Wragge report: Saga over land sales costs Sandwell Council £75k

Sandwell Council was taken to court as its former deputy leader Councillor Mahboob Hussain made a failed last-ditch attempt to block the controversial Wragge report from being published.

He then lodged an appeal against the decision to publish in the hope of having the damaging report quashed.

The trips to court to defend the publication of the report saw the costs pile up for council bosses as solicitors and legal experts were brought on board to make their case during the extraordinary battle between council and former deputy leader.

Legal advice and advocacy set the council back approximately £73,235, it was revealed following a Freedom of Information request by the Express & Star.

Travel costs for conferences with legal counsel and the hearings added an additional £1,239 to the total.

Sandwell Council said it will seek to recover its legal fees 'if appropriate'.

Councillor Hussain pulled out all the stops to try and block the report from being published.

It centred around his alleged involvement in the sales of a number of sites formerly owned by the council, and also claimed he had failed to declare interests and quashed parking fines for family members.

The long-serving councillor had been due to face a two-day council standards committee hearing earlier this year over allegations regarding land deals and parking tickets which were brought to light in the report.

But the proceedings were postponed after the Oldbury councillor was victorious in a High Court appeal.

He has accused the authority of jumping the gun by releasing the report and has always denied wrongdoing, claiming to be the victim of a 'political witch hunt'.

But council chiefs have insisted the publication of the report shows they are serious about tackling alleged misconduct.

Councillor Hussain said there was 'no way the council should be wasting resources on legal fees at a time when it is facing a difficult time financially'.

He initially made a failed attempt to block the publication of the Wragge report 48 hours before it was released in May 2016.

Sandwell Council chief executive Jan Britton said: "Until the outcome of this court case is known, we are unable to make further comment.”