Sefton Council mandates criminal record checks for councillors following former mayor’s sex offense conviction

Councillors within a specific borough are now required to undergo mandatory criminal record checks, a decision made after a former mayor admitted guilt to child sex offenses last month. Sefton Council cast votes in favor of its members undertaking a basic Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check during an audit meeting held at Bootle Town Hall. Paul Tweed, 62, who previously served as mayor and as a Litherland councillor, was convicted for possessing indecent images of children and extreme pornographic images. Currently, DBS checks for elected officials in councils across the United Kingdom are categorized as “best practice” rather than a legal requirement. A review conducted in 2022 by Simon Bailey, a former chief constable, identified inconsistencies in the DBS check policies implemented by local authorities. In the Merseyside area, Knowsley Council has voluntarily adopted enhanced DBS checks for cabinet members who participate in committees overseeing children’s and adult’s social care services. Conversely, both Liverpool and Wirral local authorities presently do not require DBS checks for their elected members. Tweed was initially charged with three counts of creating indecent images of children and informed police that he had encountered the images “by accident when browsing pornography,” but he subsequently pleaded guilty. An additional charge of possessing extreme pornographic images, which Tweed also admitted, was introduced when he appeared before Liverpool Magistrates’ Court on 6 November. He received a nine-month suspended sentence. The proposal for Sefton’s councillors to undergo a basic DBS check also includes a recommendation for enhanced DBS checks for cabinet members who serve on committees for children’s and adult social care services. Councillor Joe Johnson stated: “We as councillors would like to go further on this and ensure the maximum amount of safety.”