Conduct Of The Audit Commission (No. 7)

EDM number 267 in 2002-03, proposed by Kevin McNamara on 03/12/2002.

That this House notes with concern the contradictory approach by Sir Andrew Foster, Controller, Audit Commission, in justifying the damaging statement made by the Audit Commission that within Hull Council there was a culture that tolerated the bullying of officers by members; notes that in a letter dated 14th October to Patrick Doyle, former leader of Hull Council, from Sir Andrew Foster, it stated that forwarding evidence relating to bullying to the Standards Committee would encourage focusing too much on past behaviour when the priority is to move forward; however notes that in a letter to Hull Councillor Peter Clark, dated 19th November, Sir Andrew Foster stated that no individual councillor stands accused of bullying and if there had been any incidences so severe as to merit follow up they would have been referred to the Standards Committee; therefore deplores the action by the Audit Commission to attempt to brush under the carpet this serious and offensive allegation, which the day it was made was the lead story in much of the local and national press and media; concludes that it is extremely unfair to accuse all Hull councillors of bullying council officers without having any evidence that would have warranted investigation by the Standards Committee; further notes that this kind of unprofessional approach is not expected of the Audit Commission; and calls on the Audit Commission, in the light of the evidence, to act appropriately and restore the reputations of all those councillors to which their statement in the report referred.

This motion has been signed by a total of 3 MPs.