Former deputy mayor defends her involvement in £600,000 council training programme

The former deputy mayor of Bristol has hit back at the city council after it published an auditors report into a business she helped set up that won contracts worth hundreds of thousands of pounds, and said it was 'unfair' that she was never asked for her perspective. Asher Craig said 'any suggestion' of 'improper conduct' by her were 'wholly unfounded', in a statement defending her role.

Asher Craig said there were 'questions about the impartiality of the process' in which a report was written for this Monday's Audit Committee meeting that revealed the council 'didn't follow its own procedures' when it came to commissioning a training programme from companies with links to the deputy mayor.

Bristol Live revealed last week that the council's own auditors flagged two 'improvements' to the way it hires companies to provide services to the council, after an investigation into the 'Stepping Up programme', which was a leadership training programme for council staff from a diverse background.

The programme was initially created with Ms Craig's help and support as an in-house council programme, but then, in 2018 those behind the course set up a company to run it, with the council paying for it. The report revealed that over the past six years, the council has paid more than £600,000 to three different companies, including one which has Ms Craig as a director and chair. The former deputy mayor, who stood down from the council in May, used a different name to register as a director of that company.

The report says that, while this is ‘not uncommon’ for councillors to use a different name as councillors as they do in business, it ‘can create the perception that arrangements are not open and transparent’.

In a statement to Bristol Live, Ms Craig defended the Stepping Up programme and her involvement in it, and said she had 'always adhered to clear ethical boundaries' when it came to her links to the money. "I appreciate being given an opportunity to respond to the findings of the recent audit report concerning the contractor engaged for a city leadership programme," she said.

"I would like to clarify my position regarding the implications drawn about my relationship with the contractor and the commissioning process.

"Stepping Up was designed as a response to the city’s paucity of diverse leadership within the public, private and voluntary sector in 2017. This leadership programme was the first “one city” approach taken by city leaders to address under-representation. Whilst I have known the contractor and supported their involvement in the design and subsequent delivery of the programme, it is crucial to emphasise that my actions have always adhered to clear ethical boundaries and professional standards. Any suggestion that my advocacy and role as a director of the CIC led to improper conduct is wholly unfounded.

"I would encourage a careful review of the facts surrounding the commissioning process, as my support for the contractor was based on their qualifications and potential to contribute positively to the city’s objectives," she said, adding that she is concerned at how the report by the council's auditors was compiled without her involvement.

Read more: Council 'didn't follow its own rules' over companies' £600,000 contracts

"I must express my concern that I was never asked for my perspective at any point by the writers of the report and nor was I given a draft before it was published. This lack of opportunity seems unfair and also raises questions about the impartiality of the process," she said.

In a public post on BlueSky, Cllr Cara Lavan (Green, St George Central) said there was 'significant public interest' in what happened. "There are so many questions to be asked about this," she said. "Greens asked for the meeting to be webcast as there is significant public interest in understanding whether this is incompetence, cronyism or corruption - but we were told no. I worry about the impact it is having on trust in local politicians."

The audit committee meeting takes place on Monday afternoon - a report on Bristol Live will follow.