News / Clark slams Audit Scotland draft report
SHETLAND Islands Council’s former chief executive has condemned a draft report by local government watchdog Audit Scotland into the local authority’s performance while he was in charge, calling it “unprofessional” and “inaccurate”.
Forty four year old David Clark has called on the Accounts Commission, who asked for the investigation, to reject its findings unless it is “substantially altered”.
He also attacks the islands’ parliamentarians Alistair Carmichael MP and Tavish Scott MSP for complaining to Audit Scotland last September about Mr Clark’s deletion of the post of assistant chief executive Willie Shannon.
A draft copy of the report issued to councillors and senior staff last week was highly critical of the SIC and the way it had recruited Mr Clark, and saying the cost of paying him £250,000 to leave quietly was “particularly unwelcome”.
It added that as a result of problems during the chief executive’s eight month tenure, levels of mistrust within the council had plummeted and it was ill equipped to face up to the many challenges before it.
On Wednesday Mr Clark issued a statement saying: “The way this report has been prepared is unprofessional. It is riddled with inaccuracies.
“I have, via my legal advisers, submitted my detailed comments to try to rectify some of the inaccuracies in it. If the final report is not substantially altered, I will be calling on the Accounts Commission to reject it.”
He complains that the report’s authors did not interview him, and that Audit Scotland only gave him a copy of the draft after it had been leaked to the local media in Shetland.
He praises the report for pointing out that allegations against him of threatening Lerwick councillor Jonathan Wills with violence had been “rejected” by his fellow councillors, the police and the procurator fiscal.
But he claims the report is wrong in saying his working relationship with the council had broken down, insisting that it had been national press coverage of his private life that had made his position “virtually impossible”.
He defends his treatment of assistant chief executive Willie Shannon saying he had consulted over the matter last June – his first month in post. This was challenged at the time by local government union Unison, who forced Mr Clark to publicly reassure staff they would be consulted over any reorganisation plans in future.
Mr Clark also takes credit for being the lead officer in winning a deal with oil company Total for a new gas plant at Sullom Voe, held up by Audit Scotland as good practice, even though the deal was struck in March, a month after he left office.
He also claims credit for attracting Inverness based IT developer Alchemy Plus, who announced last week they would build a £12 million data storage centre in Lerwick, and for making key internal changes to help the council deal with its fiscal challenges.
He adds: “This report is shoddy, inaccurate and misleading. Its delivery has been handled in an appallingly unprofessional manner.
“Despite the fact this report was partly triggered by Tavish Scott and Alastair (sic) Carmichael, their gross abuse of power, interfering in local government does not get a mention.
“Nor does the fact that their widely publicised concerns had no basis. At no time did they even bother to raise their concerns with the council.”
Tavish Scott responded on Wednesday saying he had no regrets about asking Audit Scotland to investigate the way the assistant chief executive’s post was deleted.
“I am surprised and disappointed by this personal attack on Alistair Carmichael and I. I will always stand up for local people’s views – that is the job of an MSP and an MP. Given the widespread concerns this issue raised I have no regrets that Alistair and I acted as we did. If the circumstances were repeated, I would do the same again.”
After Mr Clark left office, Mr Carmichael said that there needed to be a change of culture at the SIC and at no time had the council been held in such low regard by the local community.
Several other councillors and officers are understood to have responded to Audit Scotland after the draft report was released for comment last month.
The final version was due to be published on Wednesday, but that has been postponed until Thursday. It will be discussed by the Accounts Commission next Thursday.
When Shetland News approached Mr Clark after the report was leaked he was abusive, saying he did not speak to “scum journalists”. He did not issue his statement directly to Shetland News, who obtained a copy through other channels.
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