Top Tories accused of breaking conduct code
TWO senior councillors have been accused of breaching a local authority’s Code of Conduct about remarks they made in a heated committee debate.
They are the subject of separate complaints from a council planning officer and a firm of planning agents.
Hyndburn Council’s Conservative group leader Cllr Marlene Haworth and her deputy Cllr Peter Britcliffe made the comments as the borough’s March 23 planning committee meeting discussed an application by the property arm of Blackburn’s billionaire Issa brothers’ business empire.
Monte Blackburn Ltd was seeking backdated permission for changes to the previously approved design on two warehouses on its Frontier Park development.
The two councillors questioned why the original approval for the buildings granted in February 2020 was taken by an officer rather that by councillors.
Cllr Haworth said in the meeting: “Why did the original plans not go to a committee meeting for discussion, yet two days later was approved under delegated powers by an officer who also works in the private sector offering the same services privately and advertises on social media?
“This stinks and needs investigating.”
Cllr Britcliffe also wanted to know why this major application had not gone to planning committee but been decided by an officer.
He told the meeting: “People are up in arms. I have read on social media allegations that brown paper envelopes have changed hands.
“They are blaming councillors.”
The planning officer has complained about both sets of remarks, alleging they breach the council’s Code of Conduct for councillors.
The officer claims that Cllr Haworth named them at the meeting and ‘alleged incorrectly’ that they had not acted independently in respect of the planning application, had acted as a planning consultant, and had acted outside of remit in approving the initial planning application.
The complaint also alleges that the ‘tone and content’ of Cllr Haworth’s remarks ‘failed to treat the officer with respect and defamed them by implying that bribery or other improper conduct had taken place’.
The complaint against Cllr Britcliffe says he ‘incorrectly implied that corruption had taken place in respect of the planning process in that instance, implying that planning officers were corrupt’.
Monte Blackburn’s agent PWA Planning have also submitted complaints to Hyndburn Council against both councillors saying they ‘made serious and slanderous personal attacks on council officers, accusing them of corruption without evidence and failing to treat them with respect’.
Approached by the Local Democracy Reporter, Cllr Haworth said: “[The officer] is suggesting I made defamatory remarks. I never mentioned any names in the meeting.
“I do not retract what I said. I do not apologise for what I said because I was representing my residents and asking the questions my residents wanted asked.
“I was not having a go at any individual.
“I was criticising the system we currently have in our planning office.”
Cllr Britcliffe said: “I merely pointed out that public opinion in this mat
ter led them to have a very dim view of councillors who had not been involved in the process.
“I made no remarks inferring that planning officers had been involved in anything untoward.”
Hyndburn Council declined to comment.
The backdated planning application was approved on the Labour chair Cllr
Dave Parkins’ casting vote after five Tory councillors voted against and five Labour for granting permission.
The meeting heard from officers that there was no requirement for major applications to go to committee and that there had been no valid objections to the original planning application.