Police forces in Merseyside and Lancashire have been urged to 'speed up their investigations' that have engulfed Liverpool City Council.
The leaders of the Liberal Democrats in Liverpool and Preston, Cllrs Richard Kemp and John Potter, have written to the Chief Constables of Lancashire and Merseyside calling for action and answers regarding two major ongoing investigations.
Those two investigations are Operation Sheridan and Aloft - both have highly significant links to Liverpool Council.
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Operation Sheridan, led by Lancashire Police, is an investigation into alleged financial impropriety at the One Connect joint venture between BT and Lancashire County Council.
In May 2017 police raided the homes of former Liverpool IT partnership Liverpool Direct (LDL) boss David McElhinney, then Liverpool Council chief executive Ged Fitzgerald, then Lancashire Council leader Geoffrey Driver, and former Lancashire County Council chief executive and ex-Liverpool Council finance chief Philip Halsall.
The four men were arrested on suspicion of perverting the course of justice and witness intimidation.
No-one has been charged in connection with the investigation so far and all have denied wrongdoing.
The police investigation has been a complex and costly one - with the costs reportedly running to as much as £6 million pounds to date, according to the Lib Dem councillors.
The Lancashire force handed over its investigation dossier to the Crown Prosecution Service in August 2018, with no further updates on the case since that point.
While Operation Sheridan has some links to Liverpool, Operation Aloft is significantly focused on the city and its council.
Led by Merseyside Police, Aloft is an investigation into building and development contracts in the city and has led to a number of arrests of figures linked to Liverpool Council.
These figures include former Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson and his son David, who were arrested in December 2020 and the council's former Regeneration Director Nick Kavanagh who was detained a year before that.
All have denied wrongdoing and as with Sheridan, there have been no charges to this date.
In their joint letter to the two Chief Constables, Cllrs Kemp and Potter said: "We urgently need to know what went on within these councils and if the problems were confined to a number of people, whether those actions were caused by criminality and/or incompetence and whether the problems as perceived by the Police and CPS, are structurally contained within the relevant authority.
"We know that these cases are extremely complicated but time is now of the essence.
"This is costing taxpayers in Lancashire and Merseyside a large amount of money.
"We understand that the costs in Lancashire are about £6 million for Police and CPS costs but have no idea of Merseyside Police and CPS costs. We have asked for information about this.
"Lastly there is an old saying, ‘justice delayed is justice denied’. It is unfair to all concerned, including the people who are living under a cloud, for these matters to be left for so long."
The letter to the Chief Constables adds: "Both Lancashire and Liverpool Councils are suffering clear reputational damage at present.
"In Liverpool’s case the annual accounts of the authority have not been signed off since 2015 whilst the auditors review potential fallout from the problems within the Council.
"Our plea to you is very simple. Bring these matters to a head for the good of our councils, the good of those implicated and above all the good of the people that we represent."
Lancashire Police said it could not comment other than to say the force is awaiting any charging decisions from the Crown Prosecution Service.
Merseyside Police said Operation Aloft, which began in August 2019, is an 'extensive investigation into fraud, which includes bribery and corruption' that remains ongoing.
In total 12 people have been arrested during the investigation and those arrested have been released under investigation.
A spokesperson said: “This is a complex investigation, involving thousands of pieces of evidential material.
"We are very aware of our public accountability and have consulted with the Crown Prosecution Service regularly throughout the investigation and will continue to do so.
“We are carrying out the investigation as expeditiously as possible for everyone concerned, including the public of Merseyside. As this is an ongoing investigation it would inappropriate to comment further at this time.”
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