Council's lawyer set to refer members to police

NORTHUMBERLAND County Council’s top lawyer has said he is preparing to refer councillors to Northumbria Police over issues with their register of interests.

- JAMES ROBINSON Local Democracy Reporter

Monitoring officer Stephen Gerrard said he was taking external advice but had reached the point where referrals to the police were necessary.

Under long-established Government rules, councillors must disclose pecuniary and other interests that could influence their judgement. These include their employment, business interests and land ownership within the council area and are publicly available to review on the council’s website.

Failing to disclose an interest is a criminal offence. If a councillor is found guilty of a criminal offence related to the register of interests, they can be fined up to £5,000 and disqualified from holding office as a councillor for up to five years.