Five key questions have been submitted to an influential Liverpool Council committee regarding the parking fines scandal at the local authority.
Last week the ECHO published the results of a 16-month investigation into a "back door" operation at the council that saw officers cancelling the parking fines of elected members without using the proper processes. We named 14 current and former Labour politicians in our investigation which the current chief executive said highlighted an "unacceptable culture" at the council.
Now an opposition group has submitted a number of key questions to the council's audit committee ahead of a meeting next month. Cllr Alan Gibbons is the deputy leader of the Liverpool Community Independents group who have suspended their own leader Cllr Anna Rothery after she was named in the investigation.
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In his questions to the audit committee, Cllr Gibbons asked why it took 16 months for Liverpool City Council to respond to the Liverpool ECHO's Freedom of Information requests about the rescinded parking tickets.
He also enquired about claims from Labour that there was a "custom and practice" at the council at the time which saw councillors passing their tickets to officers who then cancelled them. Cllr Gibbons asked who initiated this process, why it only involved Labour councillors and whether the practice was minuted or scrutinised at any meetings.
In its response to the ECHO, Liverpool Council said the "historical issues" around parking fines had been fully investigated by the council under its code of conduct, Cllr Gibbons has asked when these investigations took place and where the evidence is of this investigation. He also asked why no information about the rescinded parking tickets could be found despite exhaustive investigations.
Our investigation saw a number of named councillors blame senior officers for creating the culture around parking tickets. But one of those senior officers, former assistant director Andy Barr pointed the finger at Cllr Ann O'Byrne as a central figure in creating the culture at the council that saw this practice take place. She has categorically rejected this version of events.
Cllr Gibbons asked the council if Mr Barr's comments had been subject to any investigation. His questions have been subjected to the Audit Committee, which next meets on March 15 and Cllr Gibbons has also asked if they could be considered at the full council budget meeting on March 1.
The only action taken against any of the councillors named in our parking fines investigation involves the Community Independents group, with leader Cllr Rothery suspended and Cllr Joanne Calvert resigning from the group.
In a comment to the ECHO following her suspension, Cllr Rothery said: "I am sorry that the decision was taken to suspend me without due process. I hope that I will soon be able to resume my role as leader of Liverpool Community Independents Party."
In a statement responding to the ECHO's investigation, Liverpool City Council said: "Liverpool City Council has released information about parking penalty notices issued to elected members that were cancelled between 2015 and 2020. The disclosure follows a Freedom of Information request.
"It has taken a considerable amount of time and effort to pull together the response due to gaps in records. Further work is ongoing to ensure that we are fully transparent and ensure that all documents that can be made public are disclosed. It is crucial to the council’s improvement that transparency is embedded in our culture and practice
"As part of our improvement journey following the publication of the Best Value inspection report by Max Caller in 2021, we have made many changes to our governance systems and processes.
"Any elected member querying a ticket should have been directed to the standard appeals process for parking tickets. This process would have ensured that an authorised appeals case handler would have considered the response in a fair and appropriate way. Councillors receiving a parking ticket are advised to go through the standard appeals process.
"An annual Internal Audit of Parking Services is being carried out to provide independent and objective assurance on the adequacy and effectiveness of risks associated with its operation."
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