A council standards panel is to hear a complaint made by the former mayor of Brighton and Hove about her deputy mayor.
The standards panel is due to meet at 10am tomorrow (Friday 30 October) at Hove Town Hall although the meeting looks likely to take place behind closed doors.
A 100-page report setting out details of the complaint and subsequent investigation has been sent to members of the panel but has, so far, been kept secret by Brighton and Hove City Council.
The allegation is understood to relate to an incident at a Sussex University graduation ceremony in July last year.
Labour councillor Amanda Grimshaw, who was serving as mayor at the time, made a complaint after the event about the behaviour of her deputy, Councillor Ty Galvin.
Neither the council nor the two councillors have said publicly what the complaint is about.
But Councillor Galvin resigned as deputy mayor – in effect as mayor-elect – last November and Labour suspended him from the party pending an investigation.
At the time, Councillor Galvin said: “I consider the complaint to be vexatious and I’m taking legal advice. For that reason, I can’t make any further statements at the moment.”
The panel is made up of three councillors and an independent chair, Paul Cummins. Mr Cummins, a solicitor and former local authority monitoring officer at other councils, does not have a vote.
The outcome rests with Labour councillors Lucy Helliwell and Andrei Czolak and Green councillor Pete West, a former mayor who now chairs the council’s Audit, Standards and General Purposes Committee.
The decision on whether to sit in public or private is due to be taken at the start of the hearing.
Since 2010, eight standards panel hearings have taken place, with seven of them being held in open session and just one behind closed doors.
The session held in secret was a second attempt to decide claims that had been made about former councillor Dawn Barnett.
The first attempt was adjourned after Councillor Barnett fell down the stairs at Hove Town Hall and the police were called because the meeting became rowdy.
When it restarted, Councillor Lizzie Deane, who chaired the hearing, said that it would be held in secret because the panel didn’t want any more trouble.
The council’s own “procedure for dealing with allegations of breaches of the code of conduct for members” includes a section setting out “the principles underpinning the procedure”.
They are
- the imperative of generating and maintaining member and public confidence that allegations of member misconduct will be dealt with effectively, efficiently and proportionately
- that all parts of the process will reflect the council’s commitment to resolving complaints against members in a way that is proportionate, transparent and fair to all parties
- that complaints are only referred for formal investigation and … for determination by a Standards Hearing Sub-Committee where doing so is considered to be proportionate and necessary in the public interest
- that Standards Hearing Sub-Committee hearings are conducted openly wherever possible
The council came in for criticism after the only hearing to have taken place in secret. It was described as a “kangaroo court”.
But it was not possible for any members of the public to come to an informed opinion on whether this was a fair or unfair criticism because it took place in secret.
The council standards panel is due to start at 10am tomorrow (Friday 30 October) at Hove Town Hall.
Odd how councillor complaints against each other are investigated but “insufficient evidence” excuses are always found not to investigate complaints about Councillors from residents.
I wonder how much has been spent on legal bills over bottomgate and who will resign as a result.