As this blog has mentioned before, back in 2013 the Council joined with the developers of the controversial Grillo site, Castletown Estates Ltd to challenge the Welsh Government in court over its decision to refuse planning permission due to flooding concerns.
The council and Castletown failed in their gamble and lost the High Court bid. Soon after this, the flood maps were rapidly amended paving the way for the eventual, and equally controversial, approval earlier this year. It was probably one of the most predetermined applications in history.
The cost to the council of this failed legal action in 2013 was £26,000 not the biggest legal bill that Caebrwyn has seen in recent years but nonetheless an above average yearly income for many Carmarthenshire residents.
This week's Herald has some further details acquired by a county councillor through the Freedom of Information Act. A breakdown shows counsel's fees of £8970, officer costs of £7285 and an order to pay the successful party, the Welsh Government, £10,500.
Even though the site formed part of the masterplan for the wider area, quite why the council decided that the council taxpayers should support private developers in this way remains a mystery.
Worse still, it appears that that there was no consultation with elected members, all the decisions were through delegated power. The Herald names the head of planning Eifion Bowen, and Wendy Walters, then head of economic development, now assistant chief executive as initiating the process but the officer with the final say, and his hands on the cheque book, remains unknown. I'll give you three guesses who that might be.
Of course we are very lucky that we have such legal expertise in out council. I'm sure that the lay member of the council's audit committee was entirely wrong when he described the internal legal advice as cavalier and incompetent...
Mr James has much expertise in the legal workings of local government of course. Back in the day, and before he became chief executive of that lucky Borough of Boston he became their Director of Legal Services.
There were rumours and some disquiet at the time as he was apparently asked by councillors whether he was actually a solicitor, a requirement for the post. Allegedly he told them, without elaborating further, that he had a law degree, which is not quite the same thing of course. Anyway, he got the job. Must have been his charm...allegedly.
There were further rumours, allegations and complaints of exerting undue pressure and even tampering with a document for an Employment Tribunal held under oath. The allegations were, apparently, 'dealt with' and following that, Mr James was elevated to the rank of chief executive...
Of course all that is in the dim and distant past and Mr James currently exercises the depths of his legal mind with trusty Linda Rees Jones at his side, with, as we have discovered, a remarkable ability to survive even when dropping the most dire of legal clangers...
Consulting with councillors over legal matters is always a last resort, and only if a democratic gloss is required to shift the future potential of blame. And only with minimal paperwork of course; carefully prepared to ensure dutiful, unquestioning agreement...
The council and Castletown failed in their gamble and lost the High Court bid. Soon after this, the flood maps were rapidly amended paving the way for the eventual, and equally controversial, approval earlier this year. It was probably one of the most predetermined applications in history.
The cost to the council of this failed legal action in 2013 was £26,000 not the biggest legal bill that Caebrwyn has seen in recent years but nonetheless an above average yearly income for many Carmarthenshire residents.
This week's Herald has some further details acquired by a county councillor through the Freedom of Information Act. A breakdown shows counsel's fees of £8970, officer costs of £7285 and an order to pay the successful party, the Welsh Government, £10,500.
Even though the site formed part of the masterplan for the wider area, quite why the council decided that the council taxpayers should support private developers in this way remains a mystery.
Worse still, it appears that that there was no consultation with elected members, all the decisions were through delegated power. The Herald names the head of planning Eifion Bowen, and Wendy Walters, then head of economic development, now assistant chief executive as initiating the process but the officer with the final say, and his hands on the cheque book, remains unknown. I'll give you three guesses who that might be.
Of course we are very lucky that we have such legal expertise in out council. I'm sure that the lay member of the council's audit committee was entirely wrong when he described the internal legal advice as cavalier and incompetent...
Mr James has much expertise in the legal workings of local government of course. Back in the day, and before he became chief executive of that lucky Borough of Boston he became their Director of Legal Services.
There were rumours and some disquiet at the time as he was apparently asked by councillors whether he was actually a solicitor, a requirement for the post. Allegedly he told them, without elaborating further, that he had a law degree, which is not quite the same thing of course. Anyway, he got the job. Must have been his charm...allegedly.
There were further rumours, allegations and complaints of exerting undue pressure and even tampering with a document for an Employment Tribunal held under oath. The allegations were, apparently, 'dealt with' and following that, Mr James was elevated to the rank of chief executive...
Of course all that is in the dim and distant past and Mr James currently exercises the depths of his legal mind with trusty Linda Rees Jones at his side, with, as we have discovered, a remarkable ability to survive even when dropping the most dire of legal clangers...
Consulting with councillors over legal matters is always a last resort, and only if a democratic gloss is required to shift the future potential of blame. And only with minimal paperwork of course; carefully prepared to ensure dutiful, unquestioning agreement...
2 comments:
Someone has told me that there are 15 or 16 solicitors in the Legal Department of CCC. Do you know if that's the case? Seems an inordinate number of legal "brains" - what exactly do they do all day?
Surely it should not be too difficult to check whether M. James is indeed a qualified solicitor. Perhaps he is "moonlighting" as we speak? A FOI request should verify the fact.
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