Vindicated!
PLANNING convener John Constable has been cleared of any wrong-doing over a Linlithgow firm's application to build houses in Maddiston.
Joe Meichan and Danny Cox of Toravon Homes Ltd
reported Councillor Constable to the Standards Commission claiming he had "leaned" on planning officials to ensure they vetoed the application.
Councillor Constable this week learned the Standards Commission had thrown out the plea — although Toravon Homes has vowed to start civil proceedings and has hinted the case could even go to the European Court of Human Rights.
The Standards Commission had previously ruled that Councillor Andrew Graham did not act improperly when he refused to meet with Toravon Homes to discuss the scheme.
Councillor Constable said: "I'm pleased to have been totally
exonerated but, of course, no other decision was possible because the allegation against me had absolutely no substance.
"If certain individuals are unhappy about being left with some serious egg on their faces because the Standards Commission has thrown out this spurious complaint then so be it.
"However, if these people are minded to threaten to take the matter further then my firm response is that they can take it where they like.
"The allegation is totally unfounded as its total rejection by the Standards Commission amply demonstrates and therefore it is doomed to failure in any forum."
Councillor Con-stable has written to MSPs in a bid to have the Standards Commission review process tightened up to protect people in public office from what he called ''spurious complaints.''
He said the very action of calling in the Standards Commission raised doubts in peoples' minds as to whether councillors were behaving in a responsible and proper manner.
He said: "I have written to senior MSPs asking them to
ventilate the unfairness of this system but, essentially, the Toravon application was determined with absolute propriety and legitimately both by myself and professional officers.
''And that will always be the case with all planning
applications as long as I have stewardship of planning affairs."
But an unhappy Joe Meichan still believes he can call the councillors and officials to account over the failure of his company's planning application for the Maddiston site.
He declared: "I have no doubt our QC will appeal this ruling, in the same way as he has the Councillor Graham one.
"It is easy for them to deny it all at this stage when they are not under oath — but they will be when we take the councillors, the planning officials and, possibly, the chief executive, to the Court of Session.''
Mr Meichan added: "We have exhausted the channels open to us and it is now time to start civil proceedings.
''I feel it is my duty to try to expose what appears to be the gross abuse of power by certain SNP councillors.''
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Weather for Linlithgow
Thursday 24 May 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 12 C to 21 C
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Temperature: 10 C to 20 C
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