The Ombudsman received a complaint that a Former Member (“the Former Member”) of New Quay Town Council (“the Council”) breached the Code of Conduct. It was alleged that the Former Member had been charged by the Police with malicious intent to blackmail or harass. Our finding, under section 69 of the Local Government Act 2000, was that our report on our investigation be referred to the President of the Adjudication Panel for Wales, for adjudication by a tribunal.
The Tribunal found that the Former Member had failed to comply with the Code of Conduct. Its sanction was to disqualify the Former Member from being a member of any Relevant Authority, as set out in the Local Government Act 2000, for 12 months.
The Case Tribunal’s decision is available here .