Employment Tribunal Day 6 of 10: Cross-examination of Kate Robinson
Employment Tribunal Day 6 of 10: Cross-examination of Kate Robinson
Kate Robinson (Wirral Council) 2nd September 2015
This is a report of an Employment Tribunal hearing I attended, the matter had already been part heard and this was day 6 of 10. As far as I know there are no reporting restrictions. After the cross-examination of Surjit Tour there was a break and the hearing resumed at 11.25 am.
Venue: Tribunal Room 2, Third Floor, Liverpool Civil and Family Court Hearing Centre, 35 Vernon Street, Liverpool, Merseyside, L2 2BX
Wirral Council’s Standards Panel will meet on the 15th June to decide on a complaint about a councillor
Wirral Council’s Standards Panel will meet on the 15th June to decide on a complaint about a councillor
Council Chamber (Wallasey Town Hall) 1st June 2017 – Does the councillor complained about sit on one of these seats?
I noticed looking through the calendar of public meetings at Wirral Council this month that a Standards Panel meeting is scheduled for Thursday 15th June starting at 5.00 pm in Committee Room 1 at Wallasey Town Hall.
However, presumably it won’t be about any of the three councillors that may be on the Standards Panel deciding it (Cllr Chris Blakeley (Conservative), Cllr Phil Gilchrist (Liberal Democrat) or Cllr Moira McLaughlin (Labour)).
It looks possible that Cllr Paul Hayes could be an Alternate Member at the Standards Panel meeting for the Conservative Group in place of Cllr Chris Blakeley though.
It also won’t be about about Cllr Gillian Wood as she was only elected earlier last month. Therefore there has been insufficient time for any complaint about her to reach this stage.
That leaves a large number of other councillors (sixty or so) it could be about! As the agenda is set to be published by the 7th June 2017 it’s possible I might find out then.
The good thing about it meeting in Committee Room 1 is that it’s possible microphones can be used there. Other people down on Wirral Council’s website as attending the meeting are Shirley Hudspeth (presumably to take the minutes), Surjit Tour (in his capacity as Monitoring Officer) and Professor Ronald Jones (in his capacity as Independent Person).
The agenda to be agreed for Standards Panel meetings is as follows:
1. Appointment of Chairperson of the Panel
2. Declarations of Interest
3. Opening remarks of the Chairperson
4. Panel to determine whether the exemption to exclude the press and public is to be maintained. (Parties invited to make representations)
5. Complainant (or representative) invited to make opening remarks
6. Subject Councillor (or representative) invited to make opening remarks
7. Investigator to present his/her report
8. Parties invited to question the investigator and/or seek points of clarification on the report
9. Panel to question the investigator on her report
10. Complainant (or representative) invited to make final submissions
11. Panel to seek clarification on any points relevant to the Complainant
12. Subject Councillor (or representative) invited to make final submissions
13. Panel to seek clarification on any points relevant to the Subject Councillor
14. Panel to invite the views of the Independent Person for consideration
15. Panel hearing adjourned to allow for deliberation (as deemed appropriate the Panel)
16. Panel hearing resumed for decision
17. If the Panel decision upholds/finds a breach of the Code, the Subject Councillor (or representative) shall be invited to make submissions in respect of any mitigation (including in respect of sanctions) for consideration by the Panel
18. Panel hearing adjourned to allow for deliberation (if deemed necessary by the Panel)
19. Panel hearing resumed for decision on sanctions (if any)
The Chairperson and Panel shall have discretion to vary the above procedure if it is considered appropriate and necessary to ensure fairness to all parties.
The Standards Panel can decide either to determine that no action should be taken in respect of the allegation(s) made (if so and the councillor complained about agrees a media statement is issued about it and if the councillor complained about agrees it is reported to the next meeting of the Standards and Constitutional Oversight Committee) or the Standards Panel can determine that the Members’ Code of Conduct is proven to be breached.
If their decision is the latter, then the Standards Panel can request:
(a) that Surjit Tour (Monitoring Officer) write to the councillor concerned,
(b) that the councillor has to apologise tot the Complainant (whether verbally or in writing),
(c) recommend to the Leader of that Political Group that disciplinary action be taken against the councillor,
(d) ask Surjit Tour to arrange training for the councillor concerned, if the councillor fails to turn up to the training then this is reported to the Leader of that Political Group.
If the Standards Panel upholds the complaint, the councillor complained about can choose within 21 days to appeal the decision to the Standards Appeal Panel.
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Investigation and Disciplinary Committee
Date: 21st September 2012 Time: 9.30pm
Committee Room 3
Investigation and Disciplinary Committee (6/7 present)
Cllr Ann McLachlan, (Chair), Labour
Cllr Adrian Jones, Labour
Cllr Ann McArdle, Labour
Cllr Lesley Rennie, Conservative
Cllr Mike Hornby, Conservative
Cllr Dave Mitchell, Liberal Democrat
Wirral Council Officers
Surjit Tour, Acting Head of Law, HR and Asset Management
Shirley Hudspeth, Committee Services Officer
Chris Hyams, Head of HR & Organisational Development
Tony Williams, Acting Employee Relations Manager
David Armstrong, Deputy Chief Executive?
Unknown officer (male)
In attendance
Cllr Paul Doughty, Labour, Chair of Employment and Appointments Committee
Two members of the public (John Brace, Leonora Brace) (items 1 to 3)
The Chair, Cllr Ann McLachlan (Labour) apologised for starting the meeting late.
1. Declarations of Interest
The Chair, Cllr Ann McLachlan Labour asked for any declarations of interest. None of the six councillors (including the Chair, Cllr McLachlan Labour) made any declarations of interest.
2. Minutes of the meeting held on the 20th August 2012
The Chair, Cllr Ann McLachlan asked if the minutes were agreed?
Cllr Lesley Rennie disputed the minutes and stated they were missing that she had said at the last meeting that she wanted it minuted that she wanted Richard Penn to be invited to the meeting.
She pointed out that this was missing from the minutes.
The Chair, Cllr Ann McLachlan said it was fine as Mr. Penn was “in the building” [see above photo of Richard Penn waiting in lobby, Ground Floor, during agenda item 4 (not the room the meeting was being held in)]. She thanked Cllr Lesley Rennie for pointing this out. There were no more comments on the minutes of the meeting held on the 20th August 2012, so the Chair moved the meeting onto agenda item 3.
3. Exclusion of the Press and Public
The Chair expressed her opinion that the press and public should be excluded from the meeting for agenda item 4. She expected the two members of the public to leave, however a member of the public waited for the Committee to agree with this opinion. The reason she gave was that it related to “staff”.
The two members of the public left.
4. Statutory Officers Preliminary Investigation – Preliminary Report/Report from the Independent Investigator
The Committee received the reports from Chris Hyams (Proper Officer), Tony Williams (Acting Employee Relations Manager) and Richard Penn (Independent Investigator).
Only Chris Hyams and Tony Williams were present at the start of this item.
David Green (Director of Technical Services): Unknown outcome David Taylor-Smith (Deputy Director of Finance): Unknown outcome
Ian Coleman (Acting Chief Executive): Outcome: request made to Employment and Appointments Committee (3/10/2012) for Early Voluntary Retirement (£82,528.50) effective from 5th October 2012.
Bill Norman (Director of Law, HR and Asset Management): “no case to answer” Outcome: “no case to answer” “no further advice appropriate”
Compromise Contract (£155,416) (agreed by Employment and Appointments Subcommittee (Compromise Contracts) of 20th September 2012. Made redundant as of 30th September 2012.
Councillors (7/7)
Cllr Dave Mitchell Liberal Democrat
Cllr Adrian Jones Labour
Cllr Lesley Rennie Conservative
Cllr Mike Hornby Conservative
Cllr Ann McLachlan Labour
Cllr Brian Kenny Labour
Cllr Anne McArdle Labour
Wirral Council Officers
Shirley Hudspeth (Committee Services Officer)
Chris Hyams, Human Resources (Head)
Tony Williams, Human Resources (Acting Employee Relations Manager)
Surjit Tour, Acting Head of Law, Human Resources and Asset Management
David Armstrong
Unknown female
Unknown male
Cllr Brian Kenny and Cllr Adrian Jones proposed Cllr Ann McLachlan as Chair.
There were no other nominations so Cllr McLachlan was made Chair.
Cllr Dave Mitchell proposed Cllr Adrian Jones as Vice-Chair, however it wasn’t seconded. There was a second valid nomination as Vice-Chair so Cllr Brian Kenny was made Vice-Chair.
Agenda Item 2 – Members’ Code of Conduct – Declarations of Interest
Councillors present made no declarations of interest.
Agenda Item 3 – Exempt Information – Exclusion of the Press and Public
The Chair suggested that the public and press were excluded from the rest of the meeting for agenda item 4 (Update in Relation to the Suspension of Council Officers) (reason given – Information relating to any individual and agenda item 5 (Any Other Urgent Business Approved by the Chair) (although there was no AOB).
Agenda Item 4 – Update in Relation to the Suspension of Council Officers
The Investigation and Disciplinary Committee received an update in a 16-page preliminary investigation report about the matters that led to the suspensions of Bill Norman, Ian Coleman and David Taylor-Smith (but also relate in part to the earlier suspension of David Green).
2) The Council’s policies on senior officers declaring interests and whether these had been followed.
3) Various other matters relating to the above four suspended individuals.
The following resolution was then agreed,
“(1) the progress being made in respect of the preliminary investigation be noted; and
(2) the way forward in relation to the three Statutory Officers, as outlined in paragraph 5.6 of the report, be agreed.”
Agenda Item 5 Any Other Business
It has been confirmed by Wirral Council that there were no items of Any Other Business agreed by the Chair tabled at the meeting.
Left (L to R): Unknown officer (male), Shirley Hudspeth (officer)
Right (Left to Right)
Cllr Dave Mitchell (Lab)
Cllr Adrian Jones (Lab)
Cllr Brian Kenny (Lab)
Cllr Ann McLachlan (Lab)
Cllr Mike Hornby (Con)
Left: Shirley Hudspeth
Right Foreground
L to R Cllr Mike Hornby (Con), Cllr Lesley Rennie (Con)
Right Background
Cllr Dave Mitchell (Lib Dem), Cllr Adrian Jones (Labour)
Background: Shirley Hudspeth
Foreground: Left to Right
Tony Williams (Officer), HR
Unknown Officer? (female)
Chris Hyams (Officer), HR
Unknown Officer? (male)
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(a) David Armstrong is appointed Acting Deputy Chief Executive,
(b) Surjit Tour becomes Deputy Monitoring Officer and stops being Scrutiny Officer (Head of Legal and Member Services) and
(c) Shirley Hudspeth, Democratic Services Manager stops being Democratic Services Manager and becomes Scrutiny Officer (Head of Legal and Member Services).
The Committee agreed to recommend (a) and (c) to Council and noted (b).
Items 5 (Chief Executives Office) and 7 (Department of Regeneration, Housing and Planning: Senior Management Structure) were deferred to a future meeting.
