The following two councillors were chosen to represent Wirral Council on Merseyside Police Authority (which will be abolished in November 2012 to make way for the new Police and Crime Commissioner):-
Cllr Chris Blakeley (Con) (who replaced former Cllr Kate Wood) and Cllr Moira McLaughlin (Lab) (who replaced Cllr Tony Smith)
Following the AGM of the Merseyside Police Authority on the 21st June 2012 they have been appointed to the following internal Merseyside Police Authority committees as well as an outside body each.
Cllr Chris Blakeley
Appointments Committee
Performance Scrutiny & Review Committee
Professional Standards Committee
Finance and Audit Committee
Service Improvement Committee
Transition Committee
Standards Committee
Estate Strategy Committee
Inspections Sub-Committee
Equality and Diversity Sub-Committee
Joint Police Officer and Joint Police Staff Consultative Committee
Police Pension Scheme – Scheme Manager Committee
Independent Member of Standards Committee – Selection Panel
Tender Opening Panel
Grant Making Panel (Police Property Act Fund)
Senior Officer Conduct Panel
Wirral Local Strategic Partnership (Outside Body Appointment)
Cllr Moira McLaughlin
Community Partnership Committee
Finance and Audit Committee
Estate Strategy Committee
Police Appeals Tribunal
Renumeration Appeals Panel
Wirral Community Safety Partnership (Outside Body Appointment)
Cabinet 12th January 2012 AOB – Urgent Business Approved by the Chair (Part 1) – Independent Review of Claims Made by Martin Morton (and others) Part 2
Before I write this up, I need to (to be ethical) state a raft of conflicts of interest as I have been overcharged by Wirral Council’s Social Services in the past in the time period around 2004-2005. However the money has since been refunded to me.
There are further many conflicts of interest I now have and to be ethical have to declare (what I can) about two of the four councillors named in the decision notices.
1) I have previously been a member of the Birkenhead Liberal Democrats (Cllrs Ann Bridson and Cllrs Pat Williams are both members).
4) I have previously been a member of the North West Liberal Democrats (Cllrs Ann Bridson and Cllrs Pat Williams are both members).
6) I have previously been a member of the Liberal Democrats (Cllrs Ann Bridson and Cllrs Pat Williams are both members).
7) I have previously been a member of the Wirral West Liberal Democrats and so has Cllr Ann Bridson.
8) Although, not at the time of writing, I have in the past been elected as a political party office holder for both the Birkenhead Local Party and Wirral West Liberal Democrats at the same time as Cllr Ann Bridson with respect to Birkenhead and Wirral West and Cllr Pat Williams with respect to Birkenhead. These positions were:-
a) past office holder of the Birkenhead Liberal Democrat Constituency Executive at the same time as Cllrs Bridson and Cllrs Williams
b) past office holder as Federal Conference representative (Birkenhead Local Party) at the same time as Cllrs Bridson and Cllrs Williams
c) past office holder as North West regional conference representative (Birkenhead Local Party) at the same time as Cllr Bridson
d) past office holder as North West regional conference representative (Wirral West Local Party) at the same time as Cllr Bridson
I am also have two further undisclosed interests of Cllr Bridson and one of Cllr Williams. I’m not willing at this point to declare what these are, just to state they exist. I have delayed writing this report of the Cabinet due to the need to read the report and appendices which total 529 pages. The following documents were published on Wirral Council’s website for this agenda item.
There are also the draft minutes are on Wirral Council’s website. There is also more information that has been known to us for some time in this matter which involves some of the Appendices to the AKA Final Report.
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Transcript:
>> John Brace There has been much public interest in the (as yet unpublished) AKA (Anna Klonowksi Associates Ltd) report into issues that need to be remedied at Wirral Council.
My personal view is that Wirral Council needs to publish the report, reassure the public what it’s doing differently now and restore its tarnished reputation as a result of the events that led to the report being commissioned.
Please could you answer:
a) what date the report will be published on and whether changes are to be made between the draft version and final version (if so the reasons why) and
b) an update on changes and decisions made since the report, as a result of the report becoming available in draft form, including progress (which includes consultation) already made and how the changes will benefit Wirral Council, its staff, its councillors and the public?
>> Cllr Steve Foulkes [sighs] What a surprise seeing you here John! [laughter]
Well, can I just thank you for your question? And, and this is a genuine genuine answer, errm which will be backed up by a errm official statement which has been circulated to all elected Members and it is a public document so I’m more than happy for you to have a copy of that. If you haven’t got it yet you’ll receive it very, very shortly.
As long as I’ve been Leader, I’ve been pressing both Anna Klonowski and the officers [inaudible] of the long awaited report. It’s not in this Council’s interests [inaudible] drag out any longer.
But it is in the Council’s interests is that procedure is done properly and within err natural justice and err you know protection for the Council’s future err prospects and liabilities. Currently err Miss Klonowski and her independent solicitors are conducting a Right to Reply process. The purpose of this and its current state of progress is fully explained in the Director of Law’s advice note which has been circulated to all councillors. Like I just said a copy is on its way to you immediately.
I cannot you know give a specific date for publication of the final report but I give you my assurance that I will do all I can to make this soon and as and as reasonably possible. It’s not in this Council’s best interests to drag on. We want the department to move forward. We want the Council to move forward.
What we have done though in terms of of what reports are available. We’ve insisted that the corporate governance issues are up and running, and they are believed to be at the stem of some of the issues in the other report. I can’t say any further than that.
So I can’t you know. It would be wrong to me to tell you lies, or or or to pretend I’m, but at this point of time I cannot given that the Director’s advice note. I believe we’ll say it’s inappropriate to publish that report.
If we are true to our word that you know whistleblowers should be protected and are important within our Council’s processes, then therefore anyone involved in the whistleblower process should have the same rights as the whistleblower. My view is that individuals have the Right to Reply, have the right for natural justice.
I don’t believe that we should hurry justice just for the sake of of of of err public you know clamour. If the report is correct, and final replies then we in public cannot in full conscience cannot act upon it. It’s not at that state yet and that’s not through any fault or mine.
>>The Worshipful the Mayor of the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral and Rock Ferry Councillor Moira McLaughlin OK, Mr. Brace, content with that?
>>John Brace Just one small supplementary.
>>The Worshipful the Mayor of the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral and Rock Ferry Councillor Moira McLaughlin Supplementary [inaudible] understand that.
>>John Brace Yes, err can you give an approximate timescale, in the Spring of next year or you know something like that?
>> The Worshipful the Mayor of the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral and Rock Ferry Councillor Moira McLaughlin I think he has answered that Mr. Brace to be fair.
>> Cllr Steve Foulkes I would would hope, I would hope it’s as soon as possible.
I’ve not been given an exact date.
But I have been informed, and as we’ve all been informed, that progress has been made on the Right to Reply. Err, there are some late Right to Reply issues come in come into the system as [inaudible]ed in Bill’s report. Everything around this issue is within the report of the Director of Law and I think that once you will read that you will understand [inaudible] difficult position he got in this type of report.
As I say it’s not in the Council’s interests, or my interests or anybody’s interest for that report to be delayed any longer than it need be. Because quite frankly people need to move on, the Authority needs to move on and rights need to err err wrongs need to be put right, and I’m interested in that happening. But, I can’t give you an exact date. I’m not going to give out [inaudible].
>> John Brace Ok, thank you.
>> The Worshipful the Mayor of the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral and Rock Ferry Councillor Moira McLaughlin Thanks.
>> Cllr Jeff Green Supplementary to that conversation.
Cllr Chris Blakeley said there was a piece of work being undertaken by the Scrutiny Programme Board to look at the work processes and how flows and blockages were happening.
Ken Harrison said he would like it minuted if ok, asking if they had the manpower with sufficient staff or was it the case that existing staff were not capable? He had listened to this “time after time”.
Bill Norman said it was “part capacity and part priorities”, however it would have “a higher priority than hitherto”. Cllr Chris Blakeley asked about enlisting the help of other authorities to speed it up?
Brian Cummings said it shouldn’t be taking two to three years to deal with the public. There was no other business raised by committee members so the meeting ended.
Since the meeting the agenda on Wirral Council’s website has been reordered to remove item 6. Therefore agenda item 7 has become agenda item 6. The report for this item can be read here with the appendices here.
Please note this blog post uses the original numbering of agenda items, not the changed agenda that Wirral Council changed a day after the meeting on their website to remove item 6.
EXEMPT INFORMATION: EXCLUSION OF MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC
The public may be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following item of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information.
Cllr Bill Davies said on the report they were awaiting he had “nothing to say”. Cllr Les Rowlands said he noted the history, but “what has happened in the department”? He said a mistake had been made twice and asked how they could proceed to avoid it happening again and what improvements would be made?
Bill Norman said that future reports would be cleared by Bill Norman or the Head of Service in future before the reports go out.
Cllr Mitchell said there had been a similar situation in planning about mobile phone masts. There had been an independent review which had led to things being dealt with in stringent chronological order. This meant they stopped to check the item was dealt with and treated before moving on and he hoped a similar process regarding the workings would be made to avoid “horrendous mistakes”. These were the kind of mistakes he “wouldn’t expect from a first year apprentice”, hopefully they could “move to the right process” where things were “done in a given order” and the “boxes ticked up”.
Cllr Blakeley accepted this and referred to 2003 in Greasby where it had been revoked. Cllr Mitchell said there needed to be an independent review by an outside body so that things would be “tightened up”. Cllr Gilchrist said he was “happy this was in public” and “not exempt”. However what would Wirral Council do what it was asked to see the information for this agenda item? He hadn’t read the documents, but just skimmed through the two hundred pages written by Smith. He had deciphered it and proceeded over how people had been treated. The inquiry would ask what was this about? Where they prepared against any public action?
