Protection call for councillors

A COUNCILLOR has demanded to know what protections are in place for elected members when they land in hot water with the Standards Commission.

North West Dumfries councillor Graham Bell has twice been investigated in the past for his conduct by the council watchdog, and was also recently called as a witness into a hearing involving Dee and Glenkens councillor John Denerley.

A Standards Commission report was tabled at last week’s full council meeting, which confirmed that independent Councillor Denerley had been suspended for three months.

Councillor Bell said: “I’m not going to make any comment on the submissions, and the report, but the problem is that it took nearly two years to investigate and nearly two years to come to me for a witness statement.

“So, that needs to be tightened up in the future through the Standards Commission.

“But obviously, I’ve got two badges. I’ve been sent to Standards Commission twice in the 18 or 19 years I’ve been a councillor.

“I got help and support when someone was making an accusation against me and some other councillors. I got help and support from people in this building which was very good at the time.

“What concerns me is that if what happens with any councillors in that sort of position now. What help and support are we going to get from officers?

“I know for a fact that council staff have got the trade unions to fight on their behalf.

“What happens if I’m going for my third badge? Say someone makes an accusation against me. Where do I go?

“What help and support do I get from the governance team here, or from this council, to challenge the Standards Commission if someone makes (an accusation), or if I speak out once again – or make some silly statement which is inappropriate?

“So, where do I go? What mechanisms help and support me?”

Vlad Valiente, the council’s head of governance, replied: “Members will know that, from their own referrals that they’ve been through, I’m happy to have a chat with them in terms of a neutral perspective – or to provide a governance officer that can provide some guidance and support around the code of conduct.

“But what we can’t do is obviously draft any responses or get involved in that element of it because that’s for the councillors themselves to do.

“There are other supports that we’re happy to offer in terms of access to occupational health, to counselling, and we are happy to process those dependent on the requirements of the counsellor.”

Councillor Denerley, who is profoundly deaf, has been suspended following a disagreement with former council leader Gail Macgregor at a private Conservatives group meeting in December 2024.

A Standards Commission hearing found that his behaviour had breached the councillors’ code of conduct.

Mr Denerley argued that the Standards Commission report “doesn’t accurately reflect” his actions or “the circumstances at the time”.

He insisted that there are “important lessons here about accessibility and understanding” of the deaf community.