Speaking Before Council

In the Township of Uxbridge, you can request a delegation to speak at a council or committee meeting on a specific issue or agenda topic. View our council calendar to find out about upcoming meeting dates.

Request a Delegation

Please complete the Request to Speak before Council Form and submit it by email. You must submit the form at least four business days before the meeting. Please submit any supplemental information, including Power Point presentations or handouts by Wednesday at noon before the meeting.

Speaking times

Delegations with no more than two speakers can speak for a maximum of 10 minutes during the meeting. If your delegation has three or more persons, you can speak for a maximum of 15 minutes.

Guide for Delegates:

The Township of Uxbridge Council and its Committees welcome registered delegates at its public meetings. Members of the public who wish to observe a meeting but not speak at it do not need to register in advance. Learn more about the process for delegates.

Before Registering as a Delegate

Some matters like general or even speciﬁc questions about Township programs can be addressed by Township staﬀ or your Ward Councillor directly. Before you make a request to delegate, we suggest you contact the Township Clerk’s Oﬃce at clerks@uxbridge.ca or 905-852-9181 to see if there is an alternative to a formal appearance as a delegate.

Registering as a Delegate

Only matters that appear on a Council or Committee Meeting agenda may be spoken to during that meeting. To have your matter added to an agenda for an upcoming Council or Committee Meeting, please contact the Township Clerk’s Office at clerks@uxbridge.ca or 905-852-9181.

If you would like to appear as a delegate, you must register in writing by submitting the Request to Speak before Council Form by e-mail to clerks@uxbridge.ca at least four (4) business days before the meeting.

The request must include the following:

Name of the Delegate (ﬁrst and last);
Delegate’s mailing address and, if applicable, e-mail address and phone number;
An outline of the nature of the Delegation;
If applicable, the name, address and phone number of any person, group or organization that the Delegate is representing; and
The speciﬁc action being requested.

You will have ten (10) minutes to provide your delegation. Time will be provided following your address to respond to any questions from Council. Requests to delegate will not be permitted if they are about:

A matter under litigation between you and/or your client and the Township;
A matter under investigation by the Township’s Ombudsman or Integrity Commissioner;
An appeal of an award of a contract to a vendor or service provider;
Politics or religion;
Conspiracy; or
Items spoken to in the past six (6) months.

Delegating at Statutory Public Meetings

Statutory Public Meetings are held, as required, to seek the public’s feedback on matters relating to speciﬁc Provincial legislation (Development Charges Act, 1997 or Planning Act, for example). The schedule of these meetings varies.

If you wish to speak at a Statutory Public Meeting, registration before the meeting is encouraged as registered delegates will be given speaking priority. Once the list of registered delegates is exhausted, the Chair will open the ﬂoor to anyone else in attendance who wishes to speak.

All comments made at a Statutory Public Meeting must relate to the matter under consideration at the meeting.

Groups

If a group of individuals wishes to delegate, the group should designate one individual as its spokesperson. The other individuals of the group may participate if there are questions following the delegation and the spokesperson needs assistance in answering them.

Tips for an Eﬀective Delegation

Introduce yourself and the name of the organization you are representing (if applicable) at the start of your presentation. Keep your introduction brief and move onto your main point(s) as quickly as you can.

If you are asked a question, address your response through the Chair by starting your answer with “Chair, through you…” or “Through you, Chair…” Please be mindful of the time limit. You may ask if you are not sure how much time you have left.

Appearing as an In-Person Delegation

Please enter the Township Council Chambers at 51 Toronto St. S, Uxbridge, and take a seat in the gallery.
Delegations are scheduled to be heard at the beginning of each meeting following initial procedural business.
When it is time for your delegation, please come to the podium and push the button on the microphone. As an alterative to the podium, there is a moveable table in the middle of the room which can be used to accommodate delegates with mobility aids or who wish to sit to address Council/Committee.
You will have ten (10) minutes for your delegation. If you feel you will need more time, please inform the Clerk before the meeting. Council/Committee will determine whether to extend your time.
Township staﬀ will share any presentation materials on the Council Chambers’ screen and via Teams. You can request that slides be advanced by saying “next slide, please”.
If you intend to use handouts, fifteen (15) hard copies need to be delivered to the Clerk’s Office at least one (1) full business day prior to the scheduled day of the Meeting.
Please direct your remarks to and respond to any questions through the Chair and abide by the decorum guidelines for delegations set out in Section 11 of the Procedural By-law.
After your delegation, please return to your seat in the gallery. Alternatively, you may leave the meeting if you wish to at that point.
If Council resolves into a closed session either before or after your delegation, you must leave the Chambers and take all personal items with you, even if you plan on returning to watch the meeting after open session resumes.
If you are scheduled for an in-person delegation but are feeling unwell or are unable to arrive at the meeting location, it may be possible to switch to a virtual delegation.
Please contact the Clerk’s Office as soon as you are aware you will not be able to attend in-person.
Please note that food and drinks are not permitted inside the Council Chambers.
Please remember to take all personal belongings with you when you leave.

Appearing as a Virtual Delegation

Delegations are scheduled to be heard at the beginning of each meeting following initial procedural business.
The Township Clerk will provide you with a Teams link to access the meeting. This link will allow you to join the meeting. When it is your turn, the meeting host will enable you to speak.
To avoid confusion, please do not share your Teams link with anyone else. Others may watch the meeting through the livestreaming option.
Ensure you have a stable internet connection prior to the start of your delegation. If your connection is lost and cannot be re-established, the meeting will proceed without your delegation being completed.
Ensure your Teams username is the name you registered your delegation with. If you intend to delegate by phone, kindly advise of the phone number you will be dialing from. Anonymous or unknown accounts will not be granted access to speak.
You will have ten (10) minutes to speak. If you feel you will need more time, please inform the Clerk before the meeting. Council/Committee will determine whether to extend your time. Township staﬀ will share any presentation materials on the Council Chambers’ screen and you can request that slides be advanced by saying “next slide, please”.
Please direct your remarks to and respond to any questions through the Chair, and abide by the decorum guidelines for delegations set out in Section 11 of the Procedural By-law.
If Council resolves into a closed session before your delegation, you will be removed from the Teams call. You will be invited back into the Teams call once open session resumes.
After your delegation, please exit the Teams call. You can watch the remainder of the meeting via the livestream option located on the Council Meeting Calendar on the Township website.
If you are scheduled for a virtual delegation but will not be able to appear before Council as scheduled, please contact the Clerk’s Office as soon as possible.

Audio/Visual Guide for Delegates

To ensure compatibility with the Township’s systems, electronic presentations must be submitted to the Clerk’s Office (clerks@uxbridge.ca) or delivered to the Clerk’s Office no later than 12:00 p.m. on the Wednesday before the meeting. If access to a website is required, it is also recommended that the web address be provided in advance to ensure that it can be properly viewed on the Township’s systems. Staﬀ will make every eﬀort to assist but cannot guarantee the functionality of presentation materials.

Please be advised presentations must be no larger than 5MB to be sent through email. If the presentation is larger, please submit it to the Clerk on a USB key. If you do not have an account with an online repository provider, please contact the Clerk’s Oﬃce at clerks@uxbridge.ca or 905-852-9181.

If you are unsure if the ﬁle you wish to present is supported, please contact the Clerk’s Office.

Please note that PowerPoint presentations should not be converted to PDF ﬁles for the purpose of making the presentation as unexpected results could occur.

Contact Information

To register as a delegate or to obtain advice, please contact the Clerk’s Office at:

The Township of Uxbridge

51 Toronto St. S,

Uxbridge, ON

L9P 1T1

Email: clerks@uxbridge.ca Phone: 905-852-9181

Oﬃce Hours: Monday to Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

NOTE: Please contact the Township Clerk's Oﬃce to conﬁrm Council and Committee meeting dates as these may change from time to time.