41 complaints made against Oakham Town Councillors
It is reported on Rutland Radio News, 41 Complaints against Oakham Town Councillors.
I know six of those were made against me. Five from former Town Councillors and one as part of his warm welcome was made by Cllr Charles Haworth supporting them.
Strangely I still do not know the details of the allegations.
The Radio reports 11 complaints have been referred to Standards for England for further investigation.
I am aware four of the six complaints made against me have been referred for further investigation I am sure the former councillors and Cllr Haworth will be disappointed with that outcome.
18 complaints have been unfounded.
The remaining complaints are subject to continued investigation.
The Chief Executive Helen Briggs gave a radio interview in which she said the high volume of complaints had put Rutland County Council under immense pressure. She also suggest this is a burden on Council Tax Payers, I strongly object to this tact, it suggests the council does not want to hear complaints and is happy for Oakham Town Councillor to bully and conduct themselves in a homophobic manner.
Has she also forgot Rutland County Council ha received a similar high volume of complaints about its members over the past year. Rutland County Council does not seek publicity or concern for the tax payer when it deals with these complaint 16 directed at Cllr Roger Begy, Leader of Rutland County Council. I don’t think the tax payers complain for good reason and maybe it is time Rutland County Council also took a good look at how they behave towards the public.
Oops there goes my access to the internet via the library computers, maybe not the head of legal services Mr Pook did say they can accept criticism something tells me they cant and the threat of a ban suggest this is not the case.
I suggest she attends one of our meetings then she would know what real pressure is.
If Rutland County Council had correctly monitored the parish council in the past they would not be subject to this pressure now?
Interestingly Rutland County Council has sent along a member of the Standards Committee to observe the past two meetings. During his first visit Cllr Joyce Lucas made him feel very comfortable and made sure members knew who he was and the reason why he was present. She did not directly inform me, I overheard her trying to discreetly tell other members. I spoke to the monitoring officer and he confirmed what Cllr Lucas told others to be true. Cllr Lucas is also a member of the Standards Committee.
This was a deliberate attempt by Cllr Lucas to make sure everyone accept me knew so they could put on their best show. Like many of the members of the Council I have received no training and it is highly likely I made mistakes.
I am not sure if the visits by the Standards Committee members is meant to be secret but I am sure this is a clear example of how self regulating is exploited as does not work.
