Statement by TUV leader Jim Allister:
“At a meeting of the Social Development committee on 21st November last year I exposed the fact that the draft report produced by Campbell-Tickell into alleged over payments to contractors by the Housing Executive was different from the one which was eventually published.
“I put it to Housing Executive Chairman Donald Hoodless that the draft report had named names and made serious allegations against individuals. Those individuals on the senior management team were then given the report to edit – something which I understand they spent five hours doing.
“I welcome the fact that a Section 44 Notice has now been issued requiring the Housing Executive to produce the draft report.
“It is very important that the committee and the public get the unedited version of the report so that we can see in an unvarnished form what Campbell Tickell found.”
Note to editors
Part of Mr Allister’s exchange with Donald Hoodless from the committee meeting is reproduced below. You can read the entire session with Mr Hoodless here http://www.niassembly.gov.uk/Assembly-Business/Official-Report/Committee-Minutes-of-Evidence/Session-2013-2014/November-2013/Review-of-Campbell-Tickell-Report/
Mr Allister: Mr Hoodless, how many drafts of this report were there?
Mr Hoodless: There was one draft that was sent for checking for accuracy.
Mr Allister: Who did the checking?
Mr Hoodless: It was passed to the senior management team.
Mr Allister: The very people who are heavily criticised in the report.
Mr Hoodless: Let us be quite clear that Campbell Tickell also named rather than blamed people in the draft report.
Mr Allister: The senior management team individuals who were named in the draft were then given the privilege of editing the report and took out the naming of individuals. Is that right?
Mr Hoodless: The view was taken that it was not sensible to name individuals.
Mr Allister: Is this right: they took out the names?
Mr Hoodless: No.
Mr Allister: Who took out the names?
Mr Hoodless: Campbell Tickell.
Mr Allister: Was Campbell Tickell at the editing meeting?
Mr Hoodless: No, it asked us, the Housing Executive, whether there were any issues of accuracy.
Mr Allister: Mr Hoodless, it sent you a draft report that named names and made serious allegations against individuals. Those individuals on the senior management team were then given the report to edit and to make representations about, and they spent five hours doing it. Is that not right?
Mr Hoodless: They spent a long time going through it, but they did not edit it. The editing was done by Campbell Tickell.
Mr Allister: A key feature of that editing was taking out names —
Mr Hoodless: It was not editing.
Mr Allister: — of individuals after that five-hour meeting, at which the senior management team was able to pore over the report. A product of that meeting was to take the names out. Technically, that may have been done by Campbell Tickell, but the instigation for that came from the people who had been named.
Mr Hoodless: No.
Mr Allister: You think not.
Mr Hoodless: Most of the people who were named were not senior directors.
Mr Allister: Were any content changes made?
Mr Hoodless: The only content changes were to some of the discussions with the contractors. We did not think — I did not think — that it was appropriate to include those, as it might compromise our discussions.
Mr Allister: Campbell Tickell had had no discussion with the contractors. That is one of the amazing features of this report, is it not?
Mr Hoodless: No. The terms of reference did not ask it to do that.
Mr Allister: Yes, and it did not.
Mr Hoodless: Yes, because it was not asked to.