Council leader cleared of code of conduct breach

The leader of Warwickshire County Council, George Finch, has been cleared of a code of conduct breach relating to a child rape case involving an asylum seeker.

An independent investigation found that comments publicised on his social media regarding the case "could have jeopardised" the trial of Ahmad Mulakhil, who kidnapped and raped a 12-year-old girl.

Finch received nine complaints regarding his post on X, calling out the Home Office, Warwickshire Police and County council chief executive Monica Fogarty.

Finch challenged the findings of the investigation and a conduct hearing cleared him of any wrongdoing, according to a report published on Wednesday.

Finch was accused of breaching the council's code of conduct, sparking an independent investigation by solicitor Claire Ward.

He was found to have breached confidentiality by publishing details that he had been privy to as leader of the authority.

At the time, Finch had argued the information had already been inferred by local and national media, that highlighting it was a matter of public interest and relied on his right to free speech under Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

The council's hearing sub-committee agreed.

In a report published on the decision, the sub-committee said it concluded that the information published was "no longer confidential at the time he published it because it had lost the quality of confidence by virtue".

Finch said he welcomed the decision.

In a statement, he said: "I have always maintained that my comments were made in the public interest and were part of legitimate debate on an extremely serious issue.

"I will never be frightened into silence when I believe there are serious questions that need to be asked on behalf of the public.

"But there must be a clear distinction between disagreement and misconduct. The standards process should not be weaponised simply because someone dislikes a political argument or point of view.

"Now that the hearing has reached its conclusion, it is time to draw a line under this matter."

Follow BBC Coventry & Warwickshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.