THE councillor who claims police failed to act when he blew the whistle on Cotswold Water Park fraudster Dennis Grant has welcomed news of a fresh investigation into the scandal.

Councillor Esmond Jenkins told the Echo: "It has taken two years of battling but the people of the Water Park are glad their concerns about the possible involvement of others are finally being taken seriously by the authorities."

A City of London Police squad was drafted in last November to conduct a comprehensive review of Gloucestershire Constabulary's initial inquiry which saw Grant, former chief executive of Cotswold Water Park Society, jailed for four years and four months for defrauding the environmental charity out of £660,000.

The review has now uncovered fresh leads and London officers are carrying out further investigations alongside Gloucestershire Constabulary.

Alert

Councillor Jenkins, Liberal Democrat district councillor for Water Park, said he was first to alert the police in early 2010 when he tracked down a £150,000 payment made to the Society which was missing from the accounts.

"I was turned away by the police who said I did not have enough evidence to justify an investigation," he said.

Weeks later, Grant's assistant Tasha Flaherty went to the police with similar concerns to be told the same thing.

Police spokeswoman Alexa Collicott said: "The inquiries were continuing when, in April 2010, police had collated sufficient evidence to warrant an arrest, which subsequently led to Mr Grant's conviction."

The new inquiry coincides with the release of previously undisclosed documents by Cotswold Water Park Trust, which replaced the discredited Society.

Grant brokered a deal in December 2007 to transfer the lease of Keynes Country Park, an 85-acre nature reserve and tourist attraction, to Watermark.

Days earlier, Grant and Watermark apparently entered into a previously undisclosed agreement for the Society to seek to acquire further development land and pass it on to Watermark to build holiday homes.

Councillor Jenkins said: "As public guardians of the park's environment and wildlife, the Society was a statutory consultee holding great sway in planning applications. While the public thought it was behaving even-handedly in the wider interests of the park and its residents, we believe it was, effectively the agent of one developer, acquiring land for the company and seeking to smooth the path for planning consents.

"Along with the parish councils and many residents, I was convinced Grant was not acting alone and that others may have assisted him.

"I fully expect the new investigation to probe into areas of public life in the county where officers previously feared to venture."

Cotswold Liberal Democrats have launched their own investigation into press briefings organised by Cotswold District Council days before Councillor Jenkins faced a four-day hearing into allegations he had breached the members code of conduct.

The opposition group allege they were misleading and prejudicial to councillor Jenkins' right to a fair hearing.

Councillor Jenkins faced 16 allegations of misconduct by Watermark chairman and district council planning head Philippa Lowe.

All of Watermark's complaints were thrown out by the independent panel and only five less serious complaints were found proven.

Councillor Jenkins was cleared of all of the more serious complaints brought by Ms Lowe of bullying council officers and abusing his position for personal gain.

He was given a minimal sanction that included writing a letter of apology to one officer he had admonished in public and taking a course in council protocol.

Cotswold District Council declined to comment.

CLARIFICATION: We have been asked to make clear that Councillor Esmond Jenkins, who appeared before the Cotswold District Council’s Standards Committee in January of this year, was cleared of 11 out of the 16 charges faced by him. The charges of which he was cleared included the most serious allegations of bullying and of abusing his position as a councillor. We are happy to make the position clear and apologise for any misunderstanding.