Bedford Borough Council’s monitoring officer has dismissed a formal complaint against Mayor Tom Wootton regarding his registered interests in East West Rail.
Following an investigation in “consultation with an independent person”, the council concluded no failure had occurred regarding the registration or declaration of interests, confirming no further action will be taken.
The original complaint initially included allegations of corruption and unethical behaviour, which were subsequently withdrawn by the complainant before the remaining procedural claims were assessed.
Read: Third cabinet resignation sparks questions over mayor’s East West Rail interest
No failure
Mayor Tom Wootton said: “Following public allegations about my interests relating to the East West Rail scheme, a formal complaint was made to the local authority’s monitoring officer.
“The original complaint included allegations of corruption and unethical behaviour. Those allegations were later withdrawn.
“The remaining complaint alleged that I’d failed to correctly register or declare my disclosable pecuniary interests and local interests.
“After considering the complaint, the evidence provided and the borough council’s agreed complaints procedure, the monitoring officer, in consultation with an independent person, concluded he didn’t consider there’d been any failure around my registration, disclosure or declaration of interests on East West Rail.
“No further action will be taken as a result, and I’ve been formally notified that the complaint is now closed. As the allegations were made publicly, I’ve been given permission to publish this outcome, provided I don’t disclose any personal data or information relating to a third party.”
The mayor was absent from an extraordinary council meeting on 27 May regarding East West Rail, after declaring both a local and disclosable pecuniary interest in the project.
He later explained he was advised not to attend because the proposed route crossed land connected to his family.
Mayor Tom Wootton said he “didn’t want that to become a distraction” during a meeting which “should rightly focus on the homes facing demolition and the wider disruption the scheme could cause in Bedford”.
Despite his absence, opposition councillors raised questions regarding the mayor’s involvement in shaping the council’s position on East West Rail.
Election campaign
Cllr Christine McHugh (Liberal Democrats/Goldington) said: “East West Rail was a main plank of his election campaign.
“He’s led the relationship between the council and East West Rail throughout the last three years. Indeed, he signed off the £40,000 for a study into alternative routes.”
When asked if the mayor had helped shape the consultation response, Cllr Nicola Gribble (Independent/ Renhold and Ravensden), portfolio holder for environment, clarified his role.
She said: “Mayor Tom has had little input. The main contribution has been from officers and portfolio holders. So no, he hasn’t.”
The dispute over interests previously caused disruption within the council executive.
Former cabinet member Cllr Sarah Gallagher (Conservative/Shortstown) cited the issue as a key reason for her resignation from the cabinet, stating she knew of the local interest but not the disclosable pecuniary interest.
Under national local government rules, a local interest applies when a matter affects a councillor or their family more than the general public.
A disclosable pecuniary interest involves direct financial links, such as land ownership or employment, which legally bar a member from participating or voting in relevant council discussions.
Additional reporting by Euan Duncan,
Local Democracy Reporter
