Dalton councillor under fire for sending ‘critical’ emails
Last updated at 13:28, Wednesday, 22 July 2009
AN independent councillor was accused of bullying tactics as he came under attack from his former Tory comrades last night.
Dalton south councillor Tim Bell was slammed at the full Barrow Borough Council meeting for firing off critical and inappropriate emails to council officers and Furness Enterprise.
The restaurant owner had been a Conservative councillor until recently, but quit the Tories after being told by their group leader Cllr Jack Richardson that he was no longer the council’s health and safety spokesperson.
Cllr Richardson last night succeeded in being appointed official council spokesman for health and safety, while Cllr Bell’s attempt to be reinstated only attracted the support of the four other Independent councillors.
Cllr Bell told the meeting at Barrow Town Hall that he was a chartered health and safety consultant and that the position was all about competency.
Cllr Richardson said he had asked Cllr Bell to stand down because he was sending emails to third parties discussing council business.
He claimed: “I had to tell Cllr Bell to stop sending emails and show more respect. He said he would and then started sending them out again, right, left and centre.
“I lost confidence in his ability to deliver on health and safety.”
The meeting heard that Cllr Bell had since sent Cllr Richardson an email criticising the lack of action over swine flu.
Conservative councillor Ollie Flitcroft claimed his former colleague had shown a complete lack of respect to officers and other agencies.
He said: “Emails from Cllr Bell were critical of officers. It is our duty to hold officers to account but not to bully them.”
Cllr Flitcroft added that an unreserved apology had been sent to Harry Knowles, chief executive of Furness Enterprise, after Cllr Bell alleged the agency had missed opportunities to progress projects in Dalton.
As well as losing the health and safety vote, Cllr Bell also only attracted Independent support when he lost a motion calling on the council to set up a members’ working group to review the borough’s present management arrangements for setting key priorities.
He said it was not a political matter as the present four-year system of review did not allow them to react to events.
Cllr Bell said: “There is a credit crunch and new priorities emerge at this point.
“We have lost opportunities in the past.
“The group would be member led.
“It is a management issue, not a political issue.”
Cllr Bell’s motion was seconded by independent Cllr Phil Solloway after the original seconder, Conservative councillor Des English, withdrew his support.
Conservative councillor Ray Guselli said the motion was as ill conceived as a lot of the emails Cllr Bell had sent out.
He said: “This would be a green light to interfere in the running of the borough. We can’t support it or his return to the group.”
Cllr Bell, who is chairman of the Dalton Development Partnership, added that he deserved an apology for the attacks on him by the Conservative group.
First published at 13:09, Wednesday, 22 July 2009
Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk
SHARE THIS ARTICLE
To James P; you are right, I apologise unreservedly to children everywhere.
View all comments on this article
Have your say
As "Emails from Cllr Bell were critical of officers" is not rebutted I can only surmise that they were valid.
Cllr Bell does Sterling work for Dalton and my wife and I wholeheartedly Support him.It is also of Note that Cllr Bell's removal from Post was followed closely by Jack Richardson instatement !
Posted by Ross Corbett on 23 July 2009 at 16:05