THE former leader of Caerphilly council has been suspended for five months after an investigation found he breached the members’ code of conduct by not properly disclosing personal interests in relation to a major investment.

Caerphilly councillor Dave Poole resigned as leader in September 2019 and referred himself to the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales over the issue.

An investigation by the Ombudsman concluded earlier this year, but the outcome was not determined until yesterday (June 28), when the Adjudication Panel for Wales held a tribunal hearing.

The hearing determined that Cllr Poole did breach the code of conduct.

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The Adjudication Panel for Wales is an independent tribunal which determines alleged breaches by councillors against their authority’s code of conduct.

As leader of the council from May 2017, Cllr Poole was also a cabinet member of the Cardiff Capital Region City Deal, which in September 2017 agreed to buy the former LG Semiconductor site at Newport’s Imperial Park and lease it to the tech firm IQE.

Cllr Poole’s register of interests, submitted to Caerphilly council in June 2019, state he was a “shareholder of IQE”.

The reference was crossed out in September after he sold the shares.

Cllr Poole is reported to have said he bought the shares in the autumn of 2018 and was advised he did not need to declare an interest.

A Cardiff Capital Region (CCR) cabinet report last year said that Audit Wales concluded that a cabinet member did breach the members code of conduct by not disclosing personal interests.

“The correspondence from WAO (Audit Wales) received by the City Deal office highlighted that neither CCR officers, regional cabinet nor the accountable body’s monitoring officer were made aware of a cabinet member’s personal interests in relation to a City Deal investment, their conclusion was their non-disclosure breached the member code of conduct,” it said.

A detailed explanation on the decision made by the adjudication panel is expected in the next month or two.

On whether Cllr Poole could appeal the decision, the panel’s frequently asked questions page says: “In certain circumstances cases referred direct to the Adjudication Panel by the Ombudsman, the person who is the subject of the complaint may seek the permission of the High Court to appeal against a decision.

“There is no right of appeal against the decision of a tribunal formed to consider an appeal against the decision of a standards committee, but as a public body, the Adjudication Panel and its tribunals may be subject to judicial review where appropriate.”

A spokesman for Caerphilly council said, “Cllr Poole resigned as leader of the council and referred himself to the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales as soon as these concerns emerged back in September 2019.

"We note the findings of the Adjudication Panel for Wales and Cllr Poole’s period of suspension.

Cllr Poole has been contacted for comment.