Complaints cost council £65,000
- Credit: Archant
DEALING with complaints made against councillors in East Devon has cost the district authority nearly £65,000 in a year.
A report to the standards committee has revealed the number of complaints doubled from the previous 12 months.
And the 21 of these referred to the ombudsman are the second highest among Devon district councils - twice the national average.
The report, discussed this week, tells how East Devon District Council (EDDC) spent £64,934 between April 2013 and March 2014 dealing with the complaints.
A total of 72 were made to the authority’s monitoring officer.
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Thirty-one were lodged between 2012 and 2013.
Out of the 72 complaints, 60 were against district, town or parish councillors.
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Most complaints against councillors alleged disrespectful behaviour, or that a councillor had brought their office or the council into disrepute.
A report on the matter is not due until June’s standards committee meeting.
Members were this week asked for their views about what should be included in it.
