Glasgow Labour Council of shame chief under fire for perks as employees lose their jobs but he enjoys freebie concerts, football matches and dinners!

Dear All

Glasgow City Council is a Labour Council of shame, the latest scandal is a senior council official who has come under fire for accepting regular gifts and hospitality.

This is at a time when hundreds of employees within the department he heads up are being thrown on the scrap heap by way of being made redundant.

Robert Booth earns a good salary as the £130,000-a-year head of Glasgow City Council’s roads, parks and environmental health department.

However after work he dons his cape to be a ‘superhero’ enjoyed regular free concerts at the SECC and Hampden, trips to Ibrox and Murrayfield and dinner with a firm employed to undermine industrial action at the Council.

Hospitality registers show that Booth since 2008 has received free tickets to concerts by Michael Buble, Neil Diamond, Coldplay, comedian Al Murray, and the Mobo Awards, all but one provided by SECC chief executive John Sharkey.

Why does Gordon ‘free dinners’ Matheson allow staff to accept such hospitality?

‘Free dinners’ Matheson is a serial hospitality fiend himself!

The boy loves it.

In April 2008 the land and environmental services (LES) director was at Ibrox for the Uefa Cup quarter-final between Rangers and Sporting Lisbon.

What does this has to do with his job?

Absolutely nothing!

Then he took in the Scotland-Spain game at Hampden last November.

What does this has to do with his job?

Absolutely nothing!

Following on; Murrayfield for the Scotland-Wales clash in February 2009 and Scotland-England in March 2010.

What does this has to do with his job?

Absolutely nothing!

He then went as a guest of the Scottish Rugby Union at a Scotland-Fiji match in November 2009.

What does this has to do with his job?

Absolutely nothing!

However, what is more upsetting is that Robert Booth attended dinners hosted by firms that have successfully bid for council contracts and subcontracts.

This at the expense of the in house workers who will suffer!

Does this look like ‘we are all in this together’?

So, what is the Labour Council of shame saying?

Their spokesman said:

“There are a variety of reasons why it would be appropriate for a senior officer to accept hospitality. In every case, Mr Booth and Mr Gillespie acted appropriately and within the rules”.

He added:

“Robert Booth has done everything that could be asked of a senior official to make the council aware of these matters and to ensure no conflict of interest arises. The council is entirely comfortable with the situation.”

And that is the problem, this stinks to high heaven and it is time the practice was stopped.

Some people might opine this entertaining is nothing more than corruption of public officials to seek a pecuniary advantage.

It seems that the Labour Party and Gordon ‘free dinners’ Matheson aren’t fit to run the Council.

Chris Stephens, LES Unison representative and SNP candidate for Glasgow Pollok, said:

“This shows a disconnect with the reality that low and middle income workers face.”

Glasgow City Council is a Labour Council of shame run for the benefit of the few.

And in case you don’t know who the ‘few’ are, they are the Labour Party members, their relatives, their friends, their associates and Labour donors.

This should drive home yet again why the people of Glasgow shouldn’t be voting Labour on May 5th and for the Council elections in 2012.

We really do need a change of administration.

And that can only come from party with integrity, the Scottish National Party.

Only the SNP can stamp this type of behaviour out.

Yours sincerely

George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University