Leader in resignation call over pay scandal
ACALL has been made for the resignation of a council leader after it was confirmed that the cost of a long-running pay scandal now exceeds £4m.
Members of Caerphilly council will on Thursday be asked to set aside an extra £242,000 to pay for an investigation into the conduct of the authority’s chief executive Anthony O’Sullivan, who has been suspended on full pay since March 2013, as well as further salary payments to him.
A report from the Assistant Auditor General for Wales said that Mr O’Sullivan had acted unlawfully when he recommended a huge pay rise for himself.
Together with two other council officials Mr O’Sullivan was charged with the criminal offence of misconduct in a public office, but the charges were dropped before trial.
The two other council officials – deputy chief executive Nigel Barnett and head of legal services Daniel Perkins – received payouts of £171,000 and £127,000 respectively in 2017.
But the authority has yet to reach an agreement with Mr O’Sullivan, with the head of the investigation estimating that it will take until March 2019 at the earliest to resolve the issue.
Labour council leader David Poole said: “It’s disappointing and hugely frustrating that we are being asked to provide further funding to allow this investigation to reach a conclusion.
“We are facing significant cuts over the next few years and none of us want to see our shrinking budgets being diverted away from frontline services.
“Unfortunately, we are bound by a statutory process which is completely outside of our control and it is absolutely essential that we fully comply with relevant employee legislation.”
But Independent councillor Nigel Dix, a former member of the council’s Labour group, said: “Enough is enough. Cllr Poole was one of the five councillors involved in the secret meeting that started this affair more than six years ago. He was in favour of the huge pay rise awarded to Mr O’Sullivan at a time when ordinary members of the council staff were on a pay freeze. It’s time he took responsibility and resigned as leader of the council. The members of the public I speak to are very angry that the scandal remains unresolved.
“It’s awful that residents and staff are facing these cuts when the cost of the pay scandal continues to rocket.”
A Caerphilly Labour group spokesman said: “While its overrun is incredibly frustrating for council officers, members and the public, the present statutory investigation into actions of senior council officers is the only lawful means to resolve the matter.”
Cllr Poole, who has been the council’s leader since May 2017, did not respond to our requests for a comment.