Now chief constable accused of job-switch influence

North Yorkshire Police Authority has referred the allegations surrounding Grahame Maxwell to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), which is already investigating both Mr Maxwell and his deputy, Adam Briggs, for allegedly providing help to relatives who wanted jobs as police officers.

The chief constable is alleged to have tried to help secure a transfer for Mr Briggs's wife, a police officer, from West Yorkshire Police shortly before he formally took up North Yorkshire's top job in May 2007.

Mr Maxwell and Mr Briggs were formerly colleagues at West Yorkshire Police before leaving to join other forces. Mr Briggs joined North Yorkshire as deputy chief constable in June 2007.

Mr Maxwell is alleged to have attempted to approve a transfer request from Mr Briggs's wife when he was chief constable designate and had not formally taken up office. However, no transfer ultimately took place.

Transfers must follow recruitment regulations including equal opportunity requirements. Senior officers are also not allowed to take operational decisions before they are actually officially in post.

Mr Maxwell declined to comment on the IPCC referral.

North Yorkshire Police Authority chief executive Jeremy Holderness, said: "The authority can confirm that it has recorded an allegation of potential misconduct against the chief constable in connection with a request from an individual to transfer to North Yorkshire Police in 2007. The authority can confirm that no such transfer took place and the allegation concerns events which took place before the chief constable took up his post.

"Nevertheless, in the interests of openness and transparency for all concerned, the authority considers it appropriate to refer the matter to the IPCC for an independent assessment of the allegation."

Mr Briggs, who is not the subject of the referral, also declined to comment.

A North Yorkshire Police spokesman said: "This matter is being handled by North Yorkshire Police Authority and the Independent Police Complaints Commission. It would be inappropriate to comment."

The IPCC issued a statement which said: "We can confirm we have this afternoon received a referral from North Yorkshire Police Authority concerning a recruitment matter relating to the chief constable.

"We are carrying out an initial assessment of available information before making a decision on whether an IPCC investigation is required into this matter."

In March, it emerged the IPCC were investigating whether Mr Maxwell and Mr Briggs unfairly helped relatives at the first

stage of a recruitment process aimed at employing 60 new officers.

Mr Maxwell allegedly phoned one of his relatives who was trying to join the force after thousands of people were unable to get through to a recruitment hotline which had crashed under the weight of calls.

Recruitment packs were only being made available to the first 1,000 suitable applicants but the force ultimately received around 350,000 calls, with thousands of people making repeat calls in a desperate attempt to get through. A small number are understood to have managed to leave their details when the lines were effectively down. When the dedicated phone lines were re-established, call operators were asked to phone those who had previously left details – if they had time away from incoming calls.

The small number of names on the list included relatives of both Mr Maxwell and Mr Briggs. When the phones were running again, senior officers, including Mr Maxwell and Mr Briggs, took time out to help man the lines. It is alleged Mr Maxwell's assistance involved phoning numbers on the callback list, including his relative.