We exclusively reported success in Andrew Pope's campaign to ensure that Southampton City Council conducted criminal records checks on councillors.
However, it was also confirmed during our questions to Council officers, that only those elected in May 2026 would be subject to DBS (Disclosures and Barring Service) checks.
We have confirmed with a spokesperson for the Council that those councillors already elected will not be DBS checked any time soon.
So TWO-THIRDS of councillors will STILL HAVE NO CHECKS.
What do you think of that?
AND now we have confirmed directly with that spokesperson that no councillors are checked to see if they have been banned as company directors.
Anti-corruption candidate for Redbridge ward Andrew Pope says:
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| Andrew Pope |
"I was pleased to see the partial u-turn on DBS checks, after years with councillors not being subject to criminal records checks.
But there are too many holes in checks of Southampton councillors.
It's worrying, because councillors deal with all sorts of people, if they are doing their job properly.
And they make decisions over hundreds of millions of pounds of public money.
Don't you think they should all - all 51 councillors - have DBS checks with regular updates?
Don't you think they should have checks to see if they are banned as company directors?
I will continue my anti-corruption campaigning.
If elected, I will have more powers to get answers and bring accountability to the party politicians and those in the parties and the Council who want to cover them up, instead of bringing them to justice."
