Cllr Philip Mynott leads call to scrutinise Old House sell-off
Brentwood North Ward Councillor Philip Mynott has, with fellow Lib Dem councillor Karen Chilvers and Brentwood First's William Lloyd, requested a call in to the Overview and Scrutiny Panel of the decision to sell The old House.
The three councillors have submitted the following request to Tory-controlled Brentwood Council:
"We the undersigned, as members of the Overview and Scrutiny Panel, are concerned that:
- "Due process was not followed insofar as the provision of information to members, and supply of information from officers contained insufficient information and information of insufficient validity was given to the members both at the Asset, Infrastructure and Localism Panel on 23/1/13 and Policy and Resources Board on 13/03/13 to make any final decision.
- The (avoidable) decision to debate this issue in pink (confidential session) on both occasions guaranteed an exclusion of public input and insufficient time for member consideration of, the issues at stake and information supplied.
- "The processes leading up to these debates were in contravention of both letter and spirit of Brentwood Council's Asset strategy as agreed at Brentwood's first Asset Infrastructure and Localism Panel on February 28th 2012 and ratified at Policy and Resources on March 7th 2012.
"In order to ensure openness and transparency on this issue for members and Brentwood residents and to provide an assurance of due process, please confirm that this matter will be taken up by the Overview and Scrutiny Panel as a matter of urgency."
A decision, that would see the matter being fully debated and possibly revised at a quickly convened meeting of the Overview & Scrutiny Panel, is awaited.