SENIOR SHDC COUNCILLOR APOLOGISES FOR MISTAKE AND YET ASKS THE COUNCIL TO FOOT THE BILL

Cllr John Birch, a Totnes district councillor, says

"Executive Committee member Cllr Hopwood voted to suspend the brown bin collection and not allow a one-off collection. A few days later she ignored council rules by organising a brown bin collection in her ward of Woolwell at a cost of £3150.

She hoped the Council would pay the bill so that she could get the credit in her ward for getting the brown bins emptied. At the same time the rest of South Hams had to do without a collection. The Council's solicitor was having none of this and Cllr Hopwood was forced to apologise for her breach of the Council's code of conduct.

Rather than face up to her wrong doing and pay the bill of £3150 Cllr Hopwood was hoping that her colleagues on the Executive would persuade the Council to settle the bill on her behalf.

This matter came before the Executive Committee last Thursday and Opposition Members along with a Conservative Member made it clear that any such payment would bring the Council into disrepute and that there was no obligation on the Council to make payment.

Cllr Hopwood's Executive colleagues decided to drop the idea of a payment and common sense prevailed. It is a pity Cllr Hopwood has now gone to the press and TV claiming she has been hard done by even though she broke council rules".