JAOC Investigations | South Lanarkshire Exposure Dossier
The South Lanarkshire Cover-Up: Power, Secrecy & Slashed Services
Our landmark investigation into South Lanarkshire Council reveals a systemic governance failure. While essential frontline services—libraries, public toilets, parks, and maintenance—are systematically slashed at home, a tiny, entrenched group of long-serving councillors holds absolute power behind closed doors.
- The Financial Reality: Council tax is up 19%, debt has soared by £90.7m, and consultancy fees have spiked 123.5% to £7.6m, while rainy-day reserves have plummeted by £29.7m.
- The Hypocrisy: Councillors voted themselves a 52% pay rise, and an estimated £125,000+ in public money has been funneled into overseas donations through opaque, unvoted channels—while local communities foot the bill with service cuts.
- The Transparency Blackout: Major land sales, asset disposals (including suspicious Bellshill deals), and commercial transactions are aggressively hidden via ignored Freedom of Information requests.
- The Ultimate Safeguard Failure: The official Register of Interests is materially incomplete. Most
We have formally issued a strict 20-working-day statutory notice to Chief Executive Des Murray, alongside 7 sweeping FOI requests covering financial reserves, secret land sales, and missing declarations.
Download the full, continually updated dossier to view the complete data breakdowns, audit findings, and target accountability lists:
Truth cannot be hidden forever.
Dear Mr Murray,
I am writing to you as Chief Executive to raise serious concerns regarding the completeness, accessibility, and legal compliance of the Register of Interests and record-keeping practices of South Lanarkshire Council.
Our investigation has found that the publicly published Register is materially incomplete and does not meet the standards required by law. Specifically:
A. Only a fraction of councillors appear to have declared any financial, business, land, or property interests.
B. No historical records are available online, making it impossible to verify whether declarations were made prior to votes on land sales, contracts, or planning decisions.
C. No dates of declaration are shown, preventing the public from confirming timing.
D. Spouse, partner, and close family member interests are almost entirely absent, despite being a mandatory category.
E. Former councillors' records are unavailable, despite legal requirements to retain them.
F. The four most senior decision-makers (Council Leader, Deputy Leader/Finance Convener, Provost, and Planning Convener) show zero declared financial or business interests.
Potential Regulatory Breaches
A. The Councillors' Code of Conduct (Scotland) 2015 — Paragraph 9.1: "Each council must maintain a Register of Interests and make it available for public inspection at all reasonable times."
B.The Councillors' Code of Conduct (Scotland) 2015 — Paragraph 9.3: "The Register must contain all declarations — including business, land, property, employment, and family interests — and must be dated and kept up to date."
C.Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 — Section 17: Governs notices where information is not held, noting that public authorities cannot unlawfully withhold existing information.
D. Public Records (Scotland) Act 2011 & Associated Regulations: Mandates that public authorities maintain proper records management plans, ensuring governance records (such as declarations of interest) are retained for the statutory minimum period (typically six years post-office).
Where are the dated declarations? Where are the historical records? Where are the family interests?
Their absence appears to breach the spirit and letter of the above frameworks.
Formally Requested Information
A. Full Register (All Current Councillors): Complete declarations for every serving councillor across all mandatory categories: business interests, employment, land/property ownership, company directorships, shareholdings, spouse/partner employment, gifts, hospitality, and any contracts with the Council.
B. Length of Service: For every councillor serving since 1 January 2020, provide their full name, ward, date first elected, total years of continuous service, and date of departure (if applicable).
Document Storage & Retention Explanation:
A. Where are declarations of interest physically and digitally stored (current and historical)?
B. What database or system is used to store, date, and retrieve declarations?
C. Are original signed declarations retained, or only digital summaries?
D. Why are dates of declaration omitted from publication?
E. Why are historical records omitted from public view?
F. Who possesses permissions to amend or remove declarations from the live record?
G.Historical Records (Full Period): All declarations made by any councillor from 1 January 2020 to the present, showing exact dates of submission, Monitoring Officer sign-off dates, and any subsequent amendments.
H.Former Councillors: All declarations made by councillors who have left office since 1 January 2020, in line with statutory retention schedules.
I. Monitoring Officer Confirmation: Formal written confirmation addressing whether every councillor has been reminded of their annual duty to declare, whether all categories have been audited for completeness, and identifying any outstanding or non-compliant returns.
Why This Matters
The public is entitled to transparency regarding who holds power, how long they have held it, whether potential conflicts of interest exist, and whether official records are being rigorously preserved.
If records cannot be produced, dated, or accounted for, the Council must state clearly which statutory exemptions or regulations prevent disclosure, and under what authority records are otherwise missing or withheld.
We look forward to your full response within the statutory timescale but would suggest speed is of the essence due for reasons that will become clear shortly.
Yours sincerely
Andrew Sibley
JAOC Investigations
Forensic investigation. Legal accountability. No child ignored.