Chief Executive Joyce White communicates at last
- This letter was sent today to all elected members of the West Dunbartonshire Council. We have decided to publish it full since The Democrat was the first news organisation to reveal that Cllr Jim Bollan had lodged two motions about this matter for the full council meeting on February 14. West Dunbartonshire Council, the SNP administration and the area’s two SNP MP’s refuse to speak to The Democrat without explanation which is in our view anti-democratic and contrary to custom and practice in local government and an affront to this country’s our commitment to Freedom of the Press.
- Dear all
- As you will be aware a report was presented to Audit Committee on 12 December 2018 which highlighted action taken in response to allegations in relation to the procurement of contracts in Roads and Greenspace.
An extensive investigation was undertaken by the Council’s Internal Auditors latterly supported by HR Services.
This found evidence of procurement issues within the Council and an action plan was developed and implemented to address these, with progress reported to the audit committee.
A subsequent disciplinary process found there was no basis for action to be taken against any employee.
Police Scotland also conducted its own investigation, no criminality was established and no action was taken. A newspaper report this week has highlighted this particular audit investigation.
I have every confidence that all due processes have been followed however as Chief Executive, given an elected member has concerns and in the interests of further openness and transparency, I took the decision to bring the matter to the attention of Audit Scotland. Audit Scotland has confirmed that they will be reviewing the approach taken by the Council in response to this issue, as part of their routine wider scope audit responsibility. This review is currently underway and the scope and time-frame for issuing the report is being developed.
Regards,
Joyce