Millergate sacking row settled out of court
Date published: 29 November 2011
OLDHAM business man Vance Miller, who was at the heart of the flawed investigation
A TRIBUNAL between a trading standards chief and Oldham Council which sacked him after the botched-up Vance Miller case was dramatically called off at the 11th hour.
Tony Allen reached an undisclosed settlement with the local authority after out-of-court deliberations on a day both parties were set to go head to head at the hearing.
Mr Allen was due to bring his case to the employment tribunal in Manchester yesterday after he was dismissed for speaking to the local media following the aftermath of a flawed investigation into kitchens boss Mr Miller.
The hearing to determine if Mr Allen was sacked unlawfully was minutes away from beginning.
But after more than five hours of talks, a settlement was eventually agreed.
A joint statement from Oldham Council and the former head of the trading standards revealed that the claim was settled after taking external legal advice on the “emerging principles” on the interpretation of the European Convention of Human Rights.
Mr Allen said: “It was my great pleasure to lead an outstanding trading standards team at Oldham, who are dedicated to their task of protecting consumers.
“The last two years have been difficult for me and my family and I am pleased to be able to move on now.”
Mr Allen was the head behind the high-profile case, believed to be one of the largest trading standards investigation the country has seen.
The case accused Mr Miller and three of his colleagues of fraudulently ripping off customers from Miller’s firm based at Maple Mill, Dowry Street, Oldham.
The judge found no evidence that Mr Miller had defrauded customers and said he could not rely on Mr Allen’s evidence.
Mr Allen was immediately suspended when a judge threw it out of court — which left Oldham taxpayers footing a multi-million pound bill.
He claimed an independent review by former Birmingham City Council chief executive Stewart Dobson was part of the council’s scheme to shift blame on to him despite being cleared by the council’s disciplinary process of any wrongdoing in his handling of the case.
He was expected to argue that his contract was breached, the reason for his dismissal was not lawful and that town hall chiefs unlawfully restricted his right to reply.
Oldham Council and Mr Allen said they would not be making any further comment on the matter.
