From: Joyce Barrow Sent: 21 September 2016 11:59 To: Graham White Subject: Re: Code of Conduct Complaint I have no idea in what way the complainant thinks I have broken the code of conduct. I was unaware of any planning issue until I read about it in the press. Kind regards Joyce Sent from my iPad On 21 Sep 2016, at 11:34, Graham White wrote: Joyce, The complainant has not indicated which paragraph of the code of conduct he thinks is relevant – you have been provided with all the information that has been received. In the event that it is referred for an investigation, the investigating officer will narrow it down to the paragraphs that he or she considers to be relevant and will focus their investigation accordingly. Graham White Solicitor Legal and Democratic Services Shropshire Council Shirehall Abbey Foregate Shrewsbury SY2 6ND 01743 252757 graham.white@shropshire.gov.uk www.shropshire.gov.uk From: Joyce Barrow Sent: 20 September 2016 16:53 To: Graham White Subject: Re: Code of Conduct Complaint Dear Graham I have read the complaint and would be grateful if you would let me know which specific part of the Code of Conduct I am accused of breaching please as, having read the complaint and the Code, I fail to see where any breach might have occurred. Kind regards Joyce Sent from my iPad On 20 Sep 2016, at 11:33, Graham White wrote: Dear Councillor Mrs Barrow, I am writing to tell you that an allegation that you have failed, or may have failed, to comply with the Code of Conduct of Shropshire Council has been received from Councillor Dave Tremellen. It is alleged as follows: “As Local Member for the St.Oswalds Division of Shropshire Council, Councillor Barrow compromised her position as a member of the North Planning Committee by failing to report breaches of planning law on the part of the British Ironwork Centre, Oswestry. As a visitor to the site and a personal friend of Mr Clive Knowles, the owner of the British Ironwork Centre, Councillor Barrow will have been aware of developments at the British Ironwork Centre and, as a member of the North Planning Committee, will have known whether those developments were subject to Planning requirements and been aware of the absence of any application(s) pertaining to them. By failing to advise Shropshire Council Planning department of these breaches of planning law, and failing to advise Mr Clive Knowles of his contravention(s) knowing him to be in breach, as witness Mr Knowles' admission of his deliberately contravening planning law, Councillor Barrow compromised both her own integrity as an elected member of a public body and encouraged Mr Knowles in the pursuit of his breach.” Any comments that you wish to make in relation to the allegation must be made in writing as soon as possible and will be taken into account when consideration is given to what, if any, further action is appropriate. At this stage all that will happen is that the allegation will be considered based solely on the information provided by you and the complainant along with any relevant information readily available such as minutes of Council meetings. Once a decision has been made you and the complainant will be told about the outcome and what will happen next. At this stage you are advised not to contact anyone else as this could compromise you or the fairness of the process. However you may wish to seek some independent advice on this. You should also be aware that any written request for information made to the Authority about this matter will have to be dealt with in accordance with the requirements of the law. This includes any obligations imposed on the Authority under the Data Protection Act 1998, the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and the Human Rights Act 1998. If any request for information is received before the allegation is considered you will be contacted where it is considered appropriate or necessary to do so. Please click on member complaints to find the procedure operated by Shropshire Council and if you have any queries about the process, please contact me Graham White Solicitor Legal and Democratic Services Shropshire Council Shirehall Abbey Foregate Shrewsbury SY2 6ND 01743 252757 graham.white@shropshire.gov.uk www.shropshire.gov.uk