Beleaguered Richmondshire DC could face legal action from one of its senior managers over allegations of bullying. Monitoring officer, Margaret Barry, is reportedly seeking legal advice as part of an ongoing bullying scandal involving five councillors. Local Government Employers investigator, Richard Penn, published a report in May accusing the five councillors of bullying, harassment, and breaching an officer's contractual entitlement. But a Standards Board for England report said in June that no action needed to be taken against the councillors. The leader of the Local Government Association's Liberal Democrat group, Richard Kemp, has now written to the Richmondshire group leader, Linda Curran, expressing his support for the councillors involved. Cllr Kemp said: ‘I think it should be clear that the report written by Mr Penn has no official standing. I have no doubt at all that the council should now be seeking to put in place an external mediation system to deal with what are clear tensions between senior councillors and senior staff.' A council spokeswoman said: ‘It would be inappropriate, at the moment, for us to comment, because it is an ongoing issue.'
