What can be done to stop Councillors giving preferential treatment to family and friends?

Question

The annual Bank Holiday Fun Day is taking place next month.  I have just discovered that the Chairman of the events committee is allowing his brother-in-law to run a beer tent and a friend to run the barbecue.  His wife is running the tea tent as she has her own catering company and we have been told she not only has all the equipment but her cakes are very good (which I don't doubt).  We did not have a beer tent last year and the Scouts have always run the barbecue but they aren't doing it this year because of the Chairman's friend.  Many of the Councillors are unhappy with this as the event has always been run by the Parish Council for the benefit of the village organisations.  The Mothers Union have alway done the teas very successfully.  The whole event seems much more commercial this year with businesses from outside the village getting involved.  Furthermore the cost to the Council will be approximately £5,000 which is a large chunk of our money with no return.  There has been no involvement of the Events Committee this year although the Full Council agreed the budget which lacked detail.  Is this a legal Parish Council Event?  Can anything be done to stop the Chairman's family and friends from benefitting financially from an event which has always been for village organisations?

Answer 1

It is dangerous for an outsider to judge.  If a councillor (or their family or associates) has a pecuniary interest in a council decision, then the councillor in question cannot participate in the decision.  The new enforcement regime is untested, but serious breaches are now a matter for the criminal law.  That means the stakes are high and one must be cautious about making allegations.  But if you are concerned, then a reasonable step would be to raise the matter with the senior legal officer of the higher level local authority - usually a district council.