An external investigation into the Council's air quality monitoring procedures has found that serious errors were made as the result of deliberate and systematic manipulation of the data, which may have affected some planning decisions in the South of the Borough.
It has also been revealed that the Council failed to ensure that adequate processes, procedures and systems were in place to manage this data effectively.
Cheshire East Council monitors nitrogen dioxide levels at approximately 100 sites throughout the borough as part of its ongoing work to improve local air quality.
However, a report received at a Cabinet meeting on 12 July 2016 stated: "As part of the preparatory work for the 2015 annual report and return to Defra, a number of data inaccuracies have been identified that impact on the 2015 report and the 2014 report which has already been submitted."
Following the report, the council's internal audit team undertook a review and issued a number of recommendations which led to the commissioning of an external investigation.
This external investigation is now complete and the council is considering its response to the findings and recommendations.
The high level findings are:
1. Serious errors have been made in the council's air quality data for 2012, 2013 and 2014. It is clear that these errors are the result of deliberate and systematic manipulation of data from a number of diffusion tubes.
2. The council has been exposed to unacceptable risks to the security of its air quality data as a result of failings within the service to ensure that adequate processes, procedures and systems were in place to manage this data effectively.
3. These errors have caused a number of serious problems for the council. These are as follows:
· Incorrect data has been submitted to Defra in an annual statutory return, which will need to be corrected and published in the public domain.
· These errors and other methodological issues have resulted in a number of deficiencies in relation to Air Quality Management Areas (AQMAs) requiring adjustments to be made to the detail of the number of AQMAs.
· The errors may have affected the Detailed Assessments (DA) carried out to determine whether an AQMA should be declared.
· The errors have impacted on Air Quality Assessments undertaken as part of the process of considering planning applications.
4. The data sets that are aligned to the diffusion tubes that were and are now known to be altered are spread over a wide geographical area, which implies that the manipulation was not motivated by a wish to favour specific sites.
5) Phase 2 of the external investigation included a review of planning applications where publication of revised air quality data may have affected the planning decisions. The findings indicate that such planning applications are in the following towns: Nantwich, Congleton, Crewe, Holmes Chapel and Sandbach.
Sean Hannaby, Director of Planning and Sustainable Development, said: "On behalf of the council I would like to sincerely apologise in respect of these findings, we would like to assure everyone that we have done everything we can to rectify these failings. It is worth reiterating that in July 2016 the then Director of Public Health assured us that there are no immediate health protection measures needed as a result of these errors and I have been assured that this advice still stands.
"We appreciate that it has been a year now since we first reported these concerns, but it was important that we ensured a thorough review and investigation into this important matter.
"Significant work has been undertaken to ensure that there are now robust processes and procedures in place. The planning service is currently analysing the relevant planning applications to assess whether any additional mitigation measures are required. Our council website now contains the correct data and supporting information and our annual status report for both 2016 and 2017 containing the accurate data will be submitted to Defra within the next few weeks.
"Consideration is still being given as to the council's response to the investigation's findings in relation to any HR issues."
Labour Councillors on Cheshire East Borough Council are pressing for full disclosure of all the facts about this and calling for a proper debate and examination as soon as possible.
Sam Corcoran, Councillor for Sandbach Heath & East said, "Speculative developers have made millions out of planning applications around Sandbach. Given the conclusions in the press release that "the revised air quality data may have affected the planning decisions" in several towns and that "it is clear that these errors are the result of deliberate and systematic manipulation of data from a number of diffusion tubes", I presume that the matter has been referred to the police. I will be seeking confirmation from the Council on this issue."
Brian Roberts, Councillor for Crewe West said, "The deliberate withholding of this vital information from Councillors during the debate on the Cheshire East Local Plan is yet another example of the cavalier and partisan attitude of this Tory administration towards the wellbeing of residents and communities in our Borough."
Comments
Here's what readers have had to say so far. Why not add your thoughts below.
How much is this likely to cost the CEC C Tax payer?
As to the cost of an investigation and the cost of rectifying the errors, I suspect that we will never know because like so many things it will be glossed over.
Faked and/or non existent traffic "surveys", questionable noise monitoring "results", the corruption of the Local Plan's make-believe horror story of population growth & homes required, including selective ignoring of brownfield sites, not to mention its "money saving" stratagem via arms-length organisations (which cost the tax payers big, big money). And more.
And now the latest, deliberate and systematic manipulation of air pollution data.
Where will it end?
Cheshire East Council, its leadership & chief officers, is quite rightly one of Private Eye's Rotten Boroughs star turns - what would the satirical journal do without our council?
It is quite clear there is a corrosive core of questionable departmental leadership at Westfield and it is for the leadership to root these people out and show them the street. As Jackie Pass quite rightly states, we want names and to know they have gone through the door post-haste.
It still doesn't mean that the local plan from the airport link road down to Alderley Edge adjacient to the A34 doesn't need revision.
Traffic movements on top of GMC housing numbers could result in excess pollution.
The sooner the council publish figures, then the more credibility their plans will have. Until that point we can't trust them.
MUST be a coincidence.
Traffic on the A34 around Handforth/Wilmslow will increase by 50% - why are't they doing air pollution measurements in these areas, as Terry Roeves says above? Would they give inconvenient? answers?
Everything this lot does has a nasty smell about it. Corrupting air pollution data, similar with road traffic data, ignoring population growth projections, both designed to meet their desired results, over paying dodgy & not up to the job officers, and there are probably still more beavering away to distort other elements of council business, Corefit, and we must not forget the genesis, Lyme Green fiasco with some of the players still amongst us.
The day of retribution is getting closer.
To paraphrase a Don Trump election cry, "Clear the Westfield swamp!"
All planning apps data must be reviewed by an outside & totally independent review body and all planning must be put on hold/stop until the enquiry has reported openly to the public - no redacted reports this time, we need to know who the guilty persons are and whose orders they were following.
Cllr Roberts is absolutely correct in condemning the Leadership & senior officers for not placing this information before the Council (& public) well before last Thursday's vote on the Local Plan. Their joint cover up was a deliberate and possibly illegal act of gross deception.
Hannaby goes on to "reassure" us that the council has a "robust process & procedure in place" - I do believe we have had these "robust" assurances many times before and they have all been worthless & meaningless.
"Clear the Cheshire East swamp!"