WSCC tried to sack chief executive - claim
A shockwave of controversy hit West Sussex County Council this week after an accusation of 'outrageous' behaviour towards chief executive Mark Hammond when its leader allegedly tried to sack him.
It was originally announced that Mr Hammond was on extended leave as from the
previous day.
A brief statement issued by the council's information office said that to maintain continuity of service, Kieran Stigant, executive director for communities, had agreed to take on the role of interim chief executive until the long-term position was settled.
But then the Association of Local Authority Chief Executives claimed the leader, Conservative Cllr Louise Goldsmith, had summoned Mr Hammond back from leave to sack him and that he was given extended leave only after its intervention.
The county council's response to this was to issue a further short statement saying it could confirm it had been contacted by ALACE to advise it was now acting on behalf of Mr Hammond.
"We are currently in discussions about the terms of his employment and in view of this there will be no further comment at this time," it added.
ALACE secretary Mary Orton said: "The way Mark Hammond has been treated by his council is outrageous.
"We understand he was summoned in from leave to be summarily dismissed by his leader.
"This is in complete contravention of proper procedures, and just shows how important it is that chief executives have statutory legal protection against arbitrary dismissal at the whim of politicians.
"ALACE has issued a strong warning to West Sussex about their conduct, and we are fully supporting Mark, who, up to now, has apparently always been highly regarded by his council."
Mr Hammond is one of England's top ten best-paid chief executives. His salary in 2009-2010 was reported in a recent pay survey to be 266,000.
Mr Hammond, who lives at Bosham, became chief executive in 2004, having previously been the county's director for environment and development since 2000. Before that he was head of economic policy for Surrey County Council and first secretary for environment, energy and telecommunications at the British embassy in Washington.
Cllr James Walsh, a Lib Dem member who has served for 25 years on the county council, said: "This claim by ALACE makes a very serious allegation against the leader of the council, in that she sought to sack the chief executive without following proper procedures.
"If true, it calls into question the judgment of the council leader. It is imperative that county councillors are given the whole truth as soon as possible.
Lib Dem group leader Morwen Millson said: "I am concerned about the sudden nature of this decision and I am very concerned about the possible cost to the council.
"I agree with ALACE that there are better ways of dealing with situations like this and it does seem strange they weren't inclined to go down that route."
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Sunday 05 February 2012
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