Political Viewpoint - Leigh-on-Sea

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Leigh On Sea News: Political Viewpoint – BY Coun Tony Cox, Southend City Councillor for West Shoebury Ward and Leader of the Southend Reform UK Group.

Political Viewpoint - BY Coun Tony Cox, Southend City Councillor for West Shoebury Ward and Leader of the Southend Reform UK Group.

BY Coun Tony Cox, Southend City Councillor for West Shoebury Ward and Leader of the Southend Reform UK Group.

THERE are many pressing matters that Southend City Council are dealing with at the moment, which could have serious impacts to residents, including a new local plan where the proposal to build 10,000 homes on the last remaining piece of Green Belt land could put all green and open spaces at risk, as the Council struggles to meet the Government’s housing targets.

Not forgetting the Local Government reorganisation, which would see Southend City Council no longer exist.

There is however another serious issue brewing which, until now, has gone under the radar. Southend Council entered into a joint arrangement with the National Investigation Service (NATIS) until 2019 – a Thurrock Council team to provide counter-fraud services.

Recently, Thurrock Council made public, a damning report into their National Investigation Service (NATIS) which the Government have since taken away from them. To say that this report makes for disturbing reading is an understatement.

Extraordinarily, the report states that NATIS were illegally set up and that there was evidence of financial mismanagement. It beggars belief that in effect, Southend Council’s own counter-fraud department at the time, appears to have been investigated and financial mismanagement identified.

In addition, the report highlighted that NATIS presentation of itself may be perceived as ‘misrepresentation’. This ‘misrepresentation’ caused some to conclude that NATIS were a formal, integrated or official part of law enforcement, as opposed to a department of Thurrock Council.

NATIS staff had Police email addresses, Police website domains were used, warrant cards were produced, restraint training was provided, Police looking uniforms provided including handcuffs issued, using of the Crown logo on court and Southend Council documents and quoting statutory Police arrest codes to their suspects, all when this team had no powers of arrest.

Since the publication of this report, whistleblowers have since provided other seriously concerning information and evidence of this team including allegations that they were: Using Police forces to obtain search warrants when they had no legal power to do so. Getting the Police to make arrests for this Council department to interview suspects when the Police had no intention of conducting any criminal investigation themselves. Using Police custody suites to interview suspects rather than Council PACE recording facilities. Undertaking prosecutions themselves when no legal powers existed.

I have made Southend City Council’s Chief Executive and Monitoring Officer aware that the high-profile Southend Council prosecution of Stuart Burrell (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-essex-46842794) and other members of the public by NATIS may be unlawful.

I raised the same concerns with the then Chief Executive, Monitoring Officer and Corporate Director back in April 2019, but was also ignored.

If this is proven to be the case, then the implications could be that convictions could be quashed and the Council could potentially be susceptible to legal action from all those that were investigated and/or convicted.

As a first step, I’m calling for Southend Council to confirm whether any former NATIS officers are still in the employment of the Council, and if they are, will they be suspended immediately.

I am also intending to put forward a notice of motion at the next Full Council meeting, calling for an independent investigation of Southend City Council’s use of NATIS.

This episode raises an awful lot of questions for the Council and Southend Reform will make sure that they are asked. It is for these reasons that I support the Reform DOGE unit going into Council’s to identify and weed out this type of waste and corruption.

To read the report into NATIS published by Thurrock Council, visit: https://www.thurrock.gov.uk/sites/default/files/foi/foi_14376_-_mazars_report.pdf

https://www.thurrock.gov.uk/foi-responses/mazars-into-natis-report

The following link provides a relevant Court decision concerning NATIS: https://goughsq.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/R-v-AB.pdf.

Editor’s note: Because of the potentially controversial nature of Coun Cox’s Political Viewpoint article, Leigh On Sea News sent a copy of it to Southend City Council and asked for a comment on it, from someone who could speak on behalf of the council.

The council provided us with the following response: A spokesperson for Southend-on-Sea City Council said: “We are aware of the social media posts by Cllr Cox which the Council takes very seriously. As you will understand, however, we are not able to comment on the employment or otherwise of individuals.

“Enquiries regarding the activities of NATIS should be referred to Thurrock Council.”

Picture: Coun Tony Cox, Southend City Councillor for West Shoebury Ward and Leader of the Southend Reform UK Group

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