LABOUR LEADER MUST ANSWER SERIOUS QUESTIONS OVER PHONE BILLS (Kirklees Liberal Democrats)

Kirklees Liberal Democrats <info@kirkleeslibdems.org.uk>

LABOUR LEADER MUST ANSWER SERIOUS QUESTIONS OVER PHONE BILLS

September 26, 2007 7:05 AM

Cllr Khan's unresolved £1,300 council telephone bill

Councillors Kath Pinnock and John Smithson are calling on Kirklees Labour Leader Cllr Mehboob Khan to come clean about his use of council telephones. Cllr Khan has failed to respond to serious public concern about the issue, and has not explained the circumstances behind the calls.

Using information made available under the Freedom of Information Act, Cllr Kath Pinnock and Cllr John Smithson will pose further questions about Cllr Khan's unresolved £1,300 council telephone bill.

"We think Cllr Khan should come clean and give straight answers about his use of council telephones. He has had two months to explain himself but he has remained silent."

The questions Cllr Pinnock wants Cllr Khan to answer publicly are:

1. Did Cllr Khan only use the land line provided by the Council in his Labour Leader's office?

2. Did he make international calls to France, Pakistan and the Russian Federation from those land lines?

3. Were a significant number of those calls made after the Council building was closed and alarmed?

4. Were a significant number of the calls made to a mobile number in the Russian Federation?

5. Was the cost of a significant number of individual calls over £20 each?

6. Given that the time difference between the UK and the Russian Federation is some four or five hours ahead, does Cllr Khan agree that a significant number of the calls he made would be received in the early hours of the morning?

7. Does Cllr Khan have a land line at his home address?

8. Why was he unable to use that line for these calls?

9. Did he only stop using the council land lines when a block was put on those lines by the council following routine monitoring of the phone bills?

10. Why did he, in effect, accept an interest free loan from the Council and offer only to pay back at the rate of £100 per month?

Cllr Pinnock continued "The national Code of Conduct for Councillors states that councillors should behave in a manner that the general public will regard as reasonable. I am sure that many local people do not think it is reasonable to use council resources without having to justify it.

"Cllr Khan needs to give straight answers to these questions and to give them now."

National Code of Conduct for Councillors states:

"Where your authority provides you with resources (for example telephone, computer or other IT facilities, transport or support from council employees), you must only use these resources or employees for carrying out your local authority business and any other activity which your authority has authorised you to use them for."