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Call for New Deal chief's suspension
COUNCIL leaders today reacted to the news two men found guilty of gross misconduct had been hired by Burngreave New Deal for Communities.
Coun Paul Scriven, Liberal Democrat leader, wants BNDfC chief executive John Clark to be suspended "until such time as the investigation finds out whether he took Bill Husband on knowing he'd been sacked".
Sheffield Central MP Richard Caborn, who helped set up BNDfC, said he was "very concerned" about the revelations.
Ronnie Lewin, chair of BNDfC, said: "BNDfC is satisfied the appointments of JMJ and Mr Husband were made in good faith based on the information available at the time.
"The work they were appointed to undertake has been completed satisfactorily and there were no issues of misconduct during their time in Burngreave.
"Sheffield Council is seeking further information on the circumstances of Mr Davies' and Mr Husband's departure from Brent Council and that information will be reported to BNDfC when known.
"BNDfC have agreed that, on receipt of further information from Sheffield and Brent Councils, the details will be investigated. Pending that investigation no further consultancy work will be commissioned from the JMJ Group."
BNDfC did not answer questions posed by The Star about whether it was aware of Husband's past before he was hired, and the size of his salary. It also did not reveal how much was paid to JMJ Group for its courses.
The organisation has not suspended Mr Clark.
Bill Husband was unavailable for comment but Jack Davies claimed he had been the victim of a misunderstanding.
"I firmly believed I had permission to use the flat," he said. "However, after being presented with an alternative interpretation, I felt the only honourable thing to do was resign."
Despite the highly critical report into his and Husband's running of SKNDC, which ended in April 2006, Davies stated that, while they were in charge, the agency achieved excellent grades for its performance and won a national award.
He said BNDfC sent 20 people for training with his company. One of his courses, 'Thinking Smarter Working Better', which promotes methods of "overcoming old ways of thinking, giving up blame, becoming solution-focused and taking initiative" was praised by Mr Clark as "powerful and challenging" in a comment on JMJ's website.
Ellisa Clarke, a former BNDfC board member who now runs The Voice of The People, a support group for black people, said: "There must be an independent inquiry into what has happened."
Her organisation has already written to European Commission President Jose Barossa and Prime Minister Gordon Brown, complaining about how BNDfC is spending its money.
Conservative Coun Anne Smith said there needs to be a "thorough investigation" into the hiring of Husband and Davies, while Coun Jillian Creasy, of the Green Party, said: "The plethora of government funded pilot schemes, like New Deal for Communities, mean extra layers of bureaucracy."
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Latest sport. This makes them vulnerable to wasting public money or worse irregularities..”
In November, the BNDfC came under fire after it emerged millions have been spent on providing free community parties and outings, and 30,000 was spent on a study counting the number of shops and services in Burngreave - which concluded the area needed a cashpoint and more grocers.
A further 130,000 was used to buy a custom-made truck to use as a mobile stage and information venue, dubbed the ‘bling bus’ after it was fitted with stainless steel wheel trims.
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Friday 10 February 2012
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