Watchdogs rap Vale Council over Barry's Cemetery Approach (From Barry And District News)

Watchdogs rap Vale Council over Barry's Cemetery Approach

12:20pm Friday 3rd July 2009

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TWO watchdogs set up to investigate people’s complaints about public bodies have rapped the Vale Council for failings related to land at Barry’s Cemetery Approach.

The Public Services Ombudsman for Wales and the Information Commissioner’s Office looked into complaints over actions that took place during the council’s plans to sell Newydd Housing Association the land – which was later discovered to be public open space – for development.

Ombudsman Peter Tyndall told the Save Cemetery Approach Action Group, who lodged complaints, that the council’s failure to identify the land’s status was “maladministrative”.

In a letter to group committee member Nic Lanagan, he stated: “I accept entirely that the actions of the council in failing to identify the status of the land at Cemetery Road (as open space) prior to seeking its disposal was maladministrative.”

No further action will be taken against the council, he said, because the land sale is not going ahead, deposits returned, and the council is now aware of the land’s status.

Mr Tyndall has written to the council to “highlight the need to have procedures in place to ensure that such a failure to identify the status of such land does not recur.”

The Information Commiss- ioner for Wales’ senior complaints officer, John Sweeney, criticised the Vale Council over its failure to fully disclose information the action group requested under the Freedom of Information Act.

Mr Sweeney, referring to a request for information concerning contractual details in his ruling, said: “I was not satisfied that the council provided fully reasoned arguments to support its arguments to withhold requested information.”

He also agreed the council did not properly respond to Action Group chairman, Dennis Harkus’s request to view evidence to clarify the status of the land. In a letter to Mr Harkus, he stated: “The council should have treated your correspondence as a formal request for information.” Mr Sweeney has instructed the Information Commiss- ioner’s enforcement team to monitor any further complaints concerning the Vale.

“Further action may be taken where there is any evidence of systematic and ongoing breaches of the regulations,” he said.

Action Group member Kay Jones said: “The Vale Council has to take these criticisms from the Ombudsman and the Information Commissioner into account in the future, before brushing aside the expressed concerns of the community.”

Vale Council director of legal services Peter Evans said: “The ombudsman has not investigated the complaint any further on the basis that there is now no outstanding injustice to the complainant or other residents. “The Information Commiss- ioner’s Office has not taken enforcement action against the council. In their letter an official from their office states: ‘I am closing Mr. ...’s complaint case on the basis that there are no further steps that the Commissioner can direct the council to take in relation to his request’.”

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