Archive for January, 2010

Councillor may face Standards Board investigation

Following his decision to close an emergency meeting within 3 minutes of it starting and without considering the agenda, Councillor Nicholas Turner, Chairman of Tendring District Council, may face a Standards Board for England investigation into his actions. The meeting held on 17 September 2009 included a motion to remove him and the Conservative Group [...]

Parking warden issued over 9000 tickets in one year

In just one year, a civil enforcement officer in Lambeth, London handed out an astonishing 9,141 tickets. Further information obtained by the Streatham Guardian shows an amazing 247,650 penalty charges notices were issued by Lambeth Council between 1 November 2008 and 31 October 2009. The information request also revealed 15,481 driving fines were handed out [...]

4 Council employees cautioned for money theft

After a theft of £1400 from a council run scheme, police cautioned four Peterborough City Council employees. Three employees have since resigned. Following an internal investigation by the Council which discovered £1400 from the sale of scrap metal from the Council’s disabled work scheme located in premises in Royce Road, Eastfield, Peterborough had not been [...]

Council social worker struck off for threat and dishonesty

A former Birmingham City Council employee has been struck off following accusations of covering up theft and fraud and for threatening her landlord’s children. Verona Reeves, 48, was alleged to have said to her landlord and his wife, “I know where you live and where your kids go to school and they better watch out.” [...]

Paying off employees cost Council Taxpayers hundreds of thousands of pounds

After an overspend of £1.8million, Uttlesford District Council have saddled Council Taxpayers with further costs to pay off Council employees. During the past 3 years, the Council have paid more than £350,000 to former employees in agreements with some containing ‘gagging orders’. After numerous mistakes in the Council’s finance department which cost Council Taxpayers £1.8million, [...]

Council’s gaffe led to display of employees personal information

Personal data pertaining to 30 employees of Cheltenham Borough Council were left on the Council’s intranet system overnight allowing site users accessing the system to view private information belonging to their colleagues. Information including home address, age and payroll number of Senior Officers of the Council was entered onto the local authority’s intranet site at [...]

Council accused of ‘profiteering’ over parking fines

Since the introduction of mobile camera patrols in June 2009, Bournemouth Council have issued over 1300 parking tickets and have been accused of ‘profiteering’. Eighty-six penalties were issued for parking on restricted areas in front of schools and 1229 were issued for parking in bus stops. Winton taxi firm manager, Mr Phil Birt, said his [...]

Council makes half a million pounds in parking fines

Civil parking enforcement penalties have brought in £525,906 for Wigan Council during the past financial year, which is down from £743,535 in the previous year. This amount equates to £2.76 for each citizen that lives or is employed within the Council’s borough. These figures, which also include income from on and off street parking fines, [...]

Court judgement means bailiffs to seize Council property

Bedford Borough Council have ignored a county court judgement awarded against them and are now to receive a visit from bailiffs who will attempt to seize and impound goods, which belong to the Council Taxpayer, to the sum of £400. Mr Alan James Digby-Cameron originally demanded compensation from the Council, to the amount of £286.23, [...]

Rossendales bailiff stole money from lady pensioner

Whilst in his official capacity as a bailiff in the collection of Council Tax debt on behalf of a local authority, Peter Walsh stole over £20K from a lady in her 80’s after befriending her. In the summer of 2006, Walsh, who was employed by Rossendales, made a first visit to the pensioner’s home in [...]