Clash of councillors and officials confirmed

COUNCILLORS and officials in Dumfries and Galloway have been clashing over the way the local authority is run, it has emerged.

A “breakdown of relationships” between certain elected members and senior officials is how Councillor Carolyne Wilson, leader of the Labour Group, described it last week.

This comes in the aftermath of two councillors being reported to the Standards Commission by council chief executive Dawn Roberts.

The first was Annandale South Councillor Ian Carruthers, who had been instructed in December 2024 by his fellow councillors to investigate the staff recruitment process at the local authority.

It is understood he ruffled some feathers while looking closely at past processes, and began asking serious questions.

Councillor Carruthers then found himself in hot water with the Standards Commission – a council watchdog – accused of behaving in a “threatening and intimidating way” towards council officials. This included the chief executive.

Mr Carruthers is currently suspended from his councillor duties as a result while a Standards Commission investigation is carried out.

Mid and Upper Nithsdale Councillor Andrew Wood became the second elected member in a matter of months to be reported.

Councillor Wood had been vocal about the council’s poor handling of changes to bus services provision across the region, and wrote an article criticising the chief executive over the buses saga.

The chief executive responded by informing Councillor Wood she had reported him to the standards watchdog – just as she did with Annandale South Councillor Ian Carruthers – accusing him of bullying.

At the time, the council chief executive was contacted to comment on the situation.

A council spokesperson responded: “It would be inappropriate for the council to comment on matters relating to individual councillors or members of staff.”