Wragge Report: Ex-Sandwell Council deputy to be grilled over 'family favours'
A former deputy leader of Sandwell Council will face a standards committee over claims of serious misconduct after a High Court ruling.
Oldbury councillor Mahboob Hussain stands accused of a series of code of conduct breaches, including procuring the sale of council land to family and friends at below market value, and abusing his position to have parking tickets issued to family members quashed.
Mr Hussain denies the allegations, which were revealed last year in the council commissioned Wragge report.
He lodged a judicial review against the decision to publish the report on the grounds that it had violated his and his family’s human rights.
But it was thrown out by the High Court yesterday, with Mr Justice Green ruling that there was ‘a powerful public interest’ in a thorough and fair investigation.
Mr Hussain – who earlier this year won a High Court battle stopping his appearance before the council’s standards committee – will now face a full inquiry.
Sandwell Council’s chief executive Jan Britton said the judgment vindicated the authority’s case and added: “Now legal issues have come to a conclusion, the council is able to proceed with its standards process.”
The judge said he had seen evidence referring to ‘a culture’ whereby elected councillors were ‘the bosses’ and the council was ‘open for business’.
The evidence referred to council employees being ‘bullied’ by elected members and being ‘compliant’ in carrying out their wishes.
In 2015 Wragge & Co – now known as Gowling WLG – was instructed by the council to investigate claims of ‘serial and long-standing wrongdoing’ by elected members.
The subsequent report, which the council released last May following pressure from the Express & Star, said that there was ‘a serious case to be met’.
However, Mr Hussain’s lawyers argued the that the whole investigation was flawed, infected by bias, politically motivated, oppressive and irrational.
The council, it was claimed, had no power to initiate the inquiry and the release of material into the public domain had violated Mr Hussain and his family’s human rights.
The judge said Mr Hussain faced a ‘serious’ case that the council had ample powers to investigate.
Mr Hussain told the Express & Star he was taking legal advice before deciding whether to appeal the ruling.
