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Professor Sarah Franklin
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The ‘bullying’ tactics of an ‘inept and farcical’ planning committee
Professor fires off letter to borough solicitor with challenge to investigate chairman’s conduct
A WORLD expert in biomedicine at the London School of Economics has called on the borough’s legal chief to investigate the “bullying and intimidating” tactics of a planning committee chairman.
Professor Sarah Franklin has complained by letter to borough solicitor Louise Round about the conduct of Lib Dem councillor George Allan during a meeting held to discuss a development in Finsbury.
Ms Franklin, a professor of Social Studies of Biomedicine, claimed the meeting was “inept and farcical” and objected to Cllr Allan’s use of sarcasm in remarks to fellow panel members.
But speaking to the Tribune yesterday (Thursday), Cllr Allan said: “Ms Franklin is entitled to her views on how I chaired the meeting, but I reject her suggestion that I was in any way biased or treated the public or members badly. I felt I had to get two members of the committee to clarify the policy basis of their views, so we could stay within the legal rules.
“I did not interrupt members of the public, but I did keep them to the three minutes they were given, so that as wide a range of views can be heard as possible.”
Prof Franklin attended the planning meeting held last week to object to plans to build a complex of 274 flats, including a 10-storey tower block, and offices in Central Street and Seward Street, Finsbury.
But describing the way Cllr Allan’s chaired the meeting, Professor Franklin writes in her letter to Ms Round: “In contrast to the seriousness of a large and precedent-setting development of exceptional scale and density deserves, the meeting would not inaccurately be described as inept and farcical.”
Listing a number of complaints against the councillor, on behalf of a residents’ committee, she accused him of using sarcasm and bullying panel members, repeatedly interrupting and intimidating members of the public, and rephrasing panel members questions and concerns to make them appear “nonsensical and absurd”.
Prof Franklin also asked Ms Round: “To the extent you might be able to investigate this matter further, and intervene in the Chairmanship of this Committee if you find further grounds for doing so, we believe you will be providing an important corrective to a situation we experienced as highly inappropriate and unacceptable.”
Last week the Tribune told how Cllr Allan had asked fellow panel member Labour councillor Martin Klute to step down during the hearing of the application but he had refused.
Speaking after the meeting, resident Leo Chapman, of Dufferin Street, Finsbury, who was at the meeting, said afterwards: “One had to wonder if there was some hidden agenda, entirely lawful no doubt, paralleling the surface discussion. This was because of the way Councillor George Allan gnawed away with seemingly over-lengthy questioning of his fellow Lib-Dem councillor, Jyoti Vaja, and Labour’s Martin Klute. Planning councillors must act independently in a judicial capacity, hence the two having non-party similar views.” |
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