Taxpayersto finallyget detailsof £14mswindle

Paul Whitehouse

A DELAYED report which should explain how a 14m fraud went undiscovered by council managers and auditors for years is expected to be published next month.

The Newton Report into South Yorkshire Trading Standards Unit, which folded when the crimes were discovered after the sudden death of its manager, had been due to be made public earlier this year.

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It was commissioned by Sheffield Council, which was paid to manage the unit on behalf of all four of South Yorkshire’s district councils.

But it remains unclear who will pay for the report, or how much it will cost the taxpayer. Sheffield Council has refused to answer questions and has failed to respond to a Freedom of Information request for those details.

Councils in Barnsley, Rotherham and Doncaster have all been unable to say whether they will be contributing to the cost of the report.

The TSU staff oversaw consumer protection and trading legislation which included ensuring fair weights and measures in bars or carrying out tests on suspect products.

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Sheffield Council was paid to manage the unit on behalf of all four authorities and it appeared to have been making a small profit before the death of manager Mike Buckley in 2005.

It then emerged he had concealed losses, which had mounted up over several years to a total of around 14m and although his methods were basic, his managers and auditors did not discover any problems.

Three businessmen who admitted a part in Buckley’s activities were sentenced in February and the Newton Report had been expected to be made public within three months of that hearing.

Sheffield Council now says it expects the document to be ready in October.

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The fraud committed by Buckley was significant because it left council taxpayers in four local authorities with an unexpected bill and also affected private businesses offering similar services because Buckley had been able to undercut their prices by offering loss-making services.

One businessman affected said he had made a Freedom of Information request in May which he was told by Sheffield Council had gone astray.

His request for information was later rejected and he is still waiting to be told whether he will be granted an internal review of that decision.

“It is a really frustrating situation,” he said.

“I was told the Newton Report had been presented to the council in a draft form and needed to be amended with information from the court case.

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“But there were guilty pleas and as far as I’m aware there was no new evidence brought forwards. So what is there to add?”

The TSU folded in 2006, months after Buckley’s death from a heart attack and each council took on its own responsibilities for providing those services.

Sheffield Council has confirmed that it sacked Buckley’s deputy for gross misconduct. That employee was not among those prosecuted.

No disciplinary action has been taken against Buckley’s managers.

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A spokesman for Barnsley Council confirmed the Newton Report had been commissioned by Sheffield Council but was unable to say whether his authority was contributing to the bill. Colleagues in Rotherham and Doncaster were also unable to say whether they would face any costs for the Newton Report.