Who conducts a public hearing, and on what grounds may that person limit what is presented or order a speaker to stop speaking or leave?
General information · Not legal advice
Material to check
In practice material of this kind, read the notice convening the hearing, which names the presiding officer, any published agenda or paper stating limits on what may be presented, and the hearing minutes recording any order to stop speaking or to withdraw.
These are types of material to look for, not evidence already verified by PRO SE.
Where readings differ
One reading places the conduct of the public hearing with its presiding officer: that person must conduct it fairly, may limit the content of presentations for the hearing's smooth progress, and may take measures to keep order, such as ordering a speaker to stop speaking or to leave, being the necessary measures as prescribed by the Minister of the Interior and Safety.
Another reading ties each power to its stated purpose and to its source: a limitation on content is written for smooth progress rather than for the substance of what is said, and measures for keeping order reach only what the Minister of the Interior and Safety determines, while the provision names no body to review a limitation or order once given.
Your judgment
If a presentation was cut short, how could the file show whether the reason was the hearing's smooth progress or the view the speaker was expressing?
PRO SE does not make this decision or keep a case record on this public site.When to reconsider
We look at this again if the provision is amended to change who presides or which measures may be taken, or if a decision defines how far a limitation on presentation content may go.