Police asked to investigate if 'criminality' took place under Purcell

Published on Sunday 14 March 2010 21:54

POLICE are being asked to investigate whether "criminality" was allowed to take place at the heart of Glasgow City Council during the tenure of disgraced former leader Steven Purcell.

John Mason, SNP MP for Glasgow East, and the group's leader in Glasgow, Councillor James Dornan, are writing to Strathclyde Chief Constable Stephen House.

Mr Mason wants officers to investigate Mr Purcell's alleged drug use and who supplied him, whether he became vulnerable to blackmail, and whether individuals or organisations gained improper advantage from the council construction quango City Building.

Cllr Dornan is also writing to justice secretary Kenny MacAskill, asking him to investigate concerns raised about the close relationship between Mr Purcell and refrigeration magnate Willie Haughey, and allegations that City Building, an arms-length council company which Mr Purcell set up, lavished money on six-figure salaries for senior employees and on fundraising for Labour Party coffers.

Mr Mason said: "We have had a series of extremely serious allegations in the media and people in Glasgow deserve to have all of these issues properly investigated.

"This is no longer about the personal tragedy of Steven Purcell, or even how recent events are impacting on the running of the city. The issues reported in the media go well beyond that, which is why I am now referring the entire matter to Strathclyde Police."

Cllr Dornan said: ''We've already written to Audit Scotland and I intend to write to the justice secretary to ask him to use whatever powers he can to make sure there's an investigation into the decision-making process and links between the administration and businessmen, possible inappropriate links.

"We would like Strathclyde Police to investigate these matters to see if there's any criminality."

It emerged yesterday that the wage bill for senior employees at City Building doubled in just two years. Some of those who benefited were Labour members closely allied to Mr Purcell.

The quango spent thousands of pounds on hospitality, including 2,000 for a table at a Labour Party fundraiser where it entertained Scottish Labour leader Iain Gray.

It was also reported that Mr Haughey, 53, one of Scottish Labour's biggest supporters, benefited out of public funds from a series of decisions made during Mr Purcell's career in local politics, including 970,000 from Scottish Enterprise Glasgow as part of a 17m compensation and relocation package for the headquarters of his City Refrigeration business, which was in the path of a planned motorway.

A spokeswoman for Glasgow City Council said: "We've never seen any evidence of any improper influence over former councillor Steven Purcell by anyone."

Spokeswomen for Strathclyde Police and the Scottish Government said they would consider the letter when they receive it.