There are lines in literature that causes you to raise an eyebrow. Just recently a puff piece was done in the Herald where Kevin McKenna was trying to raise someone up in the eyes of the public. He wrote without sarcasum, “There’s something about Mhairi Hunter.”
Personally, I would have gone with another more brutal punch line, ‘my day at the computer polishing a turd’. Yes, turd polishing in politics is not un-common, usually this is started off by the leadership in a party done for some people deemed to be ‘rising stars’. The only problem in turd polishing is usually the person selected isn’t a ‘star’, never has been and has no track record of achievement. Although there are many clear examples of turd polishing in the SNP, the most obvious is Humza Yousaf. He used to be referred to as ‘the chosen one’ in the SNP, but as we have seen by his record of failure in government and now as SNP leader, he has risen to the top or more aptly ‘the bowl’. Humza Yousaf like Mhairi Hunter was part of the Glasgow SNP Southside cabal which surrounded Nicola Sturgeon.
McKenna rightly points out, Hunter did have a stint as a long-serving local councilor and at the same time was a Cllr in the same area she worked for Nicola Sturgeon. Effectively getting paid twice for doing the same job, she was also Sturgeon’s eyes and ears on the SNP Council until the public wised up and gave her the shaft by voting for a Green Party candidate thus levering her out the door. In the SNP, Hunter acted as Nicola Sturgeon’s election agent, and in terms of doing quite well out of that positioning, she made a cushy living raking in two salaries from the public purse. Before the Glasgow bubble, wider Scotland doesn’t know ‘English’ Mhairi, much in the same way that no one really knew her mother, who was also Sturgeon’s election agent. In fact, most people I talked to in the Govan by-election 0f 2013, had never heard of her mother who was the SNP Councillor for the area. Previously myself as an SNP activist used to campaign in Govan, SNP Cllr Allison Hunter rarely came out to work in the area. I have of course written about how lazy Mhairi Hunter’s mother was and how she treated me, the woman was an arsehole. Like mother, like daughter. If anyone is going to say you’re speaking ill of the dead, I am and freely, because the truth can sometimes be brutal. And I previously wrote of how I was abused by Allison Hunter at an election count. My one real regret was remaining polite when I should have been equally abusive back.
I enjoy comedy, but where is the comedy in trying to take an idiot, and elevate her to a national profile and attempt make Hunter into a politician of significant standing. The experiment failed in middle class educated Humza Yousaf, he is nationally known as Humza Yousless, he is a joke figure. In put his piece together, Kevin McKenna decided it seems to go do a bit of back ground digging, stopping by the City Chambers, he found someone willing to describe Mhairi Hunter in thse terms, as a “stalwart” and “formidable” and “no-nonsense”. To cover all the bases, they also chimed in with hard working, committed and real. The marketing of the SNP superwoman really doesn’t hang well on ‘English’ Mhairi, yes; Mhairi apparently was born and raised in London, England. She is one of the many English people ‘earning a coin’ out of campaigning for the SNP. On twitter, Hunter is seen as an arch-defender of the party’s official line on everything, she is Sturgeon’s dug, and as noted by Kevin, there is a growing band of critics, both inside and out the SNP. You see the tenure of Nicola Sturgeon has come to a sudden grinding halt. In what must seem like sarcasm, McKenna notes that Hunter’s exchanges are done with a touch of class and no little elegance, personally, I thinking polishing the turd that hard will break the surface. The next bit may seem farfetched, well, it did to me when I read did. Someone else who apparently disagrees with Hunter “on just about everything” says that she would be an asset to the SNP at Holyrood.
I have to say….. oh please fuck off (and with utter distain).
At the 2021 Council elections, she lost her Southside Central seat, this was a great comic moment after she was squeezed out by a combination of issues, an SNP backlash among the people of Govanhill and beyond, aided by Green and Alba performing better than expected.
Hunter in her usual ungracious way said;
“Well I didn't expect today to go like this. A combination of Green and Alba votes leaves me no longer a councillor. Pretty ironic really. Still, more time to campaign for independence.”
Beaten by a guy in a dress who calls himself Elaine Gallagher, he identifies as a she and curiously also as someone who is behind in paying their council tax.
At this point, feel no sympathy for Sturgeon’s dug, this is as they say a ‘laughing matter’.
Before, I can continue, a thought popped up in my head, as it did with some other people, Mhairi Hunter, firstly bizarre, and secondly whose seat? Dornan’s in Cathcart? Sturgeon’s in Glasgow Central? Or Humza’s in Pollok? Given Humza Yousaf bailed on Glasgow for Dundee, where would there be a seat for her? It is highly likely that even if there is Humza flight to a new seat in Dundee or even the Dundee list, would Hunter be welcomed in Pollok? Would she get the votes, if you discount Pollok, the obvious two seats in Glasgow are Sturgeon’s and Dornan’s. My main point here is, does this signal the SNP is preparing for Sturgeon leaving either voluntary or involuntary? After all, with £600,000 of indyref money missing, could there a criminal trial, could previously arrested Nicola Sturgeon be charged? Of course, the usual, everyone accused in the current police operation Branchform is innocent in the eyes of the law. If Sturgeon is still in place as an MSP come 2026 for Holyrood, would she stand again? Would she want to keep her ‘I am innocent’ campaign going with a MSP seat to use as her pulpit?
So, what could we expect from Mhairi Hunter, well let’s hear it from the horse’s mouth.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/QNhEz3WIXGs
The
SNP inaction in Govanhill allowed the place to be turned into a cesspit, a
modern day third world slum, a ghetto right in the heart of Glasgow. There are
too many stories from Govanhill’s decline to mention, murder, robbery, slum
landlords, flytipping and child prostitution, it’s all there for a quick google
search. The interesting part is the laid back attitude of Nicola Sturgeon who
came to visit the place doing a series of staged show face events, normally not
only to the general public in the area. There for anything that made her look
good but never there to discuss the real issues with the real people. Another
treat which you could see from Hunter, if anyone would vote her in is a crusade
from her as a staunch defender of transgender rights. Bad housing, bad roads,
bad healthcare, bad council services et al, but if any guy in a dress is
unhappy, Mhairi Hunter will be straight to the barricades. Mhair Hunter along
with Nicola Sturgeon represents what is rotten in the body politic in Scotland;
both of these people are like a stinking sewer in high summer, spreading a bad
smell beyond their immediate area. An example is Hunter backing the official
Scottish government position on permitting self-ID. Self id is a pervert
charter, this allows rapists to access women’s prison complete with their ‘lady
dick’. A huge stink caused Nicola Sturgeon to lose public support, although she
probably didn’t care; that and police appearing at her house showed that her
time was up.
What is interesting to me; is why the press seems to think that Mhairi Hunter has a future outside the Sturgeon bubble. Once Sturgeon is gone, the SNP really doesn’t have much use for Hunter. Touted as a “key ally” of Nicola Sturgeon is being to sound something which is tainted now, other key allies of Nicola Sturgeon will be familiar to you too such as Derek Mackay and SNP MP Patrick Grady, both homosexuals and both with an interest in young teenage boys. Sturgeon’s certainly has strange friends.
In talking about her future she said:
“I have no fixed plans for the immediate future. I had care responsibilities for my dad for 10 years and then when my sister became very ill. So, this is the first time I’ve had some time to think. I’d certainly stand again for the Council and I’d certainly consider standing for a Holyrood seat. Right now though, our priority is on the next Westminster election. But I’m certainly thinking about Holyrood.”
The only way Hunter gets to Holyrood is possibly the Glasgow list, in a first past the post seat, this oddity when seen by the public spouting her trans rights crap is a vote loser. She isn’t a heavyweight political figure, she is the exact opposite. She tied herself to Sturgeon’s apron strings, now that attachment seems like a problem. Kevin McKenna makes much of Hunter self publicizing herself on doorsteps as if this translates into concern and action, I refer you to the video above, Mhairi Hunter, the great escape for Govanhill. If you see her at your door, it’s to get your vote and your personal information, and all of that is for the SNP to use to keep people like Hunter on the gravy train. Hunter done quite well out of being Sturgeon’s enforcer, and with no UN, WHO or EU for Sturgeon, the prospect for Hunter at Holyrood to me borders on zero! If Sturgeon is still an MSP, Hunter isn’t going to even get the vacant seat by Dornan; or even John Mason’s old seat across the river.
Some turds aren’t meant to float or be polished; Mhairi Hunter proves this in spades.
They seem to attract folk called 'Mhairi' don't they.
ReplyDeleteI was brought-up in a tenement on Holmlea Road. The MP was Teddy Taylor who was a Tory and constituency matters were taken seriously and got done. Now, we have a Scottish Government and James Dornan has been in charge for years and nothing gets done. If it's got a political edge to it or if it has a sectarian edge to it, it gets done. Otherwise, nothing gets done and so the place is undergoing managed, year on year, decline. So, the point is, it's the quality of politicians that is letting the public down. They serve us, remember?
Most people need to learn, the SNP political class serve only themselves
DeleteNorman has been reporting crime stories for about 40-years. In the bad old days, he used to report on the crimes of Arthur Thomson, Paul Ferris and all the rest of them. No crimes are proven to have been carried-out yet, and none are alleged to have been carried-out, but he is now reporting on the Scottish Government and one of the country's biggest law-firms. Not good, is it? Is Mhairi Hunter going to sort all of this out for us? So, that the arseholes who make laws know that they too have to abide by them?
ReplyDeleteDear Ms Baillie,
ReplyDeleteI received a call from Universal Credit earlier and I am expecting another call from Police Scotland in relation to this case. Let me set-out the way it stands at the moment:
1. The safety of the land and the school building is now being dealt with entirely by Police Scotland and if they contact me again requesting another meeting or additional information, then I will comply and I have no problem with that. Otherwise, I plan to leave this investigation to them and to all of the other parties copied into this Email.
2. I explained to Universal Credit that I will accept a job either in this country or overseas but, because I have been blacklisted, that job will have to provided for me by the Scottish Government. I explained also that I required a vindication and all of my lost earnings to be repaid to me by the Scottish Government. I explained that my wife is currently working from 7.00am until 11.00pm because of this needless situation; that is unacceptable and so I am asking you to prioritize a solution for me, please. My long experience of dealing with this case has shown that Mr McAteer has the necessary gumption to find an acceptable solution?
I hope that this has been a lesson to all of you that when a whistle-blower steps forward in future, stop and investigate what he or she is saying. In my experience, that is the way engineering works in just about every other country in the world.
I have been dealing with all at Holyrood for seven and a half years. You know that. I have been on their case weekly for that time and have never let-up. It's the 'baby-box' government and nothing ever happens there. Fortunately, I am in touch with UK bodies and one of them told me to take this to Police Scotland which I did last week. The other told me that they had never heard anything like this case in the history of their organization. That shows you how bad it is here. If it wasn't for the UK bodies, this would be covered-up by all at Holyrood.
ReplyDeleteI copied Sunday's letter to Liam Kerr and Alex Cole-Hamilton. Both have an interest in RAAC schools and why they are not being properly investigated in Scotland and why the ministers are hiding. So, this another, even better, example of that. Liam Kerr is an MSP for the North East and so he will have an interest in this school.
ReplyDeleteDear Mr Kerr and Mr Cole Hamilton,
ReplyDeleteOn the subject of dangerous schools and nothing being done to rectify them, I sent this at the weekend to Jackie Baillie MSP.
Believe it or not, I have send her approximately 1500No Emails on this subject over the past seven and a half years. Nothing has been done.
Finally, on Sunday, I reported it to the Police and they are taking it seriously.
I reported to the Police that I have been in these situations before worldwide, they are not that unusual and they were always dealt with professionally by the Government concerned. Not so in Scotland.
Dear Mr Kerr and Mr Cole-Hamilton,
ReplyDeleteI will copy through to you the information that was discussed at Sunday's meeting. There are 3No Emails in total. You will notice that I have not received anything from the present Education Minister and she appears to have blanked this subject entirely.
I understand that the initial decision was made by Aberdeen City Council, just proceed and ignore the whistle-blower. The Labour Party's Jenny Laing was in charge of the Council back then and that has lessened Jackie Baillie's enthusiasm to fight the Council on my behalf. You can perhaps see that in the letters "Jackie Baillie to Jenny Laing" and "Jenny Laing to Jackie Baillie" and the numerous letters from Ministers.
The responsibility for investigating this of course lies with Minsters, not with members of the public. Perhaps they ought to be reminded of that?
I am a whistle-blower and so my involvement should have been over within 1-8 weeks. Instead of that, I am still waiting 9-years later. A disaster for myself obviously, but also a disaster for all at Holyrood, Aberdeen City Council and our civil-service.
Police Scotland will investigate the criminal aspect of what has gone-on, but there remains the very real danger that a structural deformation or collapse will occur and I understand that Buro Happold are being consulted just now to determine whether I am right, or not. That is I think something that should be taken-up at Holyrood?
Dear Mr Kerr and Mr Cole-Hamilton,
ReplyDeleteThe trailing Email may be useful just now. It was from Bob Matheson of "Protect" who is probably the UK's expert on whistle-blowing. We are in a position now whereby the authorized engineers, Hugh Mallett and Ian Stewart of Buro Happold, have been asked by myself, for their opinion on the safety of Brimmond School.
I asked them on 7/8/23 (you already have the Email) and so, as I said earlier, they should have returned with a response by now?
Incidentally, Jackie Baillie returned to shortly after I asked Hugh Mallett and Ian Stewart, as follows:
"For the record I am not qualified to adjudicate on the veracity of your claims in relation to the school as I am not an engineer.
You will be aware, but for the benefit of Mr Stewart, your concerns about Brimmond School have been raised on many occasions before with Aberdeen City Council and the Scottish Government."
Police Scotland are currently investigating if Brimmond School has been "recklessly certified" by the Scottish Government and Aberdeen City Council.
Ms Baillie clearly doesn't want Hugh Mallett and Ian Stewart to answer and so this case goes on and on without ever reaching an outcome. That goes back to what I was saying earlier about possible vested interests. Contractually, Mr Mallett and Mr Stewart must answer and obviously, from a public safety standpoint, my contention is that all at Holyrood should demand they answer and do so very, very quickly.
I have never looked at this case from a party-political angle, but is it time for the other political parties to take a look at this? 9-years? We seem to be wading through treacle with the Labour Party and the SNP, don't we?
From: Bob Matheson, Head of Advocacy and Advice, Protect
Date: 30/11/22
"The issue, as I understand it, is that there is a prima facie case of significant risk to the public, and those in charge appear to be relying only on visual reports as a rebuttal - however visual reports have been previously established as inappropriate and inadequate in these circumstances.
The key is getting someone with responsibility to answer to this point; all the better if they are qualified to give their professional view on the safety (or lack thereof) of the building as well."
Dear Ms Baillie,
ReplyDeleteSunday's meeting with Police Scotland was successful and that it is the first time that I have attended any meeting on this subject where I felt that I had not been ambushed by Scottish Government officials. Neither Officer was an engineer, but both understood my concerns, took them seriously and accepted them as real concerns.
I have alleged that the school building and the land surrounding it have been "Recklessly Certified" as safe, by both the Scottish Government and Aberdeen City Council. That investigation, which is potentially a criminal investigation, will be by Police Scotland and so I have handed over to them and I am relieved about that. I have offered them assistance but they are the experts, they have the necessary powers and so we can leave it to them.
As you know, I have never mentioned party-politics in all the time I have been pursuing this case. However, I have observed that both the Labour Party and the SNP have hardly moved this process forward in more than 7-years and that is disappointing. I therefore contacted Liam Kerr MSP and Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP for the first time earlier today, in order to provide some political balance, and I provided them with the key information that I sent to Police Scotland on 2/9/23.
I explained to them that we are waiting for the trailing Email which I sent to Buro Happold's Ian Stewart on 7/8/23, to be answered. The Police investigation will then continue for as long as they deem it necessary, but we will know if the school and the land are safe or not and if they need to be fixed. I presume that information is absolutely crucial just now and should precede the investigation into "Reckless Certification". Would you all agree with that?
I stated to both Mr Kerr and Mr Cole-Hamilton that Mr Stewart's reply should now be available to all of the parties that are involved. It was requested 4-weeks ago and the usual timescale for this type of response is 2-weeks and so it should have been delivered to Aberdeen City Council by now.
That leaves my situation to be sorted-out. As you are aware, I have been unemployed for the best part of 9-years due to the needless prolongation, by Scottish Government ministers, of this case. If Mr Stewart's reply establishes that I have been correct since September 2014 and that the land and the building are now indeed susceptible to deformation and collapse due to winter-time water inundation, then I will expect all of my losses to be reimbursed by the Scottish Government.
I wish to have a meeting this week with Mr McAteer so that my outcome can be agreed and so please organize that for me. So far, I have conducted this investigation single-handedly with little or no assistance from any of you, with the exception of "Protect" of course, and that is pretty shameful. My closing meeting with Mr McAteer can only be set-up by yourself and so please do it now, so that I am not kept waiting any longer.
I can now be released and Police Scotland will conduct the investigation from here.
To: Ian Stewart, Director, Buro Happold
ReplyDeleteDate: 7/8/23
Dear Mr Stewart,
I understand that your are Buro Happold's Director for their Edinburgh Office and are therefore authorized to provide guidance to others on the "as-built" engineering design at Brimmond School, which includes the 5m deep trench along the west boundary of the site.
Let me explain my understanding of the design requirements of this site to everyone:
Your predecessor, Mike Barrett, explained to me that there were two possible foundation options for developing the site. The first option was to pile, the second option was to use shallow foundations.
The soils were considered as marginal and contained running sand, high water table, upwelling water, artesian water, collapsing soil with a moisture content of over 30%, light moisture sensitive sandy clays and so-on. Piling sounded the better option but Mike Barrett sounded a warning that piling may make the artesian routes "discontinuous" and that was something that had to be avoided at all costs.
We therefore agreed upon draining the site and installing shallow foundations, but he warned: "Consider the ground as a "spring" and do not dig deeply into it or you will lose pore pressure, you will flood the site, the land will sink and that is irrecoverable". That was clear and everyone from myself to the general foreman and the contractor understood it.
That strategy was in compliance with the Soil Investigation Report (attached).
Digging the 5m deep trench was a simple construction mistake which happened while I was on holiday. The trench was about 1m wide by 25m long and so it cut through probably all of the artesian layers and it was a really significant deviation from Buro Happold's design. When I returned from holiday, areas of the land were "boiling", downstream of the trench, such was the force of the upwelling water and so my opinion was that we had to fix this before we continued. The contractor didn't agree; he terminated myself and the general foreman and simply continued.
So, the problem was never fixed.
Hence, what is happening now was always predicted to happen and if boiling occurs in August, then it will be a lot worse during the winter months and that is what everyone has been finding. Frankly, I'm surprised the building is still standing, undamaged by subsidence, but that cannot go-on year after year and sooner or later a deformation will occur. That could be a small localized deformation, or it may be much bigger than that, but one thing we can all say is that when it happens, the building will instantly become a "dangerous building" and will be closed. Sometimes dangerous buildings can be fixed and re-opened, but that seldom happens.
When I presented this problem to the ASCE in late 2017 and asked for their guidance, the response was overwhelming and you can see that for yourself: "Get this checked by an expert and get it fixed quickly" which, essentially, is what EC7 requires us to do. Nevertheless, you can tell from the responses that I get back from Ms Baillie that she has no intention of doing anything about it. From an engineering standpoint and from any kind of public safety standpoint, it is not acceptable. I cannot get anything done without Ms Baillie's support and so, year after year, nothing gets done.
Dear Ms Baillie,
ReplyDeleteI see that Mr Kerr and Mr Cole-Hamilton are having an effect already and that is great news.
The reason you gave me for the Scottish Government's refusal to engage was that they had "no locus" and I have explained the Scottish Government's locus to you. I have explained it many times - it is the letters by Jonathan Moore of the Scottish Government. When you sign letters, your employer is responsible for the content of these letters and that's the way it works.
His letters make the Scottish Government responsible for paying not only my losses, but all the costs associated with fixing the school. I imagine that could amount to many millions of pounds, but Mr Stewart is the expert on that.
I have mentioned the Shirley McKie case several times to you. You perhaps remember it as you were in Holyrood at the time. That case was won by Shirley McKie because two American experts contradicted the opinion of the Scottish Government. You have the opinions of more than forty American experts contradicting the opinion of the Scottish Government. To me, that sounds pretty much like a "slam-dunk". Agreed?
You are dealing with experts here - Buro Happold, the ASCE, Protect, the ICE, the HSE and Police Scotland. This is not a nursery school. If either of these bodies disagreed with me then I would be worried about that, but I don't believe they do disagree. Is it only Shona Robison then, that disagrees? Is engineering in Scotland now being run by Shona Robison?
Either I have got this horribly wrong, or you have? I suspect it is you, but can you let everyone know? I attach Mr Moore's letters again. I must have sent you these letter 30 or 40 times? These are fundamentally stupid letters that no client in the world would issue because, as I say above, they transfer, needlessly, all liabilities from the Contractor and Buro Happold, onto the Scottish Government's shoulders. It is simple incompetence.
I am expecting the meeting to take place on Friday and so just get it done, please. Neither of you have lost any income and I have lost the best part of 9-years income and I now want that re-paid to me, by the Scottish Government. Please, either organize the meeting on Friday, or provide a detailed explanation of why you are not doing that.
Dear Ms Baillie,
ReplyDeleteYou have stated that the Scottish Government has no liability for my lost earnings because it has no "locus". I explained the locus to you and I asked you to organize a meeting between myself and Mr McAteer, on Friday. That is all I asked you to do and so please do it.
Dear Mr Sarwar,
If Ms Baillie continues to refuse, can you take-over from her? I am trying to get paid and back to work. This is most urgent and so get back to me today on this, please.
Dear Mr Kerr, Mr Cole-Hamilton and Ms Dunbar,
Buro Happold's design review for Brimmond School is with Aberdeen City Council. They will only hand it over to you if you ask for it and so can you ask for it, today? I presume the Teaching Unions and those in Aberdeen Donside will be interested in seeing it too?
It will say that the as-built design change, by the Contractor, makes the land and the building unstable, non-compliant and unsafe, just as the ASCE said in 2017. That will make it one of the biggest scandals in modern civil engineering, not only in the UK but worldwide.
This is the result of a simple construction mistake. Aberdeen City Council and their lawyers Harper MacLeod were warned about it at the time and elected to do nothing.
Dear Mr Sarwar,
ReplyDeleteFirstly, I see the investigation into the safety (or lack thereof) of Brimmond School is most likely to sustain itself going forward from here. It was in the Press last Sunday, Police Scotland are investigating the background authenticity of Aberdeen City Council's building safety certification and Mr Kerr and Mr Cole-Hamilton can provide political oversight at Holyrood to ensure that nothing is covered-up and a fair, public-centred approach is followed.
Let me make one thing very clear: The "locus" that Ms Baillie refers to is the Scottish Government meeting of 17/8/16 and the letters of 30/9/16 and 7/10/16. I copy these documents, yet again, trailing with this Email so that everyone has this information. These form the Scottish Government locus and in the context of worldwide business, signed letters and minutes of meetings are considered as indisputable, official records.
The letters and the meeting minutes, in my opinion, show examples of "delinquent" conduct right at the heart of the Scottish Government and this sets the seeds for future disasters to occur.
The reason that I have asked Mr McAteer to handle my closing meeting is because he attended the meeting and he received the letters. Neither Ms Baillie, Ms Robison, Ms Somerville nor Mr Swinney did either of these things and so their opinions are meaningless, certainly when set against the attached official records.
It would help enormously if we could all, particularly Ms Baillie, just accept this situation? As I set-out above, this is the way business works and it is a protocol that has been respected for at least the past hundred years. If we can all do that, it will remove a very big and needless roadblock that has delayed this case for years now. So, no more talk of "locus" then?
I am expecting to attend a meeting tomorrow and I have heard nothing from you so far to confirm that it is going ahead. I am of the view that the meeting should go ahead and that we should be prepared to leave it to Mr McAteer to recommend a fair outcome. Personally speaking, I would be a lot more relaxed about that, than I would be if anyone at Holyrood were to be involved.
George - I took your advice and involved a couple of other people. Sometimes they can see a different angle that I cannot see.
ReplyDeletecan't do no harm
DeleteDear Mr Sarwar,
ReplyDeleteI'm still waiting to hear from you?
All of those contributing to this investigation and are being paid to do so; I am not being paid and that situation has existed for many years now. I explained that to Universal Credit and they understood it instantly. It is not the way whistle-blowing works and it embarrasses all of the parties that are involved.
I have suggested that I meet with Mr McAteer today and we all let him propose a fair outcome that gets me paid and back to work?
Can you respond to me on this point, please?
I can remember seeing photographs of the first sitting of the Scottish Assembly. I can't remember the date, but it was probably the late 1990's. There were some respected faces amongst them and their mission was to provide leadership inside Scotland for Scots. If you look at the faces involved now, and if Mhairi Hunter is be added to them, how many of them are actually worthy of any kind of respect?
ReplyDeleteDear Mr Kerr and Mr Cole-Hamilton,
ReplyDeleteMr Sarwar did not respond today and that is disappointing.
I attach the advice from the Institution of Structural Engineers re "whistleblowing". It doesn't advise: "Report your concerns to the nearest Police Station", as that should not be necessary. In this case though, it has been necessary because I and the expert members of the ASCE have been repeatedly ignored and the Scottish Government and Aberdeen City Council are now in a potentially criminal situation because of that.
I am interested to know who is responsible for paying me and returning me to employment. Universal Credit are also interested in this aspect of the case as they have never come upon anything like it before. I have asked Ms Baillie and Mr Sarwar and neither are answering. As I see it, I have done the work of Scottish Building Standards and so I am due to be paid by the Scottish Government?
As I pointed-out a few days ago, I have never looked at this from a party-political stand-point as I am not, in the slightest, political but I am conscious that by the Labour Party and SNP at Holyrood just say: "Not me" and do nothing. Can you please therefore put them under some pressure to act? If they ignore a whistle-blower for 9-years, presenting the allusion that he is a trouble-maker and it turns-out that he was right all-along, then that is pretty shameful, isn't it?
I am aware that there is strong Press interest in this at the moment.
Dear Mr Kerr,
ReplyDeleteRoss Thomson's Parliamentary Question (from July 2016) is attached again below. As I said yesterday, it was a great effort at the time and his work was appreciated. The fact that I am now reverting back to it shows how close he was to solving it, back in 2016.
Protect's advice in the years since has been to use Parliamentary Questions to narrow the questioning down, progressively, until a "pressure point" is reached. This is based upon their experience of solving cases like this and the best way is the use of Parliamentary Questions.
Ms Baillie has submitted a number of Parliamentary Questions over the years but they have been easily answered. The standard answer has been: "Tell your constituent to complain directly to Aberdeen City Council". You will note that the Parliamentary Questions I suggest below, cannot be answered in this way.
The following are my suggestions:
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1. "To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that the land surrounding Brimmond School in Aberdeen is flooding and sinking each winter and that deformation of the land is occurring. According to the engineering design standards, deformation of the building should be expected following deformation of the land and that is a real concern at this time of year.
Deformation of the building is not always gradual and it can often occur suddenly.
It has been accepted by the Scottish Government that the original earthworks design was changed at the last minute to incorporate a deep contamination excavation and it has been claimed that this excavation has caused all of these problems.
What steps have the Scottish Government followed with the client team of Aberdeen City Council/Hub to ensure that this change has been properly recorded and the "as-built" design has been properly checked by the building designer Buro Happold and accepted by Scottish Building Standards?"
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2. "The Cole Inquiry was commissioned after the partial collapse of Oxgangs Primary School in Edinburgh in January 2016. The Inquiry, which reported in February 2017, found that all 17No of the recently built schools in Edinburgh that had been passed as safe by "Visual Inspection Reports" were found, after inspection by experts, to be unsafe and had to be closed for many months for emergency repairs. As a result, the Cole Inquiry recommended that Visual Inspection Reports should cease to be relied upon in Scotland.
"Settlement Monitoring" can be an appropriate way of monitoring the performance of flexible, non-rigid structures. For example piers and oil platforms, but it is not appropriate for monitoring rigid-structures like school buildings.
Is Brimmond School is currently being declared as safe to use on the basis of Visual Inspection Reports and Settlement Monitoring?
Is Aberdeen City Council satisfied that all data in the Visual Inspection Reports is correct? Evidence has been presented that suggests they are not correct"
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3. "Aberdeen City Council's Head of Building Standards has decided that that Brimmond School is safe to use and that decision rests with him. Many engineers looked at this in 2017 and their guidance was that something is wrong with the school and that it should be checked straight away by a geotechnical expert.
ReplyDeleteThe engineers who offered guidance were all geotechnical experts, but is Aberdeen City Council's Head of Building Standards a geotechnical expert?
Has he followed the SER Certification guidance which states that any change to the original design has to be proposed, design-checked and re-submitted to Scottish Building Standards by the contracted designer who, in this case, is Buro Happold?
This situation has been reported at meetings, on two occasions, once in 2016 and again in 2019, to Scotland's Head of Building Standards. What steps have been taken as a result of these meetings to ensure that this building has been checked, by geotechnical experts, and is indeed compliant and is safe to be used by the public."
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This would allow the safety of the school to be established immediately and it would allow any Police Scotland investigation to take its own separate course.
My outcome is in entirely the hands of Ms Baillie and Mr Sarwar and so I will continue waiting for them. Although, I have to say, the Scottish Government's "locus" as set-out above, appears very, very clear to me.
I read yesterday that Harper MacLeod have just been reappointed to provide legal guidance to Ministers and so that provides a degree of continuity. Whether or not that is a good development, or a bad development, I will leave up to you to determine.
One final point on Harper MacLeod: It is normal for a whistleblowing case to be concluded within 1-8 weeks and Harper MacLeod have been working on this case, full-time, for 9-years. Perhaps they have been paid enough and the public expectation, at this point, would be that the Scottish Government should stop payments to them until they solve it? I seem to recall making this suggestion several times in the past.
Dear Mr Kerr,
ReplyDeleteI have just received notification from Police Scotland regarding the progress of their investigation into Brimmond School. The Officer that I spoke to last week has spent several days investigating the information that I sent him and I am satisfied that his investigation has been thorough.
His key finding is as follows: "I am aware that if reckless certification is suspected then a series of rigorous independent audits from Building Standards Scotland will occur to identify this. As it stands, there is no suspected instance of reckless certification occurring which has been highlighted by Building Standards Scotland."
The engineers, Buro Happold's Ian Stewart and Hugh Mallett and Scottish Building Standards Stephen Garvin, have to prove that the building is "stable" and so they must do their checks first. Then, and once these checks are issued, Police Scotland can start their investigation, if they deem it necessary.
I copy this Email through to Mr Stewart and Ms Winfield of Buro Happold so that they are aware that you are anxiously waiting on their expert advice. Presumably Mr Kerr will be able to pass this Email on to Mr Garvin for me?
Hence, if the trailing 3No Parliamentary Questions are asked, the answers will determine primarily whether the school is safe or not, but also whether the crime of "Recklessly Certification" has been committed, perhaps unwittingly, since 2015 by Scottish Building Standards in Aberdeen.
My concern is that the Council's Head of Building Standards is not an engineer and yet he has been able to single-handedly hold back the tide of world engineering opinion since 2017. This is not a healthy situation and it is perhaps something that all of you should be willing to play a part in bringing to an end, before it results in fatalities?
Dear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie,
As you can see, the actions are now with Buro Happold and Scottish Building Standards.
Mr Kerr, Ms Dunbar and the other parliamentarians copied-in to this Email, can now elect to submit Parliamentary Questions (my suggested questions, or their own), or they may have a different strategy, but the safety of Brimmond School is entirely for them to take forward from here.
All that I have asked you to do is obtain payment of my losses and a replacement job from the Scottish Government. Can you please advise me how you are progressing with that?
I am fairly certain at this point that I have been correct from day-one and yet I have had the allusion made time and time against me that I am a trouble-maker. As you can imagine, I consider that to be pretty shameful behaviour.
Dear Ms Baillie,
ReplyDeleteI do not expect the Scottish Government to write you a letter saying: "Your constituent was correct all-along and we were wrong. We lied to him and treated him disgracefully. We are due to compensate him for his losses and provide him with a job". Is this what you are waiting for?
No crime has been committed, I have accepted that, and we await Buro Happold and Building Standards Scotland's "as-built" design reviews and that was the purpose of my earlier Email. I attach the comments and opinions of expert members of the ASCE and we can all be pretty damn sure that Buro Happold and Scottish Building Standards are not going to disagree with any of this.
Respondent 44 clearly describes the situation the school finds itself in now. But, there many others opinions - some more optimistic and others less so. How long have you had this information for?
I attach (again!) the letters of 30/9/16 and 7/10/16 from Jonathan Moore of the Scottish Government. These letters are untrue and so the Scottish Government are responsible for my losses.
I am copying this to Universal Credit. All that they, and I, want to know is when I will be getting paid and when I will be returning to work? Everything else can be left with the others now.
Dear Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar,
ReplyDeleteDuring the past 48-hours, the following three suggestions have been made by myself and Police Scotland to break the deadlock that exists at Brimmond School:
1. Ask 3No Parliamentary Questions (a suggested text for each question was provided).
2. Ask Buro Happold and Scottish Building Standards to provide a review of the Contractor's "as-built" design.
3. Ask Scottish Building Standards for a "rigorous independent audit" of the evidence used by Mr Spence to certify Brimmond School as safe to use.
I have been involved in fatal accidents on two previous occasions and it changes your outlook and the way you think in situations like this. My advice would therefore be follow-up on all three options and that will solve this case very quickly.
I expect to be proven correct and, by now, my guess is that is probably what we are all expecting to happen.
Dear Ms Baillie,
Scottish Government Ministers are being advised by Harper MacLeod and I reminded you on Sunday that Harper MacLeod have been working on this case for 9-years: 13th September 2014 - 12th September 2013. To solve it now would expose them to the risk of public criticism. A putrid situation then, by any measure.
Mr McAteer is an Advocate lawyer and he attended the 17/8/16 meeting between myself and Mr Moore and Mr Dodds of the Scottish Government and he witnessed the events of meeting on my behalf. You didn't attend. However, this is the key meeting and the record of that meeting is my evidence of the Scottish Government's culpability and I'm pretty sure that everyone else copied into this Email understands that?
You have been working on this case for in excess of seven years and, during that time, my life and my family's life have been ruined and I am extraordinarily angry about that. Police Scotland managed to do more within 7-days. Ross Thomson MSP managed the same in 2016 and so it can be done. I am therefore asking your to stand aside and leave it to Mr McAteer to get it finished, on my behalf, from here.
Please respond to me today confirming what you have arranged with your colleagues at the Scottish Government and with Mr McAteer. He will solve this case, it is very clearly in the public interest to solve the case, and so I am asking you to give him his place. I want to have it completely finished by the end of this week, please.
Dear Mr Sarwar,
ReplyDeleteI attach the opinion received from Police Scotland yesterday. The responsible person is Stephen Garvin and he must decide if the school has been "recklessly certified", or not.
As you can see from his trailing Email of 4/6/19, he has carried-out an investigation but he elected not to report his findings to me and he hasn't reported them to Police Scotland either.
Can I suggest that the MSP's with constituency responsibilities for Brimmond School, Liam Kerr and Jackie Dunbar, simply ask Stephen Garvin to explain if the building is compliant with Design Standard EC7 and has the Contractor's design change been satisfactorily design-checked by Buro Happold. If he confirms that is so, in writing, that will be satisfactory.
You may also ask him to respond to the question asked of the ASCE experts in "Aberdeen School Project Comments and Discussion" of 2017. He refused to respond when I asked, he refused to even look at it and turned his eyes away, but he will have to respond when asked by Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar?
"Reckless Certification" is at the lower end of criminal charges. If Stephen Garvin fails to be truthful with MSP's and the building cracks or pupils are killed or injured as a result of the design defects that I have explained and he has disregarded then he, and Mr Spence, may face charges which are nearer the top end of the range.
The analogous case which I have repeated many, many times over the years is the Hyatt Regency Walkway Collapse of 1981. Mr Garvin and Mr Spence are now in the same position that Mr Duncan and Mr Gillum were in then and, after this length of time and this number of warnings, I find that astonishing.
So, responsibility for the safety, or the lack of safety, of Brimmond School lies with Stephen Garvin of the Scottish Government and Gordon Spence of Aberdeen City Council. I am therefore turning this investigation over to MSP's now and you must take it forward from here. I cannot do anything more for you and neither can Police Scotland.
I remain very much focussed on leaving this investigation on Friday 15/9/23 and, as I have explained, responsibility for paying me for my losses and returning me to employment lies, also, with the Scottish Government.
I haven't heard anything from Mr McAteer and that is the only person that I am interested in speaking with just now and so can you make sure that he is instructed, by the Scottish Government, to contact me? If there is a problem with this, then let me know what the problem is? Otherwise, ask that he calls me as soon as possible. This chronic lack of communication has got everyone into a hell of a lot of needless trouble, hasn't it?
Dear Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar,
ReplyDeleteRemember - there is currently a "prima facie case of significant risk to the public", presented by Brimmond School.
The questions that I suggested to Mr Sarwar last night and the 3No Parliamentary Questions that I suggested on Sunday will put the weight of responsibility onto Mr Garvin and Ministers and that will be so until their responses are delivered.
Then, and if the weight of evidence suggests that "reckless certification" has occurred (and that is what I expect on the basis of the evidence that I have seen), that may lead to the closure of the school until it is fixed. But, that decision will be for Ministers.
It may be prudent to keep Police Scotland copied-in until the matter is concluded? Their understanding of the matter is very clear and they are obviously taking it seriously.
Dear Mr Sarwar,
The safety of the school is now being dealt with by the others and neither yourself, nor Ms Baillie, are involved. Please respond to me today on the constituency matter of my payment and return to work. This matter just seems to go on, and on, and on; both with yourself and with Ms Baillie. Kindly deal with it now.
Dear Mr ----------,
ReplyDeleteI believe that the current situation is that Harper MacLeod have been asked to explain why they failed to act upon the trailing Email which was sent on 13/9/14 - 9-years ago today. You've already got the Email of course, but I attach it again below for ease of reference.
Had they acted then, as I paid them to do, the school would have been saved and the Contractor's insurance would have covered everything. That's what it is for.
The 1500No or so Emails that have been sent since 13/9/14, have had to be sent because this one was ignored and that explains my anger and frustration at being excluded from work for this period while Harper MacLeod continue to be lauded and paid by the Scottish Government.
Other than this, the situation remains unchanged from this morning and all that I am waiting on is an outcome from Mr Sarwar.
Things now appear to be moving along quickly and so I presume that we are close to the end. When people don't listen and don't communicate, this is what you get.
George - The above says it all really. Professor Rennie's law-firm. In my experience, undoubtedly the most putrid firm of any type that I have come across anywhere in the world. They are trying to work-out a way of fixing it just now and good luck to them with that. I now want to get my money, get everyone paid and get back to work.
ReplyDeleteDear Mr Sarwar,
ReplyDeleteI have asked to attend a meeting tomorrow (Friday) with the Scottish Government's lawyers. It sounds as though that may be Harper Macleod? Whoever it is, ask them to contact me today please.
Experience shows the necessity of providing your own agenda and recording your own minutes when attending Scottish Government meetings and so the following is the agenda for tomorrow:
1. Agree payment of my losses.
2. Agree payment to ASCE, Protect and one other.
3. Replacement job.
It is normal protocol to be given 48-hours notice prior to a meeting and so get Harper MacLeod (if that's who it is) to advise me as quickly as possible on this please. This endlessly waiting, first for Ms Baillie and now for you has already contributed greatly to this disaster.
Dear Mr -----------,
ReplyDeleteI have asked Mr Sarwar to confirm when my closing meeting (with Harper MacLeod?) will take place. I have asked for it to take place tomorrow and I am waiting for him to respond.
In the meantime, it may be helpful if I set-out the way I see your opinion, received on Monday, playing-out in the days ahead. Who is responsible for doing what in other words:
1. I reported to Police Scotland that the crime of "Reckless Certification" had potentially been committed at Brimmond School. Mr Spence from Aberdeen City Council has denied that and so it is my opinion against his opinion and, under any normal circumstances, his opinion would be expected to take precedence.
2. The circumstances here are not normal though and my opinion is supported by many world experts and Mr Spence's opinion isn't supported by any experts. So, what do we do about that?
3. Your advice was that "Reckless Certification" could only be proven, if a thorough and independent audit of all of the information was carried-out.
4. The information to be reviewed is the 3No Emails of information that I sent to Police Scotland on 2/9/23, at approximately 9.40am. That is my information. Mr Spence may have information of his own in which case he can present it.
5. The purpose of the audit will be to determine: "Is this school safe?" and ergo, that will determine if it has been "Recklessly Certified", since 2015.
6. The audit will be made available to Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar and it will be for them to determine whether or not it should be referred back to Police Scotland for further investigation.
7. Who instructs the independent audit? That would presumably be Mr Garvin at Scottish Building Standards.
As a whistle-blower, I expect to be released before this is concluded. Why the Scottish Government leave all of this to a member of the public, while they do nothing, is something that I find embarrassing, frankly.
Three things ought to be said as we approach the end of this case:
1. It occurs to me that this has been an example of "plausible deniability" by all involved thus far.
2. Like the famous Watergate Investigation of 1972-1974, the original misdemeanour was relatively minor and it is the subsequent cover-up that has been so damaging.
3. The matter is so profoundly grave, from the criminal law and public interest standpoints, that it is for MSP's to resolve from here.
This is the way I see it developing in the days ahead.
Dear Mr Sarwar,
ReplyDeleteMy preference is to meet with Mr McAteer. I learned earlier in the week it was most likely to be with Harper MacLeod and I now learn that it is most likely to be with the Scottish Government.
The safety of Brimmond School has been handed over. Both myself and Police Scotland have done all that we can to offer advice, but responsibility has been handed-over and is now with all of you and that's the way it works.
I am losing an extraordinary amount of money while you prevaricate, if that is what you are doing. Can you please make your mind up who I am meeting, pass the below agenda on to them, and ask them to call me to set up the meeting?
Dear Jacqeline,
ReplyDeletePlease keep everyone copied-in, as I am doing.
Firstly, Brimmond School is sinking into the ground, the land is flooding during winter-time and that proves sadly that the design has failed and any competent engineer will confirm that and many have already done so. It is simply a matter of time before a structural deformation or collapse occurs. Would you or Mr Sarwar be content for any of your family members to attend this school?
The life-safety aspect of the case is being handled by Mr Kerr, Ms Dunbar and Mr Garvin of the Scottish Government and Mr Spence of Aberdeen City Council. Police Scotland have issued an incident number. In the event of a structural deformation or collapse, Mr Garvin and Mr Spence may be held criminally liable by the investigating authorities and Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar may be asked: "When did you know about this and what did you do to investigate".
So, the onus of responsibility just now is upon them. Police Scotland have recommended that Building Standards Scotland carry-out an independent design review of the "as-built" design and that is for Mr Garvin to organize. That's the way it stands, as of today.
The payment of my financial losses and the provision of a job is a constituency matter which ought to be handled by my constituency MSP, Ms Baillie. She has refused and that is why I asked Mr Sarwar to do it. Either Mr Sarwar can do it, he can instruct Ms Baillie to do it, or he can instruct another MSP to do it. So, he has options and frankly I do not care what he elects to do, but he cannot refuse (to do anything). Is that accepted?
Mr Sarwar is saying: "What is this information and why are you bringing me this?" What he perhaps should be saying is: "What do you want me to do with this information?" This case has cost me hundreds of thousands of pounds in lost earnings but my persistence may well have prevented lives from being needlessly lost. I would therefore counsel Mr Sarwar to be respectful of the duties he owes to the public who really do depend upon MSP's.
Please ask Mr Sarwar to contact me tomorrow (Friday) with his proposal.
George - Typically arrogant private school boy who knows fuck-all about anything.
ReplyDeleteDear Jaqueline,
ReplyDeleteThe undernoted Email is from Ross Thomson MSP and it reflects my understanding of an MSP's public duties. I suspect that most of the others copied-in already have this Email?
Mr Thomson was not my constituency MSP, he was the list MSP for NE Scotland at the time. Nevertheless, he organized the necessary meetings and he attended them. He was representing the interests of his constituents of course, but so was I and Mr Thomson could see that. You can call this: "resourcefulness", "hard work", "public duty", but I think we can all agree it is the work of a very good MSP.
Yesterday, I offered to attend a closing meeting, but it is for Mr Sarwar to arrange it. Who he arranges it with is for him to decide and I think that I have made that very clear.
Every day that I spend waiting on Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie is costing me a great deal on money and so kindly get this arranged now, please.
George - I'll explain where it stands just now:
ReplyDelete1. Police Scotland returned to me on Monday 11/9/23. They said that there was currently no evidence that "Reckless Certification" had taken place but their expectation was that the as-built design would now be independently checked and certified. (You've got to wonder why that hasn't been done already?)
2. I sent that on to Anas Sarwar for his action and I expect that the independent check and certification has happened already. (I copied it also to Liam Kerr and Alex Cole-Hamilton to make sure that it gets done).
3. If I am right, then Scottish Government Ministers Mr Swinney, Ms Somerville and Ms Robison will be blamed because they lied.
4. "Reckless Certification" will be proven and that will be against Aberdeen City Council and the leadership of Scottish Building Standards.
That's the way I see it and so I am just waiting. A scandalous situation, really. Is this the worst example of malfeasance in the twenty-odd years of Holyrood?
Jackie Baillie and Anas Sarwar's role in this sordid affair? I think I have worked that out.
Unbelieveable that this matter is rumbling on, clearly there is an issue, and clearly some people are liable.
DeleteA few months ago I was being sent "cease and desist" letters. Now, the question is being asked: "Why did you send a cease and desist letter to a whistle-blower; why didn't you just fix the feckin school".
DeleteDear Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar,
ReplyDeleteI attach again Ross Thomson's Parliamentary Question regarding Brimmond School. As I said last week, Mr Thomson asked the correct questions of Mr Couperwhite and Mr Swinney, but he was mis-led by their answers to him and I was mis-led by their subsequent letters and Emails to me and so one more question is required.
Following advice from Police Scotland received on 11/9/23, are you able to ask the following Parliamentary Question? Once this is answered, then Police Scotland can investigate whether or not the building has been "Recklessly Certified" and the Scottish Government can decide whether the building is stable enough for another season of wet winter-time weather:
PARLIAMENTARY QUESTION
"The land surrounding Brimmond School is sinking and flooding with ground-water each winter. That indicates that a hydraulic failure of the land has occurred and that should be inspected urgently by a geotechnical expert.
It is understood that the original groundworks design for the building was changed at the last minute and it is that change that is causing the problems.
Has the change, which took the form of a deep excavation along the west perimeter of the site which was back-filled with clay, blocking the underground drainage routes, been checked and approved by the design engineer Buro Happold and by Scottish Building Standards?
Meetings took place on 17/8/16 and 22/5/19 with the Head of Scottish Building Standards to report this lack of compliance to him. What has the Head of Scottish Building Standards done to investigate if these reports are true?
The 2017 Cole Inquiry into the safety of Scotland's schools recommended that "Visual Inspection Reports" and "Settlement Monitoring" should not be relied upon and yet both are being used by Aberdeen City Council to justify the safety of Brimmond School. Why is this being done?
This school was checked by expert members of the American Society of Civil Engineers in 2017 and they concluded that the land is sinking and flooding and that there is an urgent need to restore the underground drainage routes. What is the Scottish Government's response this?
On what basis is the school being certified as safe and who is certifying it as safe? Is it currently being certified as safe by a geotechnical engineer, as required by the Design Standards pertaining to school building design and construction?
I presume that Mr Garvin and Mr Spence will answer the above Question on behalf of Ministers?
If you send the Written Answer to me privately, as Mr Thomson did, I will send it on to Police Scotland and they can continue their investigations and that will bring the matter to an end as far as "Reckless Certification" is concerned. Presumably, both yourself and Ms Dunbar will pursue the more pressing issue of the safety of the building on behalf of your constituents?
Is this an agreed way forward?
I've copied the HSE, ICE and Buro Happold into this Email and I have copied-in Police Scotland to let them know what I have done with their advice.
Dear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie,
I have only received very short responses from you in the past which tell me nothing and that suggests that you fail to understand the gravity of this case and that's after seven and a half years and 1500No Emails warning of possible deformation and collapse. Even non-engineers realize what that means? - that's point number-one. Point number-two is to ask if you have any concept of how much this has cost me over the years? Do either of you care about that?
It is perhaps time to start taking your constituency duties a lot more seriously? You are supposed to be organizing a closing meeting for me? How long does that take?
Dear Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar,
ReplyDeleteIt is my understanding that the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), as the main regulator and enforcer of the Health and Safety at Work Act, has the power to issue fines or prison sentences due to "reckless certification".
I have alleged reckless certification by Mr Garvin of the Scottish Government and Mr Spence of Aberdeen City Council.
I made the initial complaint to Police Scotland on 3/9/23 and so, as I said on Sunday, I will deliver the Written Answer to them as soon as I receive it from you and that will allow their investigation to continue. Can you also deliver the Written Answer to the HSE? I presume that as constituency MSP's representing the interests of the staff and parents at the school, you are the correct authority to do that?
Like the Police Scotland investigation, I would expect an HSE investigation to be thorough and to be carried-out quickly and I see that as being absolutely crucial just now.
Dear Mr Baker,
This suggestion brings a larger number of named individuals into a wider investigation and it puts a time pressure on them to respond. If we now seek to change the dynamic so that the investigative authorities, Police Scotland and the HSE, take over from me then we will no doubt see an entirely different attitude from everyone.
There remains the possibility that I will be proven wrong, but that seems a diminishing prospect at this stage.
Dear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie,
With some public-spirited honesty, accountability and communication, this could have been investigated, discussed and settled in 2016. Instead of that, it has been allowed to turn into a tragedy on a UK scale.
I sent the agenda to Mr Sarwar's secretary on Friday. Please set-up the meeting and do it now.
Dear Mr Baker,
ReplyDeleteThat you for that response.
I copy-in all of the others as, in cases like this, it is crucially important that everyone has full sight of the up-to-date information.
It is accepted that "reckless certification" is a Police Scotland matter. That will progress or not progress, whatever the case may be, when the Parliamentary Question is answered and that is in the hands of Ms Dunbar and Mr Kerr.
The other matter though is whether the school building and the land are safe and I'm pretty sure that this is all that anyone wants clarity on just now. Are the teachers, pupils and others who use this building every day, safe?
It is accepted that the Council has the statutory duty for safety at the school, but if their Head of Building Standards and Scotland's Head of Building Standards are currently being investigated for reckless certification, that leaves a very big question mark over the current certification of the school and that is the problem.
When the Parliamentary Question is answered, it may turn out to be the case that I have exaggerated and the building and the land are safe and there is nothing to worry about, but that looks like an increasingly distant prospect from where I am standing.
The information I referred to yesterday comes from "Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 key points"; point number four: "The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is the main regulator and enforcer of the Act and has the power to issue fines and prison sentences for breaches". Presumably this is not the case in Scotland?
The current situation is that we require an expert engineering review of the "as-built" design and that is what Police Scotland has asked for.
My advice to the others has been that Buro Happold are the only engineers with authority to provide this to the Council and it is then for the Council to distribute that information to all interested parties. Do you agree with that position?
Dear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie,
I spoke to Universal Credit yesterday about this case. I send all correspondence through to them and they read it. They have been extraordinarily patient as they understand the unique circumstances which prevail here.
I keep asking you to arrange a closing meeting and they are aware of that. Can you update me on that please and I will update Universal Credit?
We seem to be in a position now where all matters relating to the safety of the school can be left to the experts.
Dear Mr Baker,
ReplyDeleteI attach trailing the key Email and it is from Scottish Building Standards in Aberdeen. This is the information that Police Scotland are correctly focussed on at the moment:
Two questions arise from this:
1. Is Mr Spence qualified to adjudicate on this matter?
2. Many expert engineers, who are qualified, noticed the evidence in 2017.
Failure of a structure, from the bottom, is caused by failure of the soil, by softening and/or scour, within the pressure bulbs of the building's foundations. It is impossible to inspect this and so expert engineers rely on evidence that they see at the surface which is the flooding and the sinking of the land and the muddy deposits which are left behind when the flood-waters recede. All of this is in evidence at Brimmond School and it is called "hydraulic failure". The analogous case is the Champlain Towers apartment building in Florida which collapsed suddenly, approximately 2-years ago. That building suffered from the same range of symptoms in the years leading up to the collapse. So, there may be no warnings, apart from the warnings that I have pointed out to you.
I will leave it up to all of you to decide how you wish to take this forward from here.
Dear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie,
I understand the Scottish Government's lawyers are Harper MacLeod. Can you organize a meeting between myself and Harper MacLeod in Glasgow on Friday, please? You can either elect to be present at the meeting, or not and that is for you.
Dear All,
ReplyDeleteWe are now at the end of this investigation and it is for Mr Kerr, Ms Dunbar, Ministers, Buro Happold, Police Scotland, perhaps the Health and Safety Executive and perhaps the Institution of Civil Engineers to work through this and agree upon a solution which is supported by the evidence.
I tend to omit the Council from the circulation of these Emails as I have found that no-one there is qualified to contribute, or willing to listen to those who are qualified to contribute. I explained that earlier.
I notice that Mr Miller from HSE is copied-in for the first time and I presume that he is the HSE Officer with responsibility for this case? I therefore attach the two main items of my evidence, which is the Soil Investigation Report and advice from the large team of geotechnical experts at the ASCE.
The evidence from Aberdeen City Council, that I have seen, comprises 4No Visual Inspection Reports (all attached) and the results of Settlement Monitoring. I am convinced by the honesty of my evidence, but I am not convinced by the honesty of Council's evidence. Mr Miller can agree or disagree with me on that.
My experience of the ASCE has been that they are often willing assist public bodies in situations like this, either at home or overseas, but it is for the ICE to determine if they will do the same. Some expert, independent guidance from the ICE would be helpful just now and Police Scotland have already recommended that, or something equal to that, as a first step.
The timeline is for all of you to agree between yourselves, but I would suggest days, rather than weeks?
Dear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie,
The "locus" of Scottish Government involvement in my long-term unemployment are the two letters attached, by John Swinney MSP and Jonathan Moore of the Scottish Government.
When letters like these are issued and are found to be incorrect and I have to correct them, then the Scottish Government is responsible for paying for that, however long it takes. If I hadn't persevered, the school would inevitably have deformed, possibly collapsed, and so it is fortunate that I have been able to continue and I recall Bob Matheson making that point to you on 30/11/22.
It all reminds me very much of Lord Hardie's conclusions (reported on yesterday's news) at the end of the Edinburgh Trams Inquiry. He spent the best part of a decade studying John Swinney's evidence, page by page, and he didn't find it convincing. I too have spent the best part of a decade studying John Swinney's evidence, different evidence of course, and I didn't find it convincing either.
So, Mr Swinney's decision not to take a whistle-blower seriously and provide him with support he needed has had a series of negative consequences which now have to be addressed. I have had to go to the ASCE for support and that is a pretty shameful situation for engineers working in Scotland.
I am speaking to Universal Credit again in 10-days time and I am expecting to be back in work by then, and paid. I understand the two lawyers that I should be meeting on Friday are Mr Lloyd and Ms Mitchell of Harper MacLeod and all I need is a time for the meeting.
Universal Credit are concerned at the length of time this is taking and so please go-ahead and set-up the meeting for me.
Dear Ms Dunbar,
ReplyDeleteOver the years, I have received a number of responses, mainly from the Aberdeen City Council, which present the allusion that I am a trouble-maker. They are unhelpful of course, but they do not deter me. What I have done is make you aware of a matter which is of the gravest concern to many of your constituents.
The situation is that doubt has been cast on the honesty and the competence of the Building Standards checks that have been carried-out to date. It may be the case that the Building Standards checks are correct, but I don't think they are. Under normal circumstances, Building Standards' opinion would prevail and my opinion would be disregarded and I accept that. This situation is different though, in that my opinion is supported by a large number of worldwide experts and neither the ICE, HSE or Police Scotland appear to be doubting the honesty or the competence of any of them.
And that is a big problem. It is the end of September and it is raining heavily and so what do you do now?
The quickest way to bring this to an outcome is by identifying the "pressure points" and by asking Parliamentary Questions on the pressure points. That is what Ross Thomson MSP did in 2016 and it was effective. If you are refusing, then perhaps Mr Kerr will do it instead?
I get the impression from your response that if these specific questions are asked, then we will solve this case instantly and, to your constituents, that is all that matters.
The suggested questions are trailing at the bottom of this Email.
Dear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie,
We are at the stage now where this case can be settled, certainly from my perspective. Whistle-blowers are supposed to be released within 1-8 weeks, remember? Universal Credit want it settled and I want it settled too, quite clearly.
I asked yesterday that a closing meeting be arranged with the Scottish Government's lawyers, Harper MacLeod, for tomorrow (Friday). Can you make sure this is organized today please? There is no need for either of you to be present at the meeting (unless you wish to attend).
Dear Ms Dunbar and Mr Kerr,
ReplyDeleteThe undernoted guidance was received from Bob Matheson, Head of Advice and Advocacy at "Protect" on 30/11/22. As with everything written by Bob on the subject of Brimmond School, it was measured and the key to understanding it is to pay attention to every word. He advised that there is a prima-facie case of significant risk to the public and Police Scotland's advice was that a thorough design review be carried-out. So, Police Scotland's advice and Protect's advice has been more or less identical.
Dear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie,
When the Scottish Government and Harper MacLeod ignore whistle-blowers, then large and needless costs accrue as a result of that. This is never more so than in engineering. I and many others provided regular guidance on this, but I always had the feeling that no-one was listening.
I expect the public will ask: "Why is the Scottish Government still paying and taking advice from this law-firm when their advice is so bad?"
I asked for a meeting with the Owner and a Consultant at Harper MacLeod. I was expecting that to take place today, but I have heard nothing. Can you update me on the current position on that, please?
Once the meeting takes place and the payment and the replacement job is agreed, we can leave this investigation to the others.
It's been a total disaster, hasn't it.
"John Swinney leaves behind a legacy of Education failures". Is this his biggest failure yet?
ReplyDeleteIt's bound to be an uncomfortable meeting George and that's why it's taking so long to organize.
One last thing for now George - When you're in the position that I was in, you cannot continue and build the school and people don't understand that. The chap that took-over from me is currently being blamed for this - that's the reason! Police Scotland are good and they come out of this well.
ReplyDeleteDear Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar,
ReplyDeleteThis can only be taken forward to an outcome by you and, in doing that, no-one expects you to be the sole-judge of whether the school is safe or not, that decision is for Ministers following guidance from the experts copied into this Email.
Also, discussing and agreeing an outcome for the school will not cause alarm amongst your constituents, continuing to do nothing will cause alarm amongst your constituents. There is clearly an urgent case to answer and only engineers can do that for you.
The situation is that the following three organizations have each concluded that the school and the land ought to be checked by experts to ensure that they will neither deform nor collapse this winter:
1. Experts from the American Society of Civil Engineers
2. Protect
3. Police Scotland
As I have explained previously, "reckless certification" by the Scottish Government and Aberdeen City Council may have occurred, but that is for Police Scotland to investigate presumably with the cooperation of the Health and Safety Executive and Buro Happold.
This is a rarely used piece of legislation akin to the "Practices Act" which was used to prosecute Jack Gillum and Dan Duncan for the 1981 Hyatt Regency Walkway Collapse in USA. It is designed to identify errors before collapses occur and not after. Police Scotland need the as-built design review by Buro Happold (or any independent expert) to allow them to continue their investigation and I presume that has now been delivered?
If so, we can leave it to Police Scotland to continue.
Dear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie,
I asked you to arrange a meeting for me last week with the Owner and a Consultant at Harper MacLeod and you have repeatedly failed to respond and that is really disappointing. I have been unemployed for the best part of 9-years and this type of needless prevarication is not helping.
I explained that John Swinney MSP and Jonathan Moore are responsible for my financial losses and unemployment since 2014 and consequently it is for Ministers to deliver an outcome. I have suggested Harper MacLeod do that on their behalf at a meeting, but any law-firm authorized by Ministers can do it.
It is not for me to second-guess who the meeting should be with; that is for you to agree on my behalf and that is what everyone is waiting for.
I am waiting for you to respond to me and Universal Credit are waiting for me to respond to them and so we are all currently waiting. I have made it clear to Universal Credit that a job outside of Scotland would be preferable and that, along with being properly paid, is what I am expecting to be offered. Not a great result for anyone then, but it is an end result for me and that is all that I care about at this stage, frankly.
I have been asking you both to do this since May and if it had been done then, instead of now, this would have been resolved months ago.
Dear All,
ReplyDeleteI sent Mr Stewart from Buro Happold a synopsis of the case on 7/8/23 and if he has not responded by now, then he will not do so. Please therefore ask Fairhurst's geotechnical team for an as-built design review (their Soil Investigation Report is attached) and that's the problem solved. That also provides Police Scotland with the "independent" design review they requested.
I attach trailing the Email I sent to Harper MacLeod on 13/9/14 when I first reported this as a whistle-blower (most of you have seen this already). This Email has now been proven entirely correct, from beginning to end. The first question is: "Are any of you going to do anything about this?"
I attach the Institution of Structural Engineers guidance on the subject of whistle-blowing. The second question is: "Why have I been left to investigate this on my own and why did you elect not to provide any assistance?"
Dear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie,
I am copying this Email through to Universal Credit. I am asking for you to organize a meeting between myself and Mr Lloyd and Ms Mitchell of Harper MacLeod. It is crucial that this needless ordeal for myself and my family is stopped. Anyone reading this or any of my recent Emails will be shocked by this case and will conclude that I have been treated pretty shamefully by Mr Swinney and Mr Moore and I am therefore asking you bring that to a close, this week.
George - Once you report this to Police Scotland, the door closes. Police Scotland came up with the same conclusion that I came up with. As you can see, I blame this on Mr Swinney and Mr Moore.
ReplyDeleteDear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie,
ReplyDeleteThe sole purpose of the meeting on Friday is to get me paid and back to work. Harper MacLeod should be instructed, by Ministers, to contact me directly and send me an agenda. Can I ask you to do that for me today, please?
Dear Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar,
In terms of the school - if we again go back to the example of the 1981 Hyatt Regency Walkway Collapse that was caused because those in charge refused to communicate. Court proceedings followed for years afterwards, but no-one ultimately went to jail because it could not be proven that: "It was explained to them that it would collapse, but no-one listened". Is that the case here though? It strikes me that there is a very clear difference. It may therefore be prudent to ask Dr Turner for his expert guidance?
George - You've got to spell-out every feckin detail for them.
ReplyDeleteDear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie,
ReplyDeleteMy only interest at this point is in extracting myself from this investigation. I am satisfied that the report I made in 13/9/14 (trailing) was in compliance with my professional obligations as an engineer. Is malpractice, in the form of "reckless certification", still going-on? That is for the others to investigate.
I don't know if you are aware, but this is one of the UK's longest ever running whistle-blowing cases; an exemplar disaster and presumably someone understands the reasons for that? I have requested a meeting with Harper MacLeod. The required agenda is as follows:
1. Payment for myself.
2. Direct payment (not via myself) to those agencies that have assisted me.
3. Replacement job.
Can you advise me when this meeting will take place?
1.Responsible for "Reckless Certification": Stephen Garvin and Gordon Spence.
ReplyDelete2. Responsible for my losses: John Swinney and Jonathan Moore.
3. Responsible for the "Cover-Up": John Swinney and Jackie Baillie.
To understand point 3, you have to investigate who was running Aberdeen City Council in 2014.
To understand Harper MacLeod's role you need to appreciate that they are the Scottish Government Ministers lawyers. They get paid an unknown amount of money each year for this and if a Minster (it was John Swinney in this case) says "make this go-away", then that's what they do. In my case, like yours, it was done by Harper MacLeod's Professor Rennie. Paying me is the least of Harper MacLeod's worries, really. If that leads to paying for a new school though, that might be the end of them. Hence the stand-off. Pretty disgraceful, isn't it?
ReplyDeleteDear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie.
ReplyDeleteI am currently waiting for Ministers to instruct Harper MacLeod to contact me and, as I understand it, it is Ms Somerville that is holding this up? I attach her letter of 17/3/22 on the subject of Brimmond School and Police Scotland have recently confirmed that the onus is not on myself to liaise with Aberdeen City Council on matters of safety.
Scottish Government Ministers, Buro Happold, the Health and Safety Executive and Police Scotland can contact Aberdeen City Council and continue the investigation by themselves, if they wish. That decision is for them.
I need to earn a living just as the rest of you need to earn a living and so respond to me today on this, please.
George - It's all hands to the pumps at Harper MacLeod and Buro Happold and that tells me that I have been right all-along.
ReplyDeleteInterestingly, although it was covered-up by John Swinney, it is only serving Ministers that take accountability and that (I think anyway) is Shirley-Ann Somerville. John Swinney can therefore 'categorically deny' everything. You can see that coming, can't you.
So, it looks as if we're at the end after something like 6-years? I remember when I first contacted you; it was something like 6-years ago?
The ASCE have given Buro Happold a lesson in engineering and Harper MacLeod a lesson in law, haven't they. All FoC and they haven't been paid a button and neither have you and neither have I.
Going to Police Scotland was the right thing to do though because Baillie and Sarwar are useless. That's been seven and a half wasted years, waiting on these two. So, I've gone to a Tory and a Lib Dem MSP, and the Police of course, and that has made all the difference.
If I hadn't done it though and if I hadn't received help, the school would have collapsed. You only have to say that once to Police Scotland and they get it checked.
It's an ominous sign for the civil-service and the professions in Scotland though and, quite honestly, I don't have a clue what Holyrood is meant to be doing for us.
Finally, from the ASCE: "Bruce Grayson - You need to protect yourself from future litigation. This is just a botched building job. Someone provided a specific foundation solution, but it was ignored. If you don't want to use expert advice, don't ask for it! -3rd October 2017".
Dear Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar,
ReplyDeleteFurther to my visit to Govan Police Station on 3/9/23 where I made a report of "reckless certification" against Gordon Spence of Aberdeen City Council and Stephen Garvin of the Scottish Government, I received the trailing opinion from Scottish Police on 11/9/23, which is self-explanatory.
I have highlighted the key paragraph from their opinion: they recommend that an independent audit of the school design is carried-out under the auspices of Building Standards Scotland. The expected time required for such an audit is 2-weeks and Scottish Building Standards have now had 3-weeks and so the results of the audit will already be known.
I accepted Police Scotland's opinion at the time and it aligns very closely with the opinions of the American Society of Civil Engineers experts that I passed-on to John Swinney MSP, via Jackie Baillie MSP, in November 2017.
Can I ask: "Has this independent audit been completed and will the results be made publicly available to those who depend upon the safety of this building every day?"
I presume that you will be pursuing Scottish Building Standards and Scottish Government Ministers on this matter and that no further input is required either from myself, or Police Scotland?
Dear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie,
I have asked you repeatedly to organize a closing meeting with Harper MacLeod which will end my involvement in this case. Please respond to me on this.
Dear Ms Winfield,
ReplyDeleteWe appear to be getting close(r) to a resolution and so I attached the letters, by a Scottish Government Minister and senior employees of the Scottish Government, that give the reader the clear impression that the school building and the land have been checked and approved by Buro Happold. This impression has persisted for almost 6-years and if it is not correct, then it should be corrected by Buro Happold very, very quickly.
1. Jonathan Moore letter, 30/9/16
2. ASCE expert members comments, 23/11/17
3. John Swinney MSP letter, 20/12/17
4. Fraser Innes letter, 6/11/18
All except letter number 1 were issued after "ASCE expert members comments" was issued to the Scottish Government, in November 2017.
The corollary is that the Scottish Government has reviewed the opinions and guidance of the ASCE experts, against Buro Happold's opinion and guidance, and they have found Buro Happold to be more convincing.
There is nothing wrong with that and under normal circumstances that would be the expected solution. We are not in a normal situation though and I reported this matter to Police Scotland on 3/9/23, so concerned was I that Buro Happold's refusal to answer, was putting lives at risk.
Police Scotland have investigated whether the crime of "reckless certification" has occurred and they have recommended that an independent investigation of the as-built design is carried-out under the leadership of Building Standards Scotland. I presume that has already been done?
Those that Police Scotland have investigated so far are employees of Aberdeen City Council and the Scottish Government, but the only engineers with authority to design check the building are Buro Happold. So, the question as to whether the building is safe or not, going into another winter season, can only be answered by you and that, as I understand it, is the contractual position. The allusion has often been presented in the past that if the client (the Council) accepts the school as safe, then it is safe but that is not the position and only Buro Happold can do that.
I sent your Ian Stewart a synopsis of the design change on 7/8/23 and it is trailing below. I presume that he has now coordinated the Buro Happold response and so although there is no need for me to see your response, there is a requirement for all others copied into this Email to see it? That is particularly so for the constituency MSP's for the school, Liam Kerr MSP and Jackie Dunbar MSP.
I am sure that Buro Happold will treat any future request for reassurance as to the safety of Brimmond School with respect and with the utmost urgency. Therefore, what I understand that Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar are entitled to expect just now are two separate design reviews - one by Buro Happold and another by an independent geotechnical engineer engaged by Scottish Building Standards.
Dear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie,
However I am removed from this investigation is for you to agree with your colleagues at the Scottish Government and for you to communicate to me? That is what I am currently waiting for. It is not for me to do all of this extra work, is it?
Dear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie,
ReplyDeleteThe matter of the safety of the school has been taken out of your hands and it will be handled by the other parties copied-in who have the responsibility, the engineering expertise and the authority to communicate with each other and reach an agreed solution, whatever that might be.
So, we have reached the end and, as a whistle-blower, I expect my case to be settled first and not last? As you both know, I expect to be paid, for those who have assisted me to be paid and to be returned to employment.
I don't who is handling this for me, it has been so long since I have heard from either of you, but can you make sure that this is concluded by Friday, please? This is all that I am asking you to do.
Dear Mr Sarwar, Ms Baillie, Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar,
ReplyDeleteI am due to speak to Universal Credit today at 3.40pm and I will be confirming that I expect this case to be concluded, from my perspective, by the end of this week.
Let me just reprise the situation you have in front of you: The investigation is about the compliance of an engineering design, the safety (or lack thereof) of a school building and criminal law.
Protect's opinion, which was delivered to Ms Baillie on 30/11/22 was that there is a: "prima facie case of significant risk to the public" and it is now for all of you to engage with the experts and get that answered.
This, and many other previous Emails, have been copied to the ICE, HSE, Buro Happold, Protect, Police Scotland and Audit Scotland. They are the experts.
Dear Ms Baillie,
ReplyDeleteFirstly, I object to the allusion, which you make most of the time, that I am somehow a trouble-maker. I have been warning for the past 9-years that this building could deform, or collapse, at any moment.
The experts from the ASCE also warned about this, almost six-years ago, and yet here you are still engaging in delay and denial. Ms Robison's letter of 19/5/23 is attached and, as with all other Scottish Government letters, it is absolutely meaningless in the context of an engineering investigation. Engineers carry-out design reviews and report to Ministers and Ministers report to parliamentarians. That is the way government and engineering works all over the world. It is not something that you and/or Ms Robison are capable of doing and you must leave this to Buro Happold. It is crucial that this protocol is accepted.
The only thing that I asked you to do was to arrange a closing meeting with either Harper MacLeod, or Beltrami. The "locus" are the letters from 3No Scottish Ministers and meeting minutes with Scotland's last two Heads of Building Standards (all attached with this Email). That, as a "locus", is conclusive and so, do you agree, are these documents a locus, or not? Then, once that question is answered, we can move forward professionally.
My advice is for Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar to engage directly with Buro Happold regarding the safety of the school building and for you to just organize the meeting and be done with it. I have been unemployed due to this case for the best part of nine years now; that doesn't seem to vex you at-all and I find that astonishing.
Dear All,
ReplyDeleteI cannot speak for the rest of you on this, but I am now greatly concerned by Ms Baillie and Ms Robison's handling of this situation which I see as careless and lacking in any kind of skill, professionalism and empathy.
I have been involved in a remarkably similar whistle-blowing investigation before, in 2016-2017, in KSA. So, they do occur from time to time all over the world. They are not regarded as they are in Scotland as something that hardly ever happens. It is part of the life of an engineer and it should be expected.
I attach a summary of the case with this Email. If you have an Arabic speaker in your office then he/she can perhaps translate for you. As you can see, the Saudi Police were heavily involved early-on and the whistle-blower reported directly to the Police.
The Contractor was Saudi Bin Ladin Group (SBG) and the Professional Consultant who carried out the design review was Proger SpA and so both were respected international companies.
That investigation was led by a Saudi Ministry of Interior official who turned things around almost instantly, within 24-hours. The Parliamentarian (His Excellency the Director for Public Safety) did the same. As a result, the timeline shows that from the first report of a whistle-blower to the Police, to the engineering investigation being carried-out by experts, to the ground being stabilized by SBG, took 8-months.
I am becoming more and more alarmed that we are now at in excess of 9-years and we are still all listening to Jackie Baillie and Shona Robison! That is not the way engineering works and I am sending you a worked example of how it should work.
This is a serious warning to all of you that by progressing in this way, you are all at risk of allowing a needless collapse to occur. By the way, I investigated Site 85 myself along with one of Proger's geotechnical engineers and so I understand a hell of a lot more about this subject than either Ms Baillie, or Ms Robison does.
Dear Ms Baillie,
ReplyDeleteI have provided you with the items that prove that a locus exists and, frankly, I am becoming tired of this Holyrood political fandango. These letters, both by yourself and Ms Robison, have no place in any kind of serious engineering investigation. No more, please. Just cease - and leave it all to the experts.
Please send me Ms Robison's point for point response to the following items (that prove the locus exists):
1. Jonathan Moore letter, 30/9/16
2. ASCE expert members comments, 23/11/17
3. John Swinney MSP letter, 20/12/17
4. Fraser Innes letter, 6/11/18
5. Jonathan Moore meeting, 17/8/16
6. Stephen Garvin meeting, 22/5/19
I sent everyone an worked example, an hour ago, of how a similar investigation is conducted by the Government of KSA. Would your conduct and that of Ms Robison be acceptable in that country? - No, it wouldn't and I speak with the authority of experience.
Leave the safety of the school to be determined by Mr Kerr, Ms Dunbar and Buro Happold, please. I don't think that anyone copied-in has any reservations about Buro Happold's ethics and professional conduct? I certainly don't.
All that I am asking you to do is either organize a meeting for later this week, or provide me with a point for point response from Ms Robison. One or the other; is that clear?
I am just off a call to Universal Credit. My situation just flies over the top of your head, doesn't it?
Dear All,
ReplyDeleteI sent you all a Timeline earlier for "Site 85", in KSA. Can I direct your attention to items 4 and 5 from the Timeline? Item 4 was a letter sent by Proger SpA to the Saudi Ministry of the Interior, on 17/7/17, which stated: "This site should be examined by Proger's geotechnical expert". The response confirming acceptance of that proposal was hand-delivered, by the Saudi Ministry of the Interior, to Proger on the same day, 17/7/17. I attach another copy of "Site 85" for ease of reference.
If you compare this with the response (or lack thereof) at Brimmond School where I sent a letter to Harper MacLeod on 13/9/14, which stated: "Fairhurst will understand what has happened here and will provide independent advice to Aberdeen City Council". That has still not been responded to, after more than 9-years, by either Harper MacLeod, Hub, Aberdeen City Council, Scottish Building Standards or the Scottish Government.
Site 85 is an example of how world Governments work, it is typical and it is the only way that safety works. The Saudi Government's treatment of whistle-blowers is relaxed, professional and entirely non-confrontational. They must be 50-years ahead of where Scotland is at the moment and that is a measure of the cost of the Scottish Government "locus" to individuals like myself and to the public in general. Frankly, I find it shameful.
There will be high financial costs associated with this of course and they are likely to be attributable to the Scottish Government.
Can I suggest that Mr Sarwar takes over from here to provide an outcome, for myself, by the end of this week. Neither Ms Robison nor Ms Baillie will respond and so please arrange the meeting today and that can either be with Harper MacLeod, or Beltrami and I will leave that to you.
I attach again trailing my Email to Harper MacLeod of 13/9/14, referred to above. The fact that this warning was ignored is astonishing and there must be some pretty serious questions for the Scottish Government and Harper MacLeod to answer. Question 1: "How much is this going to cost and who pays?" Question 2: "Why did no-one take the whistle-blower seriously?"
In conclusion, the only response I expect is a meeting date, time, venue and agenda, from Mr Sarwar. Please respond to me tomorrow on this.
Dear Mr Sarwar,
ReplyDeleteI will not be contactable for most of today but go-ahead and arrange the meeting, please.
Finally, one sobering thought from my review of the Site 85 example is that we are currently stuck on item 4. Baillie is refusing to move or to communicate with others and so nothing is moving and both she and Ms Robison are too busy.
There are 44 items in the Site 85 example and you are all stuck on item 4, that explains my increasing alarm and my suggestion that all of you remove Ms Baillie and Ms Robison from the process and replace them with experts.
I do regret that I was not able to do a lot more to guide this to a conclusion, I would clearly have been able to do that but I need to be assisted by honest public-sector professionals and, for whatever reason, that has never been possible. So, it's been a series of wasted opportunities hasn't it.
Make sure that you get back to me today on the meeting, please. This has now been handed-over to Mr Kerr MSP and Ms Dunbar MSP and the meeting is all that interests me at this point.
Dear Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar,
ReplyDeleteYou may wish to take a close look at the letter on the first page of "Site 85 Summary" from the Saudi MoI, to Proger SpA, asking them to check the stability of the tower? The letter is dated 16/4/17.
You may wish to use this letter as a template? Police Scotland's advice was that the stability of the school is checked by an independent firm of geotechnical experts and I would suggest Fairhurst of Aberdeen, but that decision is for you.
You will notice the Saudi MoI letter is headed "TOP URGENT" and that is good advice for all of you at the moment.
Dear Mr Sarwar,
As I said earlier, I will be returning home late this afternoon. Please organize a meeting for me, either with Mr Lloyd from Harper MacLeod or Mr McAteer from Beltrami. That decision is for you.
Dear Mr Sarwar,
ReplyDeleteI want to get this finished by the end of this week and I am still waiting to hear from you? A meeting can be organized within an hour and my complaint is against the Scottish Government. Please confirm the details of the meeting by return Email.
Dear Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar,
The information I have provided from the American Society of Civil Engineers and from the Government of KSA is genuine, it is by experts at the top levels of both world engineering and Government and when juxtaposed against the information provided by Scottish Ministers over the years (the Visual Inspection Reports), which are very clearly bogus, the situation can only embarrass all of us. It is not acceptable from an engineering standpoint, or permissible from a legal standpoint and we must now (presumably) be within the realms of possible criminal negligence?
It was myself that put the Site 85 Timeline together for the Saudi Government and I wanted to do the same for Brimmond School and the Scottish Government and then I came upon a roadblock in the shape of John Swinney and his gang and so I never managed to get beyond item 4, from 44. The roadblock is now gone(?) and it is for you to finish the Timeline and I would expect that to take you something like 10-14 months and that's assuming the building can be stabilized and the only engineers able to make that call for you are Buro Happold.
Is the building stable in the meantime and can it be used normally? That's the question, isn't it?
Finally, I am acutely aware that the constant allusion has been made over the years that I have been exaggerating and that no-one else agrees with me and it has been disappointing to see that chorus being led by my constituency MSP who, by her own admission, knows nothing about engineering, but is nevertheless certain that I know even less than she does. I have provided evidence that my engineering is respected by both the ASCE and the Saudi Government and they understand a lot more about engineering, and how to manage the process of engineering, than either she does, or any of the rest of you do.
In truth, I have never before encountered resistance and refusal of this kind until I encountered the Scottish Government. They appear to me to be some sort of delinquent administration, working half-in and half-out of criminal law. But, that is just my observation and I clearly have been unable to change anything and so I am now passing it over to you.
Dear Mr Sarwar,
ReplyDeleteThe information that I will be presenting at the meeting is attached and is as follows:
1. Letter by Jonathan Moore, 30/9/16
2. Letter by John Swinney MSP, 20/12/17
3. Letter by Shirley-Ann Somerville MSP, 17/3/22
4. Letter by Shona Robison MSP, 19/5/23
5. Letter by Fraser Innes, 8/11/18
6. Letter by Jackie Baillie MSP, 2/8/18
7. Minutes of Meetings 1 and 2, with Jonathan Moore and Stephen Garvin, 17/8/16 and 22/5/19
This is my evidence that the Scottish Government has caused my financial losses and unemployment since 2014. I have produced approximately 1500No Emails since then and item 5 is evidence that Mr Innes has prevented anyone from responding and that has prolongated this case and my losses.
Whether the school is safe, or not, and whether there may be any criminality involved are matters which can only be taken forward from here by constituency MSP's Liam Kerr and Jackie Dunbar with Police Scotland and I will leave that decision for them to do as they and their constituents wish.
There is no form of social security better than a good job and I have always had a good job prior to my involvement with the Scottish Government and that is one of the main items that I wish to resolve to an outcome at tomorrow's meeting.
The call for a meeting should be issued by Harper MacLeod. The 7No attachments should be sent to them today, by whoever at the Scottish Government is organizing the meeting, so that they can prepare themselves. The information should be laid-out on a table in the meeting room. I will explain it and answer any questions they may have and Harper MacLeod will propose an outcome that gets me paid and back to work.
Are we all agreed on that?
Dear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie,
ReplyDeleteOnce Harper MacLeod are instructed by Ministers to call the meeting they will do so instantly and that is what I am waiting for.
Please ensure the meeting is called, by Harper MacLeod, for tomorrow.
Dear Ms Winfield,
ReplyDeletePlease confirm that Buro Happold have completed the as-built design review of Brimmond School that was requested by Police Scotland on 11/9/23 and that you have handed it over to your client, Aberdeen City Council/Hub.
Protect 30/11/22: "The issue, as I understand it, is that there is a prima facie case of significant risk to the public, and those in charge appear to be relying only on visual reports as a rebuttal - however visual reports have been previously established as inappropriate and inadequate in these circumstances". What is your opinion of this statement?
I am waiting to be called to a meeting with Harper MacLeod and it is crucial that they have sight of this information.
Dear Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar,
The starting point is when you receive the Buro Happold as-built design review from Aberdeen City Council/Hub and so please ask for it. The example I sent you from KSA yesterday shows you a route-map to concluding this quickly. "Proger" are the equivalent of "Buro Happold". I don't know how much assistance you have been getting from Buro Happold so far, perhaps none, but you should expect to receive a great deal more assistance from them over the coming months.
Dear Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie,
"I am only dealing with the question of the Scottish Government providing you with compensation for your losses. I have written to them and unfortunately they have refused to do so. I cannot force them to act. Whilst you might disagree with them, the position of the Scottish Government could not be clearer." - Jackie Baillie 3/10/23
There is my position and the Scottish Government position are the two are entirely opposed to each other. The determination of who is correct is made by Buro Happold, not by Ministers. Once that is done, calculation of my losses is done by the Minister's lawyers, Harper MacLeod. That is a simple concept and I have explained it many times previously.
Dear Ms Winfield,
ReplyDeleteFurther to Ms Baillie's Email sent on 3/10/23 and trailing, I took some expert advice last-night and this morning and so let me set-out that advice for you and your colleagues at Buro Happold.
Let me say first of all that Buro Happold's position as a respected consulting engineer is accepted, but the Scottish Government is different and therein lies the problem. Worldwide, it happens and when it does happen, the ICE's ethical code determines the way Buro Happold should act: "Members of the ICE should always be aware of their overriding responsibility to the public good. A member’s obligations to the client can never override this, and members of the ICE should not enter undertakings which compromise this responsibility." The "public good" means of course, ensuring the safety of the public.
This strategy has been accepted for decades. I shouldn't really have to set this out for you or anyone else noted above to read, should I? So, basically, Buro Happold's duty is to do what's right for the public, not to do what's right for the Scottish Government, Aberdeen City Council or Hub.
So, when Ms Baillie says (and she repeats regularly) that the Scottish Government will determine on engineering matters, she is entirely wrong and it is for Buro Happold to recognize that, as I have done, and do more to communicate with all of the parties that are involved. That means not only with your Client, but also, for example, with the constituency MSP's, Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar. Buro Happold and Ms Baillie are distant from the end users of the school, but the constituency MSP's represent the end users and so they must be informed. This all sounds rather heavy-handed I know but that is how it was explained to me and there is a professional and perhaps a legal onus of responsibility on you to communicate with all of the parties that are involved.
I want to remove myself from this investigation and to do that that I require confirmation either that my warnings have been correct, or that they have been incorrect. My warnings are set-out in the trailing Emails and they have remained constant ever since 2014 when I first issued them. Specifically, I am concerned that this building could collapse, from the bottom, without warning due to underground soil erosion (scour) and collapsing soil conditions affecting the pressure bulbs below the building's foundations. You have been copied-in for many months now and so you are aware of my concerns.
We are in the situation where Ms Baillie has been told by the Scottish Government that my engineering prognosis is wrong and will definitely not be reconsidered. I have been declared wrong for in excess of seven years now on the basis of "Visual Inspection Reports" and "Settlement Monitoring". If my prognosis is in fact correct, as many others believe it is, then the lawyers representing the Scottish Government will meet me and I have asked to be offered a financial settlement and a replacement job. That is something that I would like to get out of the way as quickly as possible and so if you are able to contribute your opinion today, that would be most helpful. Who you communicate that information to may be the vexed question, but Ms Raphael from Protect is the party trusted by everyone?
ReplyDeleteI want to reschedule the meeting with Harper MacLeod for early next week, perhaps Monday or Tuesday? I will minute the meeting and that will set the ground for Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar to take-over from me. So far, it's been a systemic problem of the type best described as a Catch-22: "a dilemma from which there is no escape because of mutually conflicting or dependent conditions". The "mutually conflicting or dependent conditions" in this case are "the Scottish Government" and "Harper MacLeod". It's not the way engineering is run elsewhere in the world and if we all allow this to continue, members of the public are going to end-up being killed and that is, I think, the undeniable reality of the situation we are now facing.
Frankly, I see it in everyone's interests that the meeting takes place. I suspect the fundamental problem is that many countries put expert engineers in charge of engineering and Scotland doesn't even listen to its expert engineers. That never works and that is what we are seeing here.
Dear Ms Winfield,
ReplyDeleteI had the undernoted Email deleted from my records a short time ago. I had it sent back to me and I am re-sending it now so that I have a record of it having been sent.
This has happened before and I suspect it is criminal in nature. Police Scotland are copied-in as you can see and they can take their own view on it.
My advice came from a senior member of the ASCE and it was: "It's Catch-22...attend the meeting...minute everything that is said...send that to MSP's and Buro Happold...get-on with the rest of your life...you shouldn't be expected to do this". That seems to me to be a good solution?
If all copied-in lend their support and get the meeting organized for early next week, with Harper MacLeod, that will get this process finished for myself and started for some of the rest of you?
George - That's my Email disconnected. It proves that they are under great pressure. As a government and a law firm, they are a pretty disgraceful pair, aren't they.
ReplyDeleteThey probably feel that they can't cope.
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