Joe Anderson: Liverpool council must reconsider paying legal fees

Joe Anderson was arrested in December over claims of bribery and witness intimidation

Liverpool City Council has been ordered to reconsider covering the former mayor's legal fees after he brought a High Court challenge.

Joe Anderson was arrested in December over claims of bribery and witness intimidation, which he has denied.

Earlier this year, he brought action against the council for refusing to provide an indemnity to cover his legal costs of defending the allegations.

The council said it was disappointed with the ruling but accepted it.

Mr Anderson, who remains under police investigation, stood aside from the role of mayor in December and did not stand for re-election in May.

The High Court in Liverpool heard the council had refused to grant the agreement which would have covered his legal fees claiming it was not lawful to do so and that the allegations did not relate to duties he carried out in his role as mayor.

At a hearing in July, the court heard Mr Anderson was being investigated for alleged witness intimidation against the council's chief executive Tony Reeves, who was one of the people who took the decision not to grant him the indemnity.

The allegations also include that he helped to secure council contracts for a company belonging to his son, David Anderson, and received financial benefit when his son bought his house.

Joe Anderson stepped down from his role as Liverpool mayor following his arrest

In a judgment on Tuesday, Mrs Justice Yip said the council should reconsider Mr Anderson's request to compensate him as it had wrongly applied its policy.

"The council has proceeded on the basis of the position if the allegations are true. However, those allegations have not yet been tested by way of criminal proceedings," she said.

"It is plainly right that taking a bribe or engaging in witness intimidation could never fall within official functions. However, I consider that is to miss the point.

"The claimant's case is that he has not taken a bribe or done anything motivated by a desire to intimidate a witness.

"His position, as communicated in his response to the allegations, is essentially that the police have misconstrued his actions and the scope of his powers and have wrongly linked unrelated personal matters... to actions which were done in the course of his duties as mayor."

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However, Mrs Justice Yip said she was not able to conclude whether Mr Anderson was or was not entitled to the indemnity based on the material she had seen.

The judge quashed the council's refusal and said it should reconsider the former mayor's request.

A council spokesman said the authority respected the court's findings and would reconsider its decision.

"We are disappointed that the initial decision, which was taken in accordance with the advice of leading counsel has been quashed," he added.

"We were pleased to note that in her judgment Mrs Justice Yip made it clear that there was no evidence that council officers had acted disingenuously - and/or with any improper motives - in reaching their decision, which had been claimed by lawyers representing Mr Anderson."