News from Labour Matters

Banned councillor still supported by London Mayor despite police probe

The Evening Standard yesterday reported that: “Boris Johnson’s administration was today at the centre of new sleaze allegations after a top fire authority chief spent £900 in donations on two ball gowns while serving as Mayor of Brent.”

Over many weeks Boris Johnson has repeatedly failed to act over Bertha Joseph – who he has appointed to the fire authority – including at last week’s Mayor’s Question Time when he was pressed on the matter by Len Duvall AM.

The Evening Standard reports: The Met is investigating whether Bertha Joseph committed a crime. After her mayoral role she was made the Tory deputy chairman of the London fire authority — under City Hall’s control — despite having been suspended for six months for bringing her council into disrepute.

Today the Standard can reveal that Ms Joseph, whom Mr Johnson has refused to sack despite repeated demands, has been reported to the police after losing an appeal last month against her council suspension.

A judge said there was “more than a possibility” that she had deprived two children’s charities, the Down’s Syndrome Association and Shooting Star, of extra income by spending the donations of £400 and £500 on dresses.

A Brent council investigation found that Ms Joseph encouraged two businesses — a butcher and a car dealer — to sponsor the dresses she wore to two mayoral charity balls.

The judge added that Ms Joseph had shown a “repeated lack of credibility” and that it would be wrong to expect her to serve as a borough mayor again “given the disrepute that she has caused to the office”. He ordered her to serve the remainder of her six-month suspension immediately.

Read the full article.

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