Harper review flawed, says Scrutiny

Thursday 10th November 2011, 2:13PM GMT.

 

 

FORMER deputy police chief Lenny Harper should have been allowed to defend himself during a review into the financial management of the historical abuse inquiry, a Scrutiny panel has concluded.

In the original report, carried out by accountants BDO Alto, Mr Harper was criticised for extravagant spending on trips to the UK. The report also criticised his boss, former police chief Graham Power, for not managing the budget properly.

The report examined areas including the police overtime bill for guarding Haute de la Garenne during the excavation of the site and the use of a specialist cadaver dog.

But a review by an Education and Home Affairs sub-Scrutiny panel has criticised how the BDO Alto review was set up. Although it does not criticise the way BDO Alto carried out the review, it condemns the lack of scope given to it by Home Affairs Minister Ian Le Marquand, who commissioned the review.

Harper review flawed, says Scrutiny