Not long ago we reported that Tribal PLC had been beneficiaries, to the tune of £1million plus, of RBKC contracts.
We alluded to the fact that Tribal had been extraordinarily generous to British American Project-a weird organisation Dear Leader Cockle, Cheesecake Eater Moylan and Big Finance Chief Light Foot are proud 'fellows' of.
The last contract given to Tribal was signed off by Cockle. The Dame was furious that Dear Leader and friends had not declared an interest, through their triangulated relationship with BAP.
The DfE (Department of Education) has arranged for a project management company to help organise residents'/community forums around the Kensington Academy. A kind of body to bring together interested and affected locals, with the decision makers at the Town Hall as a sort of indepedent organiser.
Quite important that local views are noted, heard and considered, and perhaps equally as important they are done so by an independent arbiter who stands to gain nothing from a decision made either way.
Oh dear. The little people of North Kensington may be a little upset to learn that the DfE Project Management Company with it's grandiose sounding name, redolent of some important central government department, is none other than our ubiquitous friends,Tribal PLC !!
Tribal, who have been engaged by RBKC previously, and have also been used by the Conservatives to root out candidates for the local elections.
Aside from the financial benefits, one can only wonder if the help given by Tribal is going to be truly independent.
What was that Cockle quote about transparency? Do you think he would state just why Tribal get so much of our Council Taxpayers' money? I think we should be told.
ReplyDeleteTribal is obviously well dug in to the K&C Town Hall, that hot bed of masonry.
ReplyDeleteCllr Lightfoot had better realise that residents are poring over expenses and charges with a lazer beam. So if the Borough pays Tribal more than £500 it had better be 100% correct. And no more "pro bono" work from Tribal that Cockell was proud to boast about. As an experienced politician Pooter still falls for the "free lunch"
Boroughs other than K&C have noticed that there is a recession and are cutting back. Tribal is suffering badly and has been selling off parts of the business to stay afloat. Be careful, Lighfoot. Or should it be Heavyfoot......
If Merrick Cockell did not declare that he was a Fellow of British American Project, which in turn received a substantial donation from Tribal Plc then surely he has committed a criminal offence?
ReplyDeleteNot necessarily so, no.
ReplyDeleteFailure to declare an interest is not necessarily a criminal offence, if indeed there is one. Of course, if the decision was whether or not to involve a company directly connected to a member, and that member stands to gain directly, then yes, some serious questions need to be asked.
If however, a decision was taken to engage the services of a company, and that company has connections to a member, then in the interests of transparency and good governance the member should declare an interest and play no part in the discussions or the decision.
It is not a decision whether or not to prosecute, thats a decision that should be taken by the authorities.
If anyone suspects that a declaration was not made, then all you need to do is obtain the minutes of the meeting where the decision was made that show the attendance. It will also minute who declared an interest. Then you hand that document with the proof the member concerned is connected to the company in question to the Police.
They will then conduct the appropriate enquiries and come to a decision on whether or not to prosecute. More importantly, if the council are being asked questions by the Police, they cant fob off if it was asked by a member of the public using FOI legislation.