Falkirk councillor suspended after leaking confidential information

Councillor Brian McCabe, who represents Denny and Banknock, was found by the Standards Commission to have breached the Councillors’ Code of Conduct after a hearing held yesterday (Wednesday).

He had been reported over a Facebook post in June 2023, where he released information from a private council report into work to award a contract to build the Denny Eastern Access Road.

The report was specifically marked as “not for publication” and printed on pink paper. Mr McCabe accepted this meant the information it contained was confidential.

The panel accepted that some of the information from the report – including the overall budget and when it was expected the project would commence – was already in the public domain as it had been disclosed by the council and published in a local news article on June 13, 2023.

The panel found, nevertheless, that information Cllr McCabe shared from the report – including the number of bids received for the work; the percentage comparisons between the costs of the bids; and the council’s estimate and information about potential over-cost related directly to the tender process, which was ongoing – was information that was not already in the public domain.

The panel also agreed that the information was confidential and should have been treated as such, given it concerned an ongoing tendering process and was a commercially sensitive matter.

Mr McCabe had advised the Ethical Standards Commissioner’s Office, during its investigation into his conduct, that he had disclosed the information to rebut the “positive spin” on the project he considered the council had given via its press release.

The panel was satisfied, therefore, that Mr McCabe had disclosed the information, at least in part, for this purpose of discrediting the council and found that, in doing so, he had breached the confidentiality requirements of the Code.

Ashleigh Dunn, Standards Commission member and chair of the Hearing Panel, said: “The requirement for councillors to refrain from disclosing confidential information is a key provision in the Councillors’ Code of Conduct.

“A failure to adhere to these requirements can damage the reputation of a Council and adversely affect its ability to make decisions and function effectively.”

The hearing was held online although a livestream for members of the public was not available due to “technical difficulties”.

The Panel noted that Mr McCabe had removed the post immediately, following a meeting with the Council’s monitoring officer, that he accepted he had breached the Code, and that he had given an assurance he would not disclose confidential information in the future.

It was also noted that Mr McCabe had co-operated fully with the investigative and hearing processes.

The Panel acknowledged there was no evidence that the incident had been anything other than a one-off event or of any impact in terms of the project.

But members of the panel found, nevertheless, that Mr McCabe had disclosed the information, at least in part, to discredit the council.

They agreed that it was legitimate for the council to have decided that information on the tender process was to be kept confidential at the time, in order to ensure the process was conducted properly, fairly and to minimise risks associated with the management of the costs and delivery of the project.

The panel also noted the potential impact of the councillor’s actions on others, particularly any officers who were responsible for the process.

In the circumstances, members concluded that a suspension of two months was an appropriate sanction.

Ms Dunn said: “The panel was disappointed to note that Councillor McCabe had disclosed the information, despite the provisions in the Code which make it clear that information provided to councillors for use in that role must not be disclosed in such a way as to discredit the council.

“The Code states that the requirement to maintain confidentiality also applies in instances where a councillor holds the personal view that such information should be publicly available.”

While suspended, Mr McCabe cannot attend or take part in council meetings.

The Standards Commission oversees ethical standards in public life and has the power to censure, suspend or disqualify councillors who have breached the rules.

A full written decision will be published on the commission’s website within seven working days and Mr McCabe’s suspension will start from this date.