An outspoken critic of Aberdeen’s controversial bus gates left lawyers livid as he swiped secret legal advice from the council HQ.
Local authority leaders voted to make a series of unpopular city centre traffic bans permanent at a meeting on Friday.
But the decision came amid some stormy scenes, and following months of intense debate.
It was only after a furious challenge that Town House lawyers allowed councillors to see the legal advice they received – which was used to justify keeping the bus gates.
Moments before the latest crunch talks got under way, elected members were finally allowed a glimpse of the top-secret documents.
However, this was only on the condition that they were immediately handed back.
When the time came to collect the papers, officials noted that one copy of the Aberdeen bus gates legal advice was missing…
Mystery over missing paper does not last long
During those contentious talks, the leader of the Labour opposition group grilled council solicitors on the advice they received.
The issue revolved around the threat that the Scottish Government could claw back millions granted for road improvements on South College Street if the bus gates are axed.
It’s a notion Labour’s M Tauqeer Malik poured scorn on.
At one point, he even asked whether councillors could vote to sue Aberdeen City Council should it make the measures permanent.
Having been prodded a few times, top council solicitor Alan Thomson bristled: “Are you asking me if councillors can take judicial review against the council?
“No… Because you would be taking judicial review against yourself, and that’s a principle of law.”
Mr Malik then asked Mr Thomson to read out a section of the report to him, which referred to when the council received crucial legal advice.
At this, the lawyer snapped: “Mr Malik, are you wanting me to read the report to you? Because I think that’s hugely disrespectful.”
The administration would later vote through the measures, directly going against the Common Sense Compromise proposals put forward by the P&J and local businesses – and backed by nearly 12,000 people.
Mr Malik later confirmed to The Press and Journal that he had taken the legal papers away from the building.
‘Aberdeen bus gates legal advice was eye-opening – I was right to take it’
Speaking after the meeting, Mr Malik told us why he decided to ignore the request to return the papers.
He told us: “I undertook to keep the legal advice because once it has been handed over by officers, it then belonged to me as an elected member.
“This is underpinned by common law rights available to all councillors.”
Mr Malik added: “The council should have provided councillors with legal opinion long before this. For some strange reason, they refused.
“One wondered why the council wanted to hide the legal advice but, upon receiving it, it became evident the legal advice was fraught with ifs, ands or maybes which in my opinion weakened the case for the return of the monies.”
Do you think Mr Malik was right to swipe the documents? Let us know in our comments section below
SNP questions Mr Malik’s motives for making off with document
Christian Allard, the SNP’s co-leader of Aberdeen City Council, said the legal advice was shared with elected members “in good faith” it would be returned.
Mr Allard said: “Of course Mr Mallik, an elected member of the council, should have access to legal advice on key issues…”
He continued: “There was a cross-party agreement in good faith that the legal advice, provided by council officials, would be available for councillors within a private forum and not removed from that private forum.
“The fact that Mr Mallik decided to keep the printed advice, remove it from the private forum and not return it to officials, begs the question – who might he want to share it with or for what purpose does he plan to use it after the fact?”
Read more:
- Compromise pleas thrown under the bus as Aberdeen traffic bans made PERMANENT – while ‘deluded’ leaders hail Lego dinosaur boost
- Could Aberdeen City Council REALLY be taken to court over bus gate ‘shambles’?
- ‘I can’t support this’: Former Aberdeen SNP leader Alex Nicoll breaks ranks by refusing to vote for bus gates
- Adelphi bus gate: How to avoid a fine as we reveal what difference Union Street change will REALLY make
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