LIBERAL Democrat councillors on Warrington Borough Council have reacted with anger to the controlling Labour group’s refusal to accept a motion calling for more action over the controversial destruction of planning records.
Senior Lib Dem councillor Brian Axcell (right) accused Labour of “leaving a festering sore in the council’s planning service.”
He told the council: “Labour hopes that Warrington residents will forget about this scandalous episode in the council’s history, which still causes immense problems for residents who need to gain access to the missing documents. 
“It is extremely foolish of them to behave like ostriches, putting their heads in the sand and hoping that this issue will go away.”
Cllr Axcell’s motion referred to the storm that broke earlier this year when the council was found guilty of maladministration over a planning issue at Culcheth and it was discovered that planning records prior to 1996 had been destroyed.
It pointed out that the decision to destroy the documents had been taken by an officer, without informing councillors and that the officer had subsequently refused to attend a public inquiry into the affair.
Cllr Axcell urged the council to invite the officer to appear before the audit and corporate governance committee to explain his actions and apologise.
He said within weeks of the Lib Dem-Conservative coalition taking control at the Town Hall, staff destroyed the records, unbeknown to councillors.
The team of people who carried out this unlawful action had been put in place by the previous Labour administration. Yet the Labour group has shown no interest whatever in the circumstances of what happened.
“Not a single Labour councillor attended any part of the three-day public inquiry into the matter earlier this year. Labour has not wanted to discuss the implications of the report which resulted from that inquiry.
“Now Labour hopes that Warrington residents will forget about this scandalous episode in the Council’s history.”
But deputy leader of the council Mike Hannon dismissed the Lib Dem complaint.
He said: “The damage has been done. It was regrettable, but we set up an inquiry to look into the matter and that has been done.
“There is no point in asking people who refused to appear before the public inquiry to appear before a committee now.
“We do not think the plans were destroyed with malicious intent – it was just to tidy the records up. We think it is now time to move on.”
Anger over plans festering sore
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Gary Skentelbery
Experienced journalist for more than 40 years. Managing Director of magazine publishing group with three in-house titles and on-line daily newspaper for Warrington. Experienced writer, photographer, PR consultant and media expert having written for local, regional and national newspapers. Specialties: PR, media, social networking, photographer, networking, advertising, sales, media crisis management. Former Chair of Warrington Healthwatch Director Warrington Chamber of Commerce Patron Tim Parry Johnathan Ball Foundation for Peace. Patron Warrington Disability Partnership. Former Chairman of Warrington Town FC.
9 Comments
It is not time to move on because nobody who knows the facts of this case could believe that the official explanation makes sense. For example, if it was carried out as described, how come the decision to destroy the records was never directly referred to in any meetings, emails or other communications? The entire inquiry seems to have relied on the verbal recollections of individuals. And if it was an error, why weren't councillors informed? Why did officers continue to offer advice to councillors and residents on applications which they were unable to offer that advice because they had personally taken part in the destruction? Until those and other questions are answered this will continue to hang over the planning department including the conscientious individuals who work there and if the council leadership won't find a way of dealing with this properly, maybe it's past time the police were called upon to find out what was really going on. In the meantime, I think the residents of Warrington should not trust a single word that emerges from the planning team.
”It was just to tidy up records’’ What a stupid comment! Every application folder was systematically opened and all of the contents apart from the grant of permission letter was destroyed. The net result of this action being Warrington’s planning register is useless. If any one wanted to see what approved in the past, all they would be able to understand from the register, would be for example a house was granted permission at an address, it might say 2 storey, it may not even state that on the permission letter. However it would be impossible to find out the scale, the position on the plot, the materials used to build it, all of the meaningful documents have been shredded. An example of the problems Warrington face for the future because of this scandal has recently come to light with the Doeford Close Redrow application that has been in the news. The residents are convinced that the field in question, where Redrow want to add more houses to the estate, is protected by a planning condition imposed on the development when it was built 20 years ago. The group of residents have requested all the plans, but of course have now found out all that remains is the permission. On the permission there is a condition that stated no development may take place on the land marked as red on the drawings!! Now because the drawing was shredded it is impossible to prove the land marked red is the field in question! This is the legacy of what that retired officer did to this town. The retired officer was made aware from the boroughs legal department in 2000 that he must not destroy the register. It appears this selective destruction, leaving behind only the folder with the permission letter, was his way around that instruction, but the net result is the same. Just to blow away Cllr Hammonds claim that it was just a tidy up, what was gained if that was what it was? The pile of folders would be a couple of centimeters thinner than previously? This was no tidy up, this was the willful destruction of a very very important planning register. There will be information missing from listed buildings, major developments including Omega, developers are going to have a field day in the future!
This will not go away, in fact I suggest it is going to get worse and the Police do need to be called in and look into connected people and bank accounts & lives styles etc.
Does Hannon think the people of Warrington are stupid, his crass statement suggests he does? There is no reason for the Labour group to fear further investigation, is there?
There are planners who have been around for as long as some members and if there have been favours for certain applications to go through or something was bigger than it should have been, or had some conditions not enforced, as a favour etc, then maybe that is the problem? A clear out is required. Which is a shame for any decent officers, but Axcell is right, and Helen Jones MP has stated the same, it is a festering sore, and the department is contaminated.
Cllr Hannon does not think "the plans were destroyed with malicious intent – it was just to tidy the records up." What absolute bunkum. Lest we forget – during a few days of muddled thinking in 2006 – the records that were destroyed were statutory records which had to be retained by law. The public inquiry threw up more questions than it answered. The terms of reference were carefully controlled to prevent it delving into murky waters. We found out that a former head of WBC legal had advised against destroying those records about three years earlier. It also told us the legal department stored their archives in the same building and on the same floor as the planning department. When the so called tidy up took place, in 2006 both legal and planning were offered a safe alternative place for their archives. Legal accepted the offer but the planning department took the decision to go through each and every file, up to the year 1996, take out and destroy selected documents and drawings then put the files back into their system. Those files still had to be stored. So where was the tidying up?
Are we expected to believe experienced and senior professionals did not appreciate the significance of the destruction of the records and that it was unlawful? They and others who also knew of the destruction, continued briefing and advising members on planning matters for another four years without considering the consequences of their actions; so much for the probity and professionalism of public office. No wonder they failed to spot some documents later than the 1996 cut-off had been corrupted. No wonder Cllr Hannon wants to move on. There are many more questions to address but the answers will cause embarrassment to some unexpected people and that would never do.
Quote; “Senior Lib Dem councillor Brian Axcell (right) accused Labour of “leaving a festering sore in the council’s planning service.” But……he then contradicts himself by saying ” ….. within weeks of the Lib Dem-Conservative coalition taking control at the Town Hall, staff destroyed the records,……………” So if the destruction of records was done whilst the Lib/Cons were in power why does he try to park the responsibility elsewhere? As an excuse for his party’s negligence he says it was done ” unbeknown to councillors ” If councillors in power were not told what was happening could it really be expected that councillors who were not in power would be? In previous statements he’s said nobody knew then contradicted himself by saying the planning dept had been advised not to destroy the records, so obviously someone knew!!! He calls others “extremely foolish” does he not realise what an a** he is making of himself with his contradictory statements, his feigned outrage and pathetic political posturing? As for his urging that the officer responsible (and note that is officer singular not officers plural) should explain themselves and apologise, how WET is that!!! Does he really think that the people of Warrington will be satisfied with a mere apology? Get real Brian! Nothing less than prosecutions, sackings and a complete clean up of the planning dept is going to satisfy the public.
Asking for ‘apologies’ or as Cllr Hannon equally ridiculously suggests ‘moving on’ is not going to satisfy anyone. So why don’t you ALL just get a grip and DO something!
Staff destroyed the records in 2006 and did not tell the incoming Lib/Cons Cllrs. It’s a fact not a contradiction. We don’t know if staff told the then outgoing Labour Cllrs. they were going to do the dirty, or even if the outgoing Labour Cllrs were interested. For sure the present Labour group only want what happened in 2006 looked into and arranged their inquiry to do just that and no more. Cllr Hannon’s feeble comment that “We do not think the plans were destroyed with malicious intent – it was just to tidy the records up” proves that point. He wants to sweep it under the carpet; a cover up not a tidy up. From what’s out in public we know the previous head legal man warned staff about 3 to 4 years earlier they should not destroy records. That was in say 2001/2002 ish? Why did he feel he had to give the warning? Did he know something dodgy was going on? Or did someone ask him for legal advice because they wanted the records out of the way? I agree with you Sha, and so do many others – ‘Nothing less than prosecutions, sackings and a complete clean up of the planning dept is going to satisfy the public’. But, obviously none of the Members who voted against the motion on Monday have the slightest interest in cleaning the planning department, or satisfying the public. That tells you a lot about the people we elect into office in Warrington.
Tina, if you read Cllr Axcell’s post there are indeed contradictions. He is also contradictory in his present stance regarding this matter. The dirty deed was uncovered whilst his party was in power and he was a member of the executive board. WHY DIDN’T HE DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT THEN ? The persons involved should have been suspended immediately and an independent inquiry called for before Cllr Axcell left office. Why was it only when the responsibility had been passed to others did he begin to feel ‘outraged’ ? And if he is so ‘outraged’ WHY ISN’T HE DOING SOMETHING ABOUT IT NOW? The only thing Cllr Axcell actually seems to be doing is trying to score cheap political points! If as he says NO COUNCILLORS were informed of the destruction of the documents – that must mean no councillors of any political party so why is he making it into a political issue? It is pathetic! And even more,- in fact totally pathetic is his suggestion that ‘an apology’ will close the matter. Is it any wonder he is not being taken seriously?
Tina NOBODY, of any political party seems inclined to sort out the planning dept – so perhaps fresh faces are needed not just in the officer’s quarters but in all the councillor’s seats as well!!!
Sha – Cllr Axcell did not do anything about it because he did not know the records had been destroyed until it was uncovered by the LGO and the officers of WBC were forced to come clean and they only did that when there was no other place to hide. I don’t think it follows that because Cllr Axcell was not told that other Cllrs did not know or that other senior officers did not know. The deed was outed just before the 2011 elections. To be fair (and I really am not trying to push politics into this debate – it is far too serious a matter) to the Lib Dems, as soon as the destruction came to light, one Councillor called for the Police to be brought in – I think should still be done. And Cllr Axcell wants to look further at the independent inquiry finding. But this Labour administration turned both down and said it would have an independent investigation. As you know, that told us little that we did not know from the LGO’s report. Some people have said the inquiry should have had a much wider term of reference than just looking at what happened when the records were selectively shredded. I would agree. I also agree with you that an apology from a former employee who has flown the nest is of no value at all. You are also right to say NOBODY of any political party seems inclined to sort out the planning department. Only Helen Jones MP has said it needs a good clear out. What needs to be explained is why a political party with such a large majority accepted the LGO’s report then turned down calling in the Police. It said it wanted to get to the bottom of why records had been destroyed. But has been keen to accept the report of an inquiry that watered down the LGO’s findings from “gross corporate maladministration” to “a bit of muddled thinking” and now is very anxious to say the destruction was only a tidying up exercise. Who are they trying to kid? Sha you’re right to say fresh faces are needed not just in the officers’ quarters of planning and legal (because they are in the frame) but councillor seats as well!! Until there is a sea change in the way this council functions (ever man jack in it) it will be held in the contempt in which it holds the electorate.