Councillors barred from HQ offices

Councillors barred from HQ offices

10 October 2012

DOWN councillors have been locked out of large parts of their new £11m headquarters.

Political noses are seriously out of joint after the local representatives discovered their special passes for the electronic doors throughout the building only work in a tiny part of the complex.

The councillors are only allowed into the various meeting rooms and to the four rooms set aside for political parties — all other areas are out of bounds.

Councillors are no longer allowed to walk into the various departments, such as economic development, tourism or environmental health if they want to raise an issue or seek information.

Instead they must ring up and make an appointment with an official who will then meet them in a room outside the department.

“It’s bloody ridiculous,” said one councillor. “I was given an access card but when I tried to go into a certain area it wouldn’t work. When I asked an official I was told I wasn’t allow in there.

“At the old council offices I regularly ped into various departments to sort out constituency problems or seek information. I was able to sort out several things in one visit. Now I have to make appointments with individual officials before I can get anything done.”

Another councillor described it as political correctness gone mad. “No-one seems to have been aware just how restrictive these curbs would be. It is seriously inconvenient.”

However, a member of council staff said the decision to lock out the councillors was a “breath of fresh air.”

“In the Strangford Road building they wandered in whenever suited them and we were expected to drop everything. One of the councillors is renowned for treating the staff as his personal staff, without even a please or a thank you.”

A council spokeswoman said the new complex has open plan offices which are not conducive to meetings or discussions.

“Should any member of staff or councillor wish to meet a colleague, they must then use

the relevant areas for this type of business,” she said. “Staff and councillors have access to all relevant areas and telecommunications for doing their business.