'Bullying' council in row over infighting

Published on Saturday 27 June 2009 19:44

EFFORTS to improve a beleaguered Scottish council accused of having a culture of bullying are being hampered by political infighting, a scathing audit report has found.

The Audit Scotland investigation of the SNP-controlled West Dunbartonshire Council, due to be published this week, will criticise elected members, and warn of significant problems in the council's culture. It comes as the organisation's chief executive has requested early retirement after claiming he is being "systematically undermined" by councillors.

The Best Value Audit Progress Report, to be presented to the council on Wednesday and forwarded to the Accounts Commission, represents the latest embarrassment for the authority. Three years ago, Audit Scotland levelled unprecedented criticisms, pointing to the perception of a bullying culture, and making clear that external intervention was required. A follow-up inspection noted persistent problems with the conduct of elected members at council meetings.

However, the latest report deems that little has been done to redress the problems at the former Labour-led administration, and will bring pressure upon the minority SNP administration to take action. The report states: "While there is a focus on improvement activity, progress is inhibited by political conflict. The pace of change is slow, and there is limited evidence of the impact of improvement. The culture of the organisation is ... characterised by challenging political behaviours and low staff morale. These cultural issues ... make long-term planning difficult."

It warns that behaviour in the council chamber "has at times fallen short of what is expected," adding: "Elected members do not always display high standards of conduct."

Elsewhere, Audit Scotland flags up a catalogue of other concerns, including "significant concern" over the poor performance of housing services.

David McMillan, the chief executive of the council, which has a budget gap of around 7.3m, requested last week to step down, despite the fact his contract still has two years to run. In a letter to council leader Iain Robertson, he wrote: "I have been systematically undermined by some elected members. Despite all efforts, it is evident that member/officer relations remain an issue. Some members continue to display behaviours that do not support change and improvement."

A spokeswoman for the council said a detailed response could not be given until the report was published.