Bedford Borough Council’s monitoring officer has found no failure by Mayor Tom Wootton to register or declare his interests relating to the East West Rail project, the council has confirmed. The decision follows an investigation conducted “in consultation with an independent person”, and the council says no further action will be taken.
Allegations and withdrawal
The original complaint to the council included allegations of corruption and unethical behaviour. According to the council’s account, those specific allegations were subsequently withdrawn by the complainant, leaving only procedural claims that the mayor had not correctly registered or declared disclosable pecuniary and local interests.
“After considering the complaint, the evidence provided and the borough council’s agreed complaints procedure, the monitoring officer, in consultation with an independent person, concluded he didn’t consider there’d been any failure around my registration, disclosure or declaration of interests on East West Rail,”
The mayor has said he has been formally notified that the complaint is closed and, because the allegations were made publicly, he has been permitted to publish the outcome — with the caveat that he must not disclose any personal data or information relating to a third party.
Attendance at council meeting and declared interests
Earlier this year, Mayor Wootton declared both a local interest and a disclosable pecuniary interest in the East West Rail project and did not attend an extraordinary council meeting on 27 May concerning the scheme. He later explained that he had been advised not to attend because the proposed route crossed land connected to his family and that he did not want his presence to become a distraction from the meeting’s focus on residents facing demolition and wider disruption.
- Complaint lodged alleging failure to register/declare interests and initially including corruption claims.
- Corruption allegations withdrawn by the complainant before procedural claims were assessed.
- Monitoring officer decision — no failure found; case closed after consultation with an independent person.
The outcome will be of interest to those following the local debate around East West Rail, a project that has prompted strong views about route selection, property impacts and council decision-making. While the monitoring officer’s determination clears the mayor of the specific procedural failures alleged in this complaint, it does not address wider policy disagreements or the broader public concerns that have surrounded the rail proposals.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Subject | Mayor Tom Wootton's registered interests relating to East West Rail |
| Complaint status | Closed — no failure found |
| Key action | Monitoring officer investigation, consulted independent person |
As this matter is closed administratively, any further political scrutiny is likely to play out through council meetings and public debate over the East West Rail proposals rather than through this particular complaints process. I will continue to monitor council updates and developments around the project and report significant changes.
