WHILE the impact of last week's TV probe into a cabinet member's activities continues to resound, council leader Maurice Hughes has still not instigated any kind of action.

BBC Wales' Dragon's Eye programme carried several serious allegations about the conduct of Cllr Brian Hall and featured footage of him jostling with a cameraman.

As formal complaints about Cllr Hall go in to the local government Ombudsman, Cllr Hughes has been called on to refer the allegations to the council's standards committee, which has the power to suspend a member from office.

Instead, however, Cllr Hughes has lashed out at the BBC, Labour MP Nick Ainger, the local press and opposition councillors.

In response to the programme, Cllr Hughes issued a statement. Unfortunately, however, the Merc's repeated attempts to contact the leader to ask questions proved fruitless, with the council press office saying that the leader has nothing more to add.

Dismissing Cllr Hughes' criticism of him as "puerile," Mr Ainger commented: "As with other complaints and allegations, it seems that the political leaders of the county council want to attack the messenger rather than investigate.

"In this instance, it's for the local government Ombudsman to initiate an investigation, not the council, but I would have thought the council would have issued a statement saying that they are willing to assist the Ombudsman in conducting a thorough investigation, not as Cllr Hughes' statement indicates, that they are totally dismissive of the individuals concerned and the substance of their allegations."

South county AM Christine Gwyther said: "One of the most important allegations in the programme was the threat to withdraw funds from wards which didn't return an Independent councillor.

"That's clearly in breach of the code of conduct and it's something of which I'm sure the standards committee, which is chaired by an independent person, would take a fairly dim view.

"The committee has the power to suspend a member from office, and a matter can be referred to them by the leader - so if Cllr Hughes wishes to regain any public confidence in him or his cabinet, he should refer this matter to the committee as a matter of urgency."

A BBC spokesman said: "BBC Wales is happy the Dragon's Eye team acted to the highest journalistic standards.

"We have had no complaints following the screening of the programme."

Allegations are smear tactics, says Maurice

ON FRIDAY, council leader Maurice Hughes released the following statement in response to the Dragon's Eye programme.

"It is a sign of the desperation of the opposition on the county council that they have now resorted to personal smears in what is undoubtedly an orchestrated campaign against Independent councillors.

"In the past few months we have seen evidence of this in unfounded and unsubstantiated attacks against social services staff and their director; against me in this week's local newspapers and continually against Cllr Brian Hall.

"These are purely a smokescreen to cover for the inadequacies of their own policies.

"The fact is that this council has the lowest council tax in Wales and is one of the best performing local authorities in Wales. The opposition know this is the case which is why they want to blacken the name of the authority.

"Now, unable to make any of these allegations stick, they have wheeled out the big guns.

"It is disappointing that South Pembrokeshire and Carmarthen West MP, Nick Ainger has made no attempt to contact the county council to find out if there is any truth in the allegations made in the Dragon's Eye programme, yet he is prepared to go on television to comment on them.

"If anyone is guilty of oppressive and inappropriate behaviour, it is the BBC. The manner in which they tried to interview Cllr Hall - by blocking the entrance of the drive in his home with vehicles - was reprehensible. "Perhaps the BBC should have introduced the programme with the words 'Party Political Broadcast."

Complaints made to Ombudsman

A FORMAL complaint has been made to the Ombudsman, alleging that Cllr Brian Hall warned a prospective councillor that if they got in as non-Independents, their communities would lose funding.

Another man, Pembroke Dock museum curator Ron Watts, said that Cllr Hall had tackled him about comments Mr Watts had made in the press, and warned him he could get the museum ejected from its present home at the Victorian Gun Tower.

Both allegations were made on last week's Dragon's Eye programme, and are now the substance of formal complaint.

Through his solicitors, however, Cllr Hall refuted the allegations and denied any behaviour which could be construed as bullying or intimidation.

South county MP Nick Ainger, who took part in the programme, said: "Any member of the public should be free to put themselves forward for election without fear their community could suffer as a result, and members of the county council and town councils should be free to ask relevant questions without community projects being threatened.

"These are very serious allegations made by people who as far as I can see have got no axe to grind and are not connected. It just surprises me that the council haven't taken these allegations seriously because they go right to the heart of local democracy"

Concerned about the allegations, Cllr Thomas Tudor has written to chief executive Bryn Parry Jones asking whether the cabinet and council officers give higher funding priority to wards represented by Independents.

Cllr Tudor says: "I am drawn to ask these questions not only because of the said TV programme, but also in view of the fact that all forms of highway-related issues have been put on standstill within my ward for the past three years, despite having agreement with residents and officers that certain schemes could go ahead, such as the proposals for Dew Street, which were agreed in January 2001.

"I was told at the time that it was all part of the review of traffic and parking management proposals for Haverfordwest, which would be put out for public consultation. That consultation has been continually delayed for the past two years, despite repeated calls from myself to your officers to inject the utmost urgency in its implementation.

"On March 25, that consultation was eventually launched at Haverfordwest Library, 11 weeks away from the county council elections, which of course leaves little time for any agreed work to take place within my ward."

Chief exec questioned

Opposition group leaders Joyce Watson, John Allen and Mike Williams have written to the chief exec asking him whether he feels the TV allegations warranted "an urgent recall of council to consider any action to institute an independent inquiry."

They also ask whether an investigation should be undertaken to see if a council member is in breach of the council's code of conduct and that of the Local Government Act.

The group leaders also ask whether Mr Parry-Jones feels the matter should be referred to the Minister of Local Government to see whether the Local Government Act has been breached.