DONCASTER council has been heavily criticised in two separate official reports.

One report into the debacle around the exit of a former managing director said the council had failed and had major problems because of political squabbling.

In a second review of services district auditor Sue Sunderland levelled an astonishing round of criticisms at the local authority saying that it did not offer support to the people it should be helping.

The senior inspectors from the Audit Commission also held mayor Martin Winter and his cabinet to account with a brutal assessment of the council's failure to improve adequately - the only council in the country to given such a rating.

But the warning has come just days after further upheaval at the council with mayor Martin Winter and two of his cabinet members setting up their own separate party.

Party tensions hampering work

Councillors have been told they must "ask themselves how they can improve and act more appropriately" by the inspector investigating the departure of former council boss Susan Law.

Mayor Martin Winter and the ruling cabinet were told by an Audit Commission inspector the council had failed to deliver the "highest standards of governance" which the people of Doncaster are "entitled to expect" in relation to the council's handling of former managing director Susan Law's exit from office in 2006.

Inspector John Prentice said the actions of officers including Susan Law and some councillors "fell short" of expected standards.
Susan Law left after the relationship between her and the mayor broke down following disagreements in 2005.

Mr Prentice said the breakdown in relationships was "partly caused by existing tensions between the mayor and a key group of Doncaster Labour councillors and the local Labour Party. "

"These tensions continue to hamper the effectiveness of the council," he added.

The report also singled out the behaviour of members of the Chief Officers' Investigatory Sub-committee, most notably Coun Margaret Pinkney, who had divulged confidential information about the investigation to various third parties, including a former Labour Party member.

Mr Prentice said: "In my view, Coun Pinkney's actions fall short of the standards I expect from a councillor."

As to Mr Winter's involvement, Mr Prentice said the mayor should have held more formal meetings with Ms Law about her conduct and proceedings.

However, Mr Winter criticised the report as not being specific enough in its findings.

Mr Prentice replied that he based his report on general findings because he thought it would be more constructive for the council to put the events of the past two years behind them.

In a statement, new managing director Paul Hart said: "It is vitally important that the council learns lessons from this and also moves forward which I believe is achievable with the support of all members and officers.

"On being appointed to my role as managing director on a permanent basis I made it clear that ethics and probity were one of my top priorities.
"I am determined to set the right example to ensure that Doncaster Council delivers the expectations of local people and I have developed a Governance Improvement Plan which will address many of the issues in this report, in particular those relating to member conduct."

The report will be discussed with full council at an extraordinary meeting on May 28. Coun Pinkney, an independent member, declined to comment until then.

The full report can be viewed at www.audit-commission.gov.uk

Mayor and Labour group clash

MAYOR Martin Winter is set for a shock split from the Labour Party after creating his own political group.

Now senior Labour officials have given Mr Winter and two of his senior colleagues an ultimatum to either reverse their decision or be kicked out of the party.

Mr Winter and councillors Eva Hughes and Stuart Exelby have registered themselves as 'the Labour group'.

The move prompted furious regional Labour officials to set a deadline for Mr Winter and his two cabinet members to withdraw their intentions by the end of next week otherwise be excluded from the party. Other councillors believe the rebels will not back down and the mayor, who is in the last year of his second term in power, and his two colleagues made a calculated decision.

Labour rules prevent a party candidate standing for a third tenure but there had been suggestions the rule could be overturned so Mr Winter could represent the party in next year's mayoral elections.

However, Mick Jameson, chairman of Doncaster's Labour group, said the mayor had "absolutely no chance" of being the party's candidate next year.

Yesterday Mr Winter and his two colleagues said the public interest report had highlighted "some of the most appalling behaviours of several senior Doncaster Labour Party members".

The statement added that these members were attempting to "rule" the Labour Group in Doncaster through intimidation, fear and victimisation and compared their activites to that of Militant in Liverpool in the 1980s.

The concluded: "We now call upon the Labour Party, nationally, to end the activities of this maggot in the body of the Labour Party in Doncaster."


At the eye of storm from first days . .

INTERNAL bust-ups, police inquiries and now a possible party defection...

You could never accuse local politics of being dull under the leadership of Martin Winter.

The Labour man, currently approaching the end of his second term at the helm of Doncaster Council, has been at the eye of a political storm almost from the moment he walked into power.

His reign in charge of the borough has seen the Keepmoat Stadium, described as the "jewel in the borough's crown" though now hit by troubles, complement the regeneration of Lakeside, the international airport, transport interchange and much-improved Frenchgate Centre, all but the Keepmoat projects started before Mr Winter's tenure, but which have undeniably moved the town forward.

Controversy has never been far away. Rumbles about the leadership style of the former professional rugby league player have lingered on. And there have been disagreements aplenty along the way.

None more so eye-catching than the incredible feud surrounding the council's former managing director Susan Law - who went on paid leave for almost six months before walking away from her £3,000-a-week post last year with a £150,000 pay-off following an inquiry into her conduct.

Mr Winter and his cabinet colleagues claimed a breakdown in trust and confidence had resulted from the New Zealander's alleged "overbearing attitude and poor communication skills".

But contrasting claims suggested Ms Law, appointed in the summer of 2004, had been victimised for being a "whisteblower" after she asked police to investigate the Glass Park project in Kirk Sandall - for which Mr Winter worked before he was mayor - which received more than £500,000 of public money in council grants.

No charges were brought and Doncaster Council "emphatically denied" accusations of victimisation.

Coun Tony Brown, deputy leader of the Alliance of Independent members during the dispute, summed up a feeling of frustration among councillors at a perceived lack of democracy.

He said: "When we had the mayor investigated by the police he stayed at work throughout. Now we have an employee and this is an internal matter, yet she's not allowed to be at work and it's the cost to the taxpayer - you're looking at thousands of pounds."

The cost of the inquiry, later the subject of an Audit Commission probe, would eventually reach £300,000.
But the damage to Doncaster was more than just financial, as the leader of the local council's chief executives' professional body quickly warned members not to touch the borough's managing director job "with a barge pole".

Last year Mr Winter failed in an attempt to re-open the inquiry into Ms Law's conduct.

The Mayor himself has been the subject of a series of investigations into his own conduct, including inquiries into his alleged intervention in a controversial planning application for houses in Hatfield, and alleged election expenses irregularities following an appearance at an end-of-season football rally.

No charges were brought following any of the investigations.
Councillors, meanwhile, were left fuming when an independent report, which came to light in late 2006, accused Mr Winter of bullying staff and was kept secret in order not to breach staff confidentiality.

And there were more than a few eyebrows raised when the resignation of former Deputy Mayor Aidan Rave - in protest at the Mayor's leadership style - was followed by allegations from Mr Winter that Susan Law ordered a van to remove potentially incriminating documents, said to back up claims of misappropriation of funds, from Mr Rave's council office upon his departure. Mr Rave denied the claims and no subsequent police investigation took place.

Pressure on the mayor intensified in February this year when the Audit Commission concluded that Doncaster Council is not improving adequately.

The authority's Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA) for 2007, which awarded the council a three-star rating for the third year in a row, stated that the council's progress had been hampered by the departure of Susan Law. Senior officers and members were said to have been distracted from their key responsibilities by the internal wranglings. Council business during 2008 has been played out to a backdrop of uncertainty over the future of the mayor and his position.

A campaign calling for a referendum on Doncaster's executive mayor style of local governance has stalled in the face of complex government legislation.

Allegations and 'meltdown'

ALLEGATIONS about the conduct of Susan Law were originally leaked to the press and led to descriptions of a "council in meltdown".

The former managing director allegedly improperly influenced the award of a contract to consultancy firm Rockpools and was involved in the appointment of personal friends as consultants.

Ms Law refuted these suggestions, and also denied her involvement in an improper appointment of a parliamentary lobbyist which disregarded the normal procurement process.

According to the New Zealander the appointment had been made with mayor Martin Winter's full agreement.

Further allegations, revealed in reports of secret interviews leaked to the Free Press' sister paper, the Yorkshire Post, centred on Ms Law's alleged "poor performance" - said to be largely down to her poor communication skills.

These claims were again rejected by Ms Law, who told the interview panel that none of the allegations had been made in the preceding 18 months.

She claimed that Mr Winter had sought to end her employment the day after police told him they would not be pursuing the charges in the Glass Park case.

In his interviews, Mr Winter claimed that Ms Law went to the police because he was managing her performance and denied acting out of vengeance, while Doncaster Council were forced to deny it was a "council in meltdown".

Council 'not doing job for vulnerable'
DONCASTER Council has been heavily criticised for "not supporting those they should be helping" because of "weaknesses in behaviour by some councillors" in a frank address by inspectors from an official watchdog.

The mayor and cabinet members were warned by the Audit Commission the council was on the verge of losing its three-star rating after not making adequate enough improvements - the only council in the country to receive such a reproach.

Speaking at yesterday's cabinet meeting, inspector Sue Sunderland told members and officers: "You are not giving the support to the people you should be helping" and added: "You all have a role to play in this."

The annual report from the auditors ranked the council with a two-star rating and in the bottom quarter of comparable councils in most service areas.

The council was told it was only able to cling on to their three-star rating because of a star protection agreement which had been extended to cover the last financial year.

Said Ms Sunderland: "I am sorry to be so frank about this but you are not spending the time and giving the attention to the causes that you should be dealing with. You are not delivering the improvements expected by the people of Doncaster."

The report stated that weaknesses in behaviour by some councillors and a lack of adherence to governance structures has hampered the council's ability to operate effectively.

This was made worse by last year by the internal wrangles surrounding the departure of former council managing director Susan Law.

Sectors which came under the most fire were children and young people's services and services for vulnerable adults.

Ms Sunderland said big improvements still needed to be made in these areas, including raising the awareness of the risks surrounding drink and drugs for young people, and providing more affordable housing for the elderly.

However, Chris Mills, cabinet member for educational attainment and strategic investment, said: "We are succeeding very well but progress continues to be made there."
She added: "I commend the work that Stuart Exelby (cabinet member for neighbourhood environment and housing - central) has been doing."

Mayor Martin Winter told the meeting he welcomed the "very frank" nature of the report and criticised the behaviour of certain councillors for "slowing the council processes down" and having a "negative impact on staff welfare".