South Lanarkshire Council chief Joe Fagan suspended for leaking confidential info

The chief of South Lanarkshire Council has been suspended for 2 months for disclosing confidential info to the media.

Labour’s Joe Fagan was discovered to have leaked a listing of amenities that had been reported to be vulnerable to closure beneath the earlier SNP council administration.

He was discovered to have breached the councillors’ code of conduct shortly earlier than the 2021 Holyrood election.

The Standards Commission mentioned the disclosure to the press would have led to hypothesis about amenities being closed – earlier than any ultimate determination had been taken – which may have prompted “undue and unnecessary concern”.

The panel added that Mr Fagan was motivated “at least in part” for political acquire.

In response to the ruling on Tuesday, Mr Fagan mentioned: “I regret what has happened but my conscience is clear.

“I did what I believed to be proper and that is why I bought into native authorities within the first place.

“My accusers said I leaked information and yet I openly disclosed it in good faith.

“I consider the Standards framework in Scotland ought to go after actual wrongdoing in native authorities, it mustn’t tie the palms of these working to reveal it.”

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‘A failure to respect confidentiality’

The Standards Commission mentioned it was “disappointed” Mr Fagan had disclosed the knowledge.

Suzanne Vestri, Standards Commission member and chair of the listening to panel, mentioned: “The obligation on councillors to refrain from disclosing confidential information is a key requirement of the councillors’ code of conduct.

“A failure to respect confidentiality can harm the fame and integrity of a council, and can even impede discussions and decision-making.

“The panel agreed that, in this case, it was legitimate for the council to have decided that the information be kept confidential until such a time as the proposals discussed had been finalised and officers had sufficient time to prepare and manage external communications.

“This would make sure the council’s place and response had been communicated clearly and totally.”

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Mr Fagan was mentioned to have cooperated totally with the investigation.

The panel additionally discovered “no evidence of repeated behaviour over a long period of time, of dishonesty and/or concealment, or of any previous contraventions of the code” by the councillor.

A South Lanarkshire Council spokesperson mentioned: “We note the outcome of the hearing of the Ethical Standards Commission for Scotland and we await the written judgement, which we expect to receive within 14 days.”