Councillors, residents and union leaders have demanded clarity on the decision to suspend Thanet District Council’s section 151 officer.
Tim Willis, the director of finance and procurement, was suspended in mid-August and the council has remained tight-lipped as to the circumstances.
Willis has been with the authority since 2015 when he joined as director of corporate resources and was promoted in 2017.
Opposition councillors, union leaders and local campaigners all expressed surprise at the decision.
Last month, councillors backed advice from Willis to sell the freehold for the Dreamland heritage amusement park in Margate, which has been a source of financial stress to the council.
His assessment was that Dreamland had a “slim chance of survival as an amusement park alone” and that the hedge fund which now owns it had better access to the finance and skills needed to ensure its long-term survival.
The council has been battling significant challenges including budget pressures. It revealed in January it was facing a funding gap of £1.8m.
Its biggest cost is the Port of Ramsgate which is currently out of service without a ferry operator and it must remove £630,000 or more to help balance the books.
The council’s decision not to discuss the situation with councillors or the main union about the suspension has led to some consternation.
Opposition councillor Karen Constantine (Lab) said: “We should be able to scrutinise this. How much is this costing the council in officer time? There are issues about the management of risk. The budget is going down and demand is going up – of course we’re under pressure. It’s within my rights to ask questions.”
A group representing local residents has also expressed concern about transparency.
Steve Coombes of Ramsgate Action Group said: “It’s time for a wide-ranging, independent investigation.”
The main trade union at the council, the GMB, said it was concerned by the decision to suspend Willis and wanted clarity from the council.
A spokesperson told Room151 “We are keeping a very close eye on this process. We have written to the chief executive [to] ask what has happened. All we want are the answers that show us, in respect of policies and procedures, what they have done. They need to discuss this with the recognised trade union.”
A full council meeting is scheduled to take place next week.
The council told Room151: “We are unable to comment on individual complaints. All complaints are dealt with in accordance with our Standards Complaints procedure.”
