Documents released today by Bristol City Council under Freedom of Information legislation appear to expose corruption in senior officer ranks at the Council House.
The documents clearly demonstrate that £120k a year senior officer David Bishop - a “strategic leader” according to wet-behind-the-ears Chief Exec Ormondroyd - made what amounts to a private arrangement with multi-millionaire, Merchant Venturer architect, George Ferguson to sell him a plot of public land on the Bristol and Bath Railway Path at Greenbank.
In making this odd decision, Bishop ignored not only democratically created city council policy (the Parks and Green Spaces Strategy) but the advice of his own conservation, parks, leisure, property and transport officers.
One of them even comments on George Ferguson’s sudden stroke of good fortune in acquiring land that was strictly off limits and not for sale, “It’s amazing what a meeting with the right person can do!”
Isn’t it?
Indeed it's so amazing it's hard to see what the difference between Bishop’s behaviour and straightforward corruption is.
The episode also casts a serious question mark over new £180k pa Chief Exec Ormondroyd’s judgement. While Bishop was busy selling our land that's not for sale to influential millionaire property developers, Ormondroyd was busy reappointing him on an increased salary and describing him as “the best in the business“.
Thursday October 30, 2008 22:15
by The Bristol Blogger - The Bristol Blogger
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