Stephanie Dearden
Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Tooting
Tel: 020-7771-2551 or 07985649807
PRESS RELEASES
Friday, 6th January 2006
Islington 5 Cleared In Standards Board Case
Five Lib Dem Councillors from Islington have been cleared of cronyism
charges by an independent adjudication tribunal. The Labour MP and former
Councillor, Mary Creagh (Wakefield), who levelled the charges, was described as
“lacking in balance, judgment” and that in her evidence “speculation, suspicion,
and surmise were advanced as fact irrespective of whether there was any proper
foundation for them.”
more: http://society.guardian.co.uk/localgovt/news/0,8368,1679972,00.html
The Standards Board was supposed to salvage the reputation of local government
but the Board itself has been discredited. It is now time for the Standards
Board to be abolished and for councillors to be subject to the same checks and
balances as MPs, and MSPs.
more: http://www.islington-libdems.org.uk/news/1092.html?PHPSESSID=f6e748c63aa1305e8405047fabcdf8ff
The Labour group in Wandsworth will have been disappointed
to see that their spiteful colleagues in Islington didn't get their desired
results with their beloved Standards Board. After 3 and half years and an
estimated cost of £2 million, the Standards Board cleared, without
reservation, the five Lib Dem members of Islington Council who had been accused
of improper conduct.
Surely this must be the last act of an utterly wasteful, pointless and typically
New labour statist organisation.
ENDS
Stephanie Dearden
Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Tooting
Notes to editors