Christopher Booker's
notebook
(Filed: 26/03/2006)
From one end of the land to the other, Prescott's Code is a blight on democracy
A recurrent theme of the many letters I have had on the havoc being inflicted on
local councils by John Prescott's Code of Conduct is how this appears to
encourage a system of double standards. It is often used to exclude from
debates councillors who oppose official policy, because this supposedly gives
them a "prejudicial interest", but members supporting their council's ruling
establishment seem curiously immune.
When the North-East Regional Assembly earmarked the ward represented on
Derwentside council by John Pickersgill as suitable for more wind turbines, he
organised a local referendum. The area already has six turbines. Faced with the
prospect of 17 more, more than 80 per cent of the residents voted - and more
than 80 per cent were opposed.
When Councillor Pickersgill tried to raise this in a debate on the assembly's
regional planning strategy, he was excluded from the room as having a
"prejudicial interest". However, it was deemed quite acceptable for the
council's leader, Alex Watson, to speak in favour of the assembly's policy, even
though he did not think it necessary to declare that he was himself also the
assembly's chairman.
When Mr Pickersgill raised this with the council's "monitoring officer", he was
told that the leader had done nothing wrong - which seemed so bizarre that he
reported the case to the Standards Board for England. An independent inquiry
ruled that Councillor Watson was in breach of the Code of Conduct after all. But
Mr Pickersgill has become so disillusioned by the demoralising effect of the
code on the council that he has now resigned.
In South Cambridgeshire, eyebrows were raised recently when one
prominent councillor failed to declare prejudicial interest or to leave the
room during interviews with representatives of five charities funded by
the council - even though she is chairman of one of the charities.
The monitoring officer ruled that a complaint to the Standards Board would
be "inappropriate" - though no fewer than 11 complaints are currently
lodged against other councillors.
From Dorset, Richard Thomas - a town councillor in Shaftesbury known for frank
criticism of the council's establishment - asks whether having had 10 complaints
about him lodged with the Standards Board by fellow
councillors constitutes a record. One investigation, which cost in the region of
£20-30,000, was eventually found to be based on a false allegation. All 10
complaints were eventually rejected or dropped. Whether
or not Mr Thomas holds the record, I hear similar stories from all over England.