording meetings would be unconstitutional. Recording and broadcasting has been held to be expressive activity protected by section 2(b) of the Charter.”

Indeed, the right to record and broadcast meetings serves to promote democracy, the discovery of truth, and self-fulfillment, which are all values the freedom of expression seeks to preserve and uphold.

This is not the first time the RM Council has attempted to prevent the public from engaging in democratic discourse.

On September 16, 2024, constitutional lawyer Darren Leung advised the Mayor and Council that proposed amendments to its Procedures bylaw which included an ill-defined prohibition on “harassment” would stifle freedom of expression – protected by section 2(b) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Mr. Leung warned that, while the RM Council has the right to draft rules of procedures, it did not have the “jurisdiction to implement rules or procedures which undermine the constitutional rights of its citizens.”

The latest warning letter notes that Ms. Insley was not disruptive in any way as she recorded the meeting. “So long as members of the public record in a non-intrusive manner, RM Council and the Chair have no right to prohibit recording at their meetings. We hope that the RM Council considers our warning carefully and acts in a way respectful of Charter rights,” the letter states.

Mr. Leung stated, “The ability of members of the public to record and share public meetings is essential to local democracy. It fosters greater engagement in the community and allows more people to become informed on local issues. Our Constitution protects this right, and we hope that the RM Council recognizes this fact and assists its community in fostering democracy instead of repressing it.”