Tory candidate 'brought Vale of Glamorgan council into disrepute'

Councillor Leighton Rowlands was accused of improper conduct for opening a wine bar without planning permission

A candidate for the Welsh Conservatives in the upcoming Senedd election has been found to have brought his local authority into disrepute.

Vale of Glamorgan councillor, Leighton Rowlands, was accused of improper conduct for opening a Barry wine bar last year without planning permission.

Mr Rowlands is standing for election in Cardiff South and Penarth in May.

In a report seen by BBC Wales, the ombudsman said he had breached the local authority's code of conduct.

It added his behaviour suggested "a significant lack of judgement".

Neither Mr Rowlands nor Cardiff South and Penarth Conservative Association have responded to requests for comment.

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It is unclear if the association was aware of the investigation into Mr Rowlands when he was selected to stand.

The initial report recommended no further action be taken against Mr Rowlands.

However, BBC Wales understands an appeal against that decision has been made.

Due to the way the Public Service Ombudsman's procedures work, the finding is effectively quashed pending the appeal.

Mr Rowlands was a director of The Watering Hole café and wine bar at the time it opened in June 2019.

A complaint was filed to the ombudsman by Vale of Glamorgan council leader, Neil Moore, that Mr Rowlands had opened the premises, despite change of use planning permission not being in place.

Mr Rowlands was at that time, and continues to be, a member of the council's planning committee.

In its report, the ombudsman said: "Councillor Rowlands said he found planning matters complicated and difficult to understand.

"Councillor Rowlands said his understanding was that… (planning permission) was a grey area, and he had not grasped that… (not having it) would be a breach of planning control."

The report said the opening of The Watering Hole was "subject to objections from residents and negative publicity in the press".

Mr Rowlands is a member of Vale of Glamorgan council's planning committee

Mr Rowlands, who was mayor of Vale of Glamorgan council between 2018 and 2019, was also pictured wearing his mayoral chains on the website of the company which owned The Watering Hole.

In his defence, Mr Rowlands said his relationship with his business partner, Sam Lewis, had become strained, and that Mr Lewis had ignored his advice not to open the bar until planning permission had been obtained.

Mr Lewis has also not responded to BBC Wales' request for a response.

The report's findings said that: "Councillor Rowlands said with hindsight he should have left the business at that point, but he felt invested in both the business and his friendship with Mr Lewis."

Mr Rowlands told the ombudsman he attended the opening night on 14 June 2019 because Mr Lewis had invited charities and local community groups.

He said he spent most of the evening trying to control the behaviour of attendees, and was "horrified" when, following complaints from residents, the monitoring officer told him his conduct had brought the council into disrepute.

Mr Rowlands withdrew the existing planning application and ceased being a shareholder of SLR Hospitality, the company which owned The Watering Hole, in August 2019.

A subsequent planning request submitted by the company after Mr Rowlands' resignation was rejected.

The ombudsman said Mr Rowlands claimed to have lost "a lot of money" as a result of the venture.

Mr Rowlands said Mr Lewis had "taken advantage of his good intentions", and that the events had "a significant impact on him, his family and his relationships".

The report said he "bitterly regretted the events and was extremely sorry".

Delivering its verdict, the ombudsman said: "Councillor Rowlands has been affected deeply by the events and in light of this and Councillor Rowlands' remorse the ombudsman does not consider it likely that the council's standards committee would impose a significant sanction.

"The ombudsman does not therefore consider that it is in the public interest to take any further action."

The ombudsman has since confirmed that following a review request, it has reopened the case and is currently investigating.

Vale of Glamorgan council said it would not be appropriate to comment on a live and confidential investigation.