Retired cop baffled police did not investigate city homes scandal
A RETIRED senior police officer has described Nottingham City Council's decision to abandon an investigation into widespread abuse of Nottingham's council housing system as a "whitewash".
Between 2003 and 2005 the city's housing service gave homes to some employees and their friends and families which they should not have had, and thousands of pounds' worth of work was carried out.
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No investigation: But council homes were wrongly allocated.
The Post revealed on Monday that police never investigated the misallocation and agreed the council was the correct organisation to look into the matter.
The city council has now decided to drop the investigation, claiming it had spent £100,000 on in-house solicitors.
The majority of this money was spent on employing other people to carry out the solicitors' normal work while they conducted the investigation.
A senior officer with Notts Police, who has now retired, said the council should never have been allowed to investigate the matter itself and an independent probe should have been carried out.
The former officer, who the Post is not naming, said: "The police should be investigating it. I'm baffled.
"It's a serious thing when people have not got a home and when there's been some kind of malfeasance. The public deserve an independent investigation. It looks to me like a whitewash.
"If the city council have had an investigation, as far as I can see it's not been a very thorough one.
"What skills do the council have to investigate something of this nature?
"It needs an outside agency to investigate them. There seems to be a lack of transparency here."
Council leader Councillor Jon Collins said in 2009 that he was "appalled" by the auditors' findings, which he said suggested the misallocation of homes was "possibly criminal".
He promised a full investigation and said the local authority would not "not hesitate" in taking disciplinary action.
None of the homes at the centre of the scandal have been repossessed and most of the suspended staff have returned to work.
Only one member of staff has been give a "final written warning".
"Because of the length of time that's gone by, evidence would have been lost or disposed of," said the former senior police officer.
He added that Notts Police have to work closely with the council in a number of areas.
Leader of the council Jon Collins is also currently the chairman of Notts Police Authority.
The retired officer said: "It's a close relationship in the city. It always has been.
"The leader of the council is very close to senior officers in the city. It's not necessarily a bad thing."
The retired officer said senior officers in the city would sometimes make "courtesy" calls to the council leadership to inform them of particular policing activities, but insists police had always maintained operational independence.
Det Supt Ian Waterfield of Notts Police told the Post that police had considered the allegations closely.
He added: "We are satisfied the criticisms made of the city council are based around mismanagement by staff who have since left, as opposed to criminality."
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by derek randull, radford innit
Thursday, January 13 2011, 6:40PM
“There has obviously been no criminal activity in this so called 'scandal' so why not stop slinging as much mud as possible in the vain hope something might stick. NEP fails to say several staff were moved out of their jobsand out of nch whether through dismissal or redundancy.
Even NHS consultants are now being harassed on trumped up charges!!!!!”
by The Equaliser, Nottingrad, Marxist UK
Thursday, January 13 2011, 5:24PM
“So Thomas, Stapleford
The taxpayer pays for the mother to have 3 bedrooms and the father too, if it is he, to has a complimentary 3 bedrooms so the kids can have a room each.
Why not include grandparents, aunts and multiple partners too and give them all a free 3 bed place.
All paid for by Housing Benefit.
And we wonder why there is little left for those that really deserve help
And don't tell me I don't know what I'm talking about as I work in that section of Society.”
by A concerned taxpayer, wollaton
Thursday, January 13 2011, 4:19PM
“Where wil the evening post go with this story. ??
I think this may be just one scandle out there.
The reports always seem to long after the event and never taken to a final conclusion or proper investigation.
Where can one go if the Audit Commission do not get satisfactory results, after organisations are allowed investigate themselves.?”
by A View, From Within
Thursday, January 13 2011, 2:02PM
“As posted on another article of this story, I worked in the old Housing Department of Nottingham City Council for many years and I am going to try and present as balanced a picture as I can of what I thought was going on.
It wasn't till I left the Department and the Council that I realized just what a culture of abuse and fear there was in that organization.
A lot of us suspected or thought we "knew" what was going on with the misallocation of council houses, right from the late 1980s. But there is a big difference between "knowing" and being able to prove.
The reason for this was if you weren't one of the "core" people, with proven loyalty to a certain senior manager, you were deliberately kept away from the "action". You never got to see the papers that related to certain allocations, if indeed they ever existed.
However you would suspect that people were mysteriously jumping the queue for housing, over those with greater housing need. You could never prove it because these "special allocations" would be justified on "management grounds", but you were not privy to what those supposed grounds were.
Anyone who stepped out of line and dared to challenge or even to question the regime faced the risk of trumped up disciplinary charges, intimidation, dismissal, at the very least zero chance of progressing within the organisation. At worst there was a fear of actual physical violence, I am not exaggerating. As a result, no-one I am aware of stuck their head over the parapet.
I honestly don't know how much councillors knew about what was going on. To me this was a far more personal thing with one person building an empire. They were very careful to keep councillors on their side. I would be suprpised if none of the councillors had a clue, one has already been mentioned by name.
But one thing I do want to stress is that perhaps 5% of the employees were likely to have been part of this inner circle and involved with what on.
All i can say is that I am very glad to be out of it, but just as frustrated as many of the posters on here about the lack of real action, and how the key villians in this piece have got away with stuff and fallen on their feet in different ways.”
by mary, nottingham
Thursday, January 13 2011, 1:24PM
“Theres alot more about our landlords that has not yet reached the public.Most the stuff is all hush hush .major cases are forgotten and pushed under the carpet. Things could get a whole lot worse as ex employees still have influence on certain tenants now .No one really has a voice ,no ones aloud an opinion.An investigation needs to be done via the police .regarding this and lets see what else comes out and be brushed aside .”
by Lets have the truth., Nottingham
Thursday, January 13 2011, 1:07PM
“Ted, Notts says
I agree. This story should be kept alive for as long as possible. Someone must be held to account.
I agree 100% to keep this case open until we the people of Nottingham who pay for the services the council get an answer and justice.
Soon be time for election day, just remember this story.”
by anon, Nottingham
Thursday, January 13 2011, 9:27AM
“Girthy tw*t can't read so their comment means squat. and Thomas.. yes they can. so I'm afraid YOU try again (obviously as that was our situation).”
by Ted, Notts
Thursday, January 13 2011, 7:48AM
“Scott has a very valid point. There do seem to be a lot of posters leaping to the defence of the council. Bogus posters? We all know Thomas MadWeasel's loyalties and of his multiple personalities posting on this site.”
by Thomas, Stapleford
Wednesday, January 12 2011, 10:40PM
“'anon', sorry to burst your wum bubble dude, but children are not allowed to live in the Lenton flats.
Try again...”
by friend,stapleford, nottm
Wednesday, January 12 2011, 10:35PM
“This happens everywhere, i know a guy that is living in a warden flat,a warden is no longer needed, so a friend on the council(broxtowe council)gave him the 3 bedroom flat, whats even worst is this guy has a house that he rents out”