We have seen time and time again in this blog the very unhealthy "partnership" between West Midlands Police (WMP) and bent Sandwell Labour Council. A Freedom of Information Act reply today shows that because they are still determined to close down this blog they are interfering in the democratic process by "advising" Sandwell Council's highly controversial Monitoring Officer [sic] not to investigate Standards Complaints dating as far back as November.
I have four outstanding standards complaints in against Cllrs Eling, Marshall, Costigan and Rouf. Thanks to what the Police have done Marshall has now got off scot free as Labour have booted him off the Council (against The Milkman's wishes). The public have been deprived - probably deliberately - of hearing Marshall's evidence and he cannot now be compelled to give evidence about the dictatorial Herr Eling either. Nice work for your pals WMP!
WMP continue to puff Sandwell Labour at every opportunity and throughout the purdah period. They were even at it on election day!!!
Regular readers will know that Costigan lied to WMP about me leafleting against the Wednesbury BID in the town (hardly a criminal offence anyway). I was nothing to do with the campaign to get the rigged ballot overturned (step forward for congratulations local activist Darryl Magher) but it now turns out WMP were! I was mystified why they were interrogating me under caution anout the bent BID but I have just found out they, WMP, had supported the scheme through the bent process - something they managed to fail to tell me or my Solicitor at the time!
This is a letter I am just posting to the Chief Constable with a copy to the Home Secretary. The Monitoring Officer has a statutory duty to investigate the Standards Complaints and the moral Cowards in Blue are deliberately interfering in this process. On what grounds and for how long?
In any event the complaint about Costigan is based purely on documentary evidence which has been disclosed via this blog so how can Thompson and Co purport to stop that investigation into their honorary Wednesbury "Gold Commander"?
Here is the letter (already sent and there are a couple of typos and lack of appropriate punctuation in places):
Mr D. Thompson, Chief Constable,
West Midlands Police
Lloyd House 17/05/18
Colmore Circus
Birmingham B4 6NQ
Cc: The Rt Hon Sajid Javid MP, Home Secretary, 2 Marsham Street, London SW1P 4DF
Dear Mr Thompson,
West Midlands Police - Interference in Internal Affairs of Council
THIS IS NOT A PRIVATE AND CONFIDENTIAL COMMUNICATION
I am writing primarily about WMP advising Sandwell Council not to proceed with Standards Investigations against three Councillors. But it is worth reminding the public of your force’s capitulation in upholding the rule of law where the rotten Borough is concerned. Here is a non-exhaustive list of significant concerns:
1 A WMP Inspector said the force deliberately allowed the time limit for prosecution to expire in the case of the election of Lucy Cashmore;
2 DS Gilice gave advanced notice to the said Cashmore when visiting her at an address where she did not live;
3 WMP failed on a number of occasions to investigate failures by sundry Sandwell Councillors to make truthful declarations in the Register of Interests - again letting time limits expire.
4 Failed to investigate the advertisement and sale of Council property by individuals in Tipton either adequately or at all;
5 WMP have been using at least two Labour Councillors as informants;
6 Your force permitted inappropriate relationships to form eg a senior officer bragging about golf and spa days with “SMBC Colleagues” [sic];
7 A police inspector is said to have had a sexual relationship with a disgraced director of the Council;
8 Your force has promoted Sandwell Labour via social media on hundreds of occasions including on election day this month. The constant social media and other interaction between WMP and Costigan is wholly inappropriate.
9 You or a senior officer blocked investigations of social media harassment by Darren Cooper of myself, my wife and others,
10 You or a senior officer blocked a major fraud investigation into Sandwell Council with your panoply of powers on the basis Sandwell would conduct a limited private enquiry via a firm of solicitors at huge expense to the public;
11 WMP failed to discipline WPC Charlene Tranter for her wholly inappropriate involvement in the Lee Garmston affair;
12 Your force has failed to investigate a conspiracy to pervert the course of justice following the actions of Street Warden 18 Chris Jones in the Hackett public urination affair. Jones may have been innocent of wrongdoing but has not told the true version of events to internal SMBC enquiries where there has been conspiracy to pervert the course of justice. WMP have used social media showing publicly-funded officers of WMP working on the streets with Jones which is wholly inappropriate until he has been investigated and cleared.
13 Your force has harassed and continues to harass me and to close down my blog.
14 Failed to investigate possible fraud and false accounting relating to “Wednesbury Celebrates”
15 WMP failed to investigate a £15m false accounting black-hole in the SMBC accounts.
16 Even though the SMBC audit committee expressed concern with regard to land deals involving Cllrs Rouf and Bawa, WMP have failed to investigate adequately or at all.
17 WMP have failed to interview under caution various prominent players at the Council who should have been in a position to spot fraud and corruption but failed to do so eg Eling, Britton, Bubalo, Sharma, Scarrott and others.
18 Two of your officers mislead my Solicitor about the allegations against me when trying to close down my blog. Further, and bizarrely (as I had nothing to do with it), they interviewed me about Wednesbury BID without disclosing that WMP were directly involved and had supported the BID through the rigged election - now overturned by the Sec of State.
Returning to the standards issues:
1 I made standards complaints against Cllrs Eling and Marshall on 30th November, 2017 (nearly six months ago) with further issues being added later. I wish to know the legal grounds that you rely on to contact the Council and advise them not to proceed with the investigation? Further, it was Eling’s plan to keep Marshall as a Councillor until he was suspended by the Labour Party etc. Had Marshall been allowed to stand the voting public would not have been aware that he faced serious standards allegations. As it is, due to your failure to advise SMBC to the contrary, Marshall is no longer a councillor and has escaped the standards process. Further he cannot now be compelled to give evidence when the standards investigation into Eling eventually takes place. You have prevented - so far - a legitimate complaint into Eling’s conduct. Whilst he was not standing for election this time round he is the Leader of the Council and the public were entitled to know on election day that he faced standards allegations. WMP have interfered in the democratic process to the disadvantage of Sandwell people.
2 Sandwell have also failed to proceed with the standards allegations concerning Cllr Costigan. This is based on absolute hard fact ie she failed to disclose certain emails (which I have disclosed) where she was soliciting donations from a company involved in a controversial planning application. What right has WMP to involve itself in stopping that enquiry and, indeed, why are WMP not investigating the same incident as she also failed to declare an interest at the actual planning committee meeting?
Of course, it is the same three councillors who have made allegations against me which you HAVE chosen to investigate.
For how much longer to you intend to prevent the Monitoring Officer from carrying out his statutory duties and on what continuing grounds?
I am copying this to the Home Secretary.
Yours faithfully,
Julian Saunders
thesandwellskidder@gmail.com
End.
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