East Riding Council Leader vows to take bullying 'extremely seriously'
Cllr Jonathan Owen says all reports of bullying from staff would be investigated
East Riding Council will take any allegations of bullying of staff extremely seriously, its leader has said.
Cllr Jonathan Owen, Conservative leader of East Riding Council, told its full meeting yesterday (Wednesday, February 23) all reports of bullying from staff would be investigated.
But he added he did not believe that people in the East Riding had been let down by the findings of the draft Local Government Association (LGA) report which emerged last week.
The leader spoke in response to Liberal Democrat opposition Deputy Leader Cllr Denis Healy, who said residents had been let down by the claims which reflected badly on Cllr Owen.
Cllr Owen’s comments come after the LGA’s draft Peer Challenge report said visitors witnessed bullying from senior council officers and unusually controlling behaviour during a visit late last year.
The report also found power was concentrated in the hands of senior officers, with decisions taken outside the democratic process.
It stated that while Cllr Owen was making progress on getting to grips with political priorities since taking office last year, more transparency was needed including on budget setting.
The report also recommended more involvement not only from cabinet members but also ward councillors which it found to be generally committed to serving their local areas.
Cllr Owen invited the six-strong peer review team, which included a council leader and chief executive, to conduct the review.
The leader said the council would still seek to clarify general points raised in the report ahead of publishing an action plan detailing how it would resolve the issues raised.
He added he would guarantee that the final published version of the LGA report would not be watered down.
Cllr Owen said: “The LGA visit aimed to challenge us and help us understand areas where we can improve.
“The draft report is still subject to fact checking, it will be fully discussed once the final version is published.
“We take bullying extremely seriously and we will investigate any claims of it made by staff.
“Anyone who was a victim of bullying or who witnessed bullying should come forward and report it.
“Our new People Strategy will reflect the fact that our staff are our most valuable asset and it aims to promote a healthy workplace culture.
“I disagree that residents have been let down, I’m proud of the services this council delivers for them.
“I support the challenge in the first place and we aim to move forward positively.
“It would be almost impossible to water something down that’s been so widely circulated and I don’t think anyone here would let me get away with it.”
The comments come after Liberal Democrat leader Cllr David Nolan previously told LDRS the findings of the report were a shocking indictment of the council.
He added the council being controlled by Conservatives from safe wards had bred complacency and an inward-looking culture.
Cllr Nolan said: “We’ve effectively got 10 councillors on the cabinet making all the decisions while the other 57 are left out.
“Although much of what’s in the report relates to a culture that’s been around for some time, Cllr Owen should bear some responsibility because he was deputy leader of the council for a long time.
“Previously when the council was more balanced we found the officers would consult members both of the ruling group and opposition because they had to.
“But now, if they’re being allowed to run the show then that’s what happens, and in many ways I don’t blame them.”