Request for any further complaints about Cllr Loakes

Thank you for providing further details on 17 February 2021, following your request for information of 23 December 2020 requesting copies of ‘all complaints made against Cllr Clyde Loakes and the response from the NLWA, including who wrote the response’.   We responded on 17 February with details of complaints made during 2020 and 2021 to 17 February and details of who wrote the responses (our information request reference 2020-93). This further response is being handled under the Environmental Information Regulations (EiR) 2004 and has been allocated a new (but linked) reference number 2021-97[1] and we respond as follows:

1. You requested the following information: By the sounds of it you have more [complaints] from the previous years. Are you kindly able to forward those to me please?

       I did notice that none of the behavioural issues highlighted in the complaints were addressed in any of the responses and were not once mentioned.  Why is that?

2. NLWA Response

As noted in our previous response, NLWA has a complaints procedure which is available here: https://www.nlwa.gov.uk/article/complaints-procedure

All complaints are handled in line with this procedure.

We have no records of any other complaints made about Councillor Clyde Loakes, Chair of the North London Waste Authority, except for those already supplied to you from 2020.  This response relates to the years 2017 – 2019, because we have an information policy which can be accessed at the link below, and the retention period within that is three years. https://www.nlwa.gov.uk/sites/default/files/inline-files/personal-data-retention-policy-2018-v12-issued-04-05-18.pdf. Informally, we do not have any recollection of complaints made against the Chair outside of this period either.

In accordance with the Environmental Information Regulations this response acts as a refusal notice to supply the information requested under Regulation 12 (4), because the Authority does not hold the information.

The comments made about Councillor Loakes’ behaviour in the 2020 complaints were all made in reference to the Authority meeting of 25 June 2020 at which a number of deputations were presented. The responses to these complaints do address behaviour, for example it is noted that:

• Councillor Loakes listened to all the deputations made
• He took notes of the comments raised and
• At the end of each deputation there was acknowledgement of the comments that had been made

This was a meeting of the Authority, which the public are entitled to attend, but public entitlement to speak is governed by the Authority’s Standing Orders, which provide for deputations to be made about matters relevant to the Authority’s business, but limit the time, and in particular limit the nature of the engagement between the deputees and the Authority to allow for orderly handling of the meeting.  Those wishing to make deputations could do so, and were able to speak for up to five minutes, but they were not entitled to ask or present follow-up points or questions. There were nine deputations at this meeting so it was important that the Chair listened to each deputation in turn, but he could not provide one deputee more time or access to Authority Members than the next, so the pace had to be swift.

The behaviour of Members in Authority meetings is governed by the Authority’s Standing Orders which were adhered to. There is nothing further to add in response to comments made about councillors attending the meeting and their behaviour at it.

I trust this response answers your questions, but if I can be of any further assistance please do not hesitate to contact me.

Yours sincerely,