COUNCIL MEETING - TONIGHT

Council Meeting
Monday, 2nd November, 2009 6.15 pm

NOTICES OF MOTION
Notice has been given, in accordance with Standing Order 8(1), of motions on the following subjects.


1. MOTION: ADULT SOCIAL CARE - PUBLIC INTEREST DISCLOSURE
Proposed by Councillor Simon Mountney (7 minutes)
Seconded by Councillor Geoffrey Watt (3 minutes)

(1) This Council recognises that a number of concerns were raised by a Council ‘whistleblower’ in October 2007 under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998, which in turn has resulted in the Audit Commission issuing Wirral Council with a Public Information Disclosure report.

(2) Council notes the findings of the report:
• Although 30 accredited providers are used by the Council only 12 contracts have been signed and returned by providers.
• No formal arrangements have been established for the contract monitoring of
supported living providers.
• There are no arrangements at present for feedback from service users where there is dissatisfaction with services or where quality standards have not been met.
• There remains a substantial risk that users receiving services from one of the
Councils service providers are being charged unfairly.
• The Council does not always know the actual contributions that the provider rquires service users to contribute for services they provide. Consequently the Council is not in a position to know whether the aggregate of charges levied on
service users by the Council and contributions required by the provider are in
compliance with the guidance of fairer charging. It is not clear who is currently ensuring that these service users are receiving adequate protection for the risk
of financial abuse.

(3) Council notes the fact that these findings had previously been raised with officers of the Council by the whistleblower and, whilst thanking the Audit Commission for the production of this report and bringing the matter out into the open, condemns the fact that the Council’s own procedures are so defective as to have needed the Audit Commission’s intervention to bring them to the notice of the Council and the public.

(4) Council believes that this PIDA report and the Department’s unwillingness to bring to the Council’s attention the whistleblower’s concerns regarding the treatment of those in our care demonstrates a lack of effective governance, management and leadership within the Department.

(5) Therefore this Council instructs the Chief Executive to appoint an independent person of sufficient standing and experience to investigate these matters fully, speedily and rigorously and to bring their findings to the Council’s attention, including any disciplinary action, if required, at the earliest possible occasion.

AMENDMENT
Proposed by Councillor Denise Roberts (7 minutes)
Seconded by Councillor Ron Abbey (3 minutes)

Delete all text after the end of section (2) and replace with the following:

(3) Council notes the serious implications of the findings and recognises that they point to serious management failings in adult social services in the past over a long period of time. Council acknowledges these findings and notes that the Director of Adult Social Services has prepared a report addressing these failings and their consequences and that this will be presented to Audit and Risk Management Committee on 3rd November.

(4) In relation to allegations of bullying of the whistleblower, Council notes and supports Cabinets decision to instruct the Director of Law HR and Asset Management to commence an investigation into the treatment of the individual, in relation to allegations of bullying. Council also notes that an outside, independent person will conduct this investigation.

(5) Council welcomes the Audit & Risk Management Committee recommendation to reimburse service users at Bermuda Road, Curlew Way and Edgehill Road Moreton, between April 2003 and February 2006.

(6) Council also notes that the audit and risk management committee will tomorrow (3 November 2009) receive a report providing further information with respect to the charging that took place between the period 1997 - 2003, and based on that will make a recommendation on whether re-imbursement will take place for that period.

AMENDMENT
Proposed by Councillor Leah Fraser (7 minutes)
Seconded by Councillor Jeff Green (3 minutes)

In addition to the existing Conservative Notice of Motion add the following:

(6) This Council recognises that the concerns raised by Mr Martin Morton in October 2007 under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998, and earlier to Senior Officers, are both well-founded and serious.

(7) Council further notes that in the twelve months since the PIDA was published

(a) It has now been established that a vulnerable group of people with learning disabilities in the care of this Council were unlawfully financially abused by this Council over many years. The full extent of this financial abuse and the level of unlawfulness is yet to be established, however, the original figure of £78,499.62 first quoted by the Director of DASS is now recognised as woefully short of the total amount improperly obtained from the residents within our care.

(b) Despite the contributions made by Directors and the most senior officers in its production, the most recent report by Internal Audit has gone only part of the way to revealing the truth. What is much clearer is that much of the evidence presented by Mr Morton and all of his relevant knowledge of this ongoing financial abuse has been ignored or mistakenly omitted from the report.

(c) This Council continues to applaud the efforts of Mr Martin Morton in attempting to ensure that the full extent of the financial abuse and wrong doing is brought into the open

(d) Council expresses its concern that the Cabinet member for Adult and Social Care is yet to make a full comment to the Audit committee or Council regarding how aware she was of this situation and why she had not taken any action prior to the publication of the PIDA report.

(e) Therefore this Council requests that the Chief Executive, in conjunction with the three party leaders selects a person of suitable standing, who is totally independent and fully qualified to carry out a full public inquiry into the PIDA report, in order to draw this matter to a satisfactory conclusion.

Right of reply: Councillor Simon Mountney (7 minutes)

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