Should a Parish Councillor be the administrator of the email system ?

Question

We use a Zoho system and the setup is in the hands of one councilor who refuses to allow any inspection of the setup. In Zoho there is a moderator function which allows the viewing of email contents

Answer 1

I'm not familiar with Zoho, but are you using any other features apart from e-mail? Is this a free service or paid for?

For policy and procedural matters, the decision on whether or not an indvidual allows any inspection of the setup rests with the council, not the individual, so it should be discussed at the next meeting. Confirmation of the ability to view the contents of e-mails should be obtained. Once fully informed, the council can make a decision about whether or not this is acceptable.

In an ideal world, the responsibility for website and e-mail administration should sit with the Clerk or an external service provider, but there are often practical or financial barriers to this and if a councillor has a background in IT, they may be far better equipped in this regard. I manage IT for all three of my councils; two as Clerk and one as Chair.

Answer 2

Should a Parish Councillor be the administrator of the email system ?  The answer is ideally no.  The role of the Clerk is to provide administration facilities and this would include E Mails. They should receive appropriate training if they don't have the appropriate skills/  It should be noted that every Councillor is responsible for the operations of the Council and inability to access information about their E Mail systems prevents them from discharging that duty. Has this cllr ensured that  his management of council E mail access is in compliance with the GDPR 2018 regulations?  What has he got to hide?  He should be challenged to justify his stance. How can the data controller be satisfied that any personal data contained within the E mails is being processed in accordance with GDPR?