Meetings of the Corporation of St. George could be opened to the public, but not unless legislation is changed to give members legal protection over what they say.

Deputy mayor Kenny Bascome said the Corporation was preparing to hold public meetings, but said legislation protecting Corporation members from charges of slander needed to be changed first.

While politicians in the House of Assembly and the Senate have absolute privilege, which allows them to speak without fear of being charged with slander, members of the Corporation do not and it needs a change in the Municipalities Act to add that protection.

"Legislators can say certain things because they are immune to prosecution, but we don't have that sort of protection. I don't know if the Corporation of Hamilton has looked at that. We're in the process, but the legislation needs to be looked at first," said Mr. Bascome.

The decision to pursue such an option lies with the Mayor, but St. George's Mayor Mariea Caisey said such a responsibility would have to fall on the next administration because her term was nearing its end.

"My days are numbered," she said. "I'll leave that to the new mayor."

Last Wednesday, the Corporation of Hamilton allowed members of the public into one of its meetings for the first time in its 200-year history.

Mayor Charles Gosling said the fear of being charged with slander was one of the major reasons that previous administrations had not made meetings public.

"It delayed the process a number of years," he said. "Members were very worried that by stepping into the public arena, that they would be opening themselves up for slander."

Mr. Gosling said that while he would be open to a change in the Municipalities Act protecting speech at the meetings, the Corporation was moving forward without absolute privilege.

"We need to be careful," he said. "We've taken out insurance. It wouldn't stop us from being sued, but it does offer some form of protection."

Meanwhile, members of the St. George's community say they hope the Corporation opens its meeting to the public.

Former Mayor E. Michael Jones said during his administration, the town hall was refurbished with public meetings in mind.

"I think the population would be better served if the meetings were made public," he said.

If legislation is needed to change to allow public meetings, Mr. Jones said it was something that should be considered.

Head of the St. George's branch of the Chamber of Commerce, Kirby Brackstone, said transparency was vital for any democracy to function.

"It's all about transparency," he said. "Consumers make better choices when matters are transparent. Democracies make better choices when matters are transparent."

He said a lack of communication had caused some problems in the community and has made it more difficult to solve existing problems.

"We don't always know what the Corporations or other organisations are doing. Sometimes we wind up duplicating initiatives when we could be combining our efforts."