MINEHEAD Town Council’s external auditors are investigating claims by two of its members that there are “major irregularities” in the authority’s 2016-17 accounts.
At the council’s June meeting, opposition group members Cllrs Terry Venner and John Malin abstained or voted against a number of recommendations concerning the accounts, claiming that the council had repeatedly breached both its standing orders and financial regulations.
They also voted against the council’s annual governance statement, and afterwards Cllr Malin said: “For months we have questioned certain financial payments made by the council but, unfortunately, we have never had satisfactory answers to these issues.”
Minehead mayor Cllr Jean Parbrook said after the June meeting: “It is regrettable that Cllrs Malin and Venner chose to vote against the excellent financial report for their own reasons.
“Anything but a unanimous vote for the recommendations on financial matters could well trigger an investigation which could cost the council and the residents of Minehead a great deal of money.”
The two councillors had asked for an official investigation and Cllr Parbrook this week confirmed to the Free Press that the Government-appointed auditors, accountants Grant Thornton LLP, had contacted the authority.
“They sent us copies of Cllr Venner and Cllr Malin’s allegations and requested specific information which we have sent so we are just waiting to see what happens,” said Cllr Parbrook.
She said the council’s clerk, Sue Sanders, was always “very careful, meticulous” and their internal auditor also “extremely thorough”, so she would be “staggered” if anything was amiss.