A DISTRICT councillor received a set back when council chiefs refused to investigate claims that tape recordings of an authority meeting had been tampered with.

Leader of the opposition Labour group on Bromsgrove District Council, Cllr Peter McDonald (Uffdown and Waseley) put forward a motion to the standards committee on October 10 asking that his claim be investigated.

The committee refused saying they were not in the position to investigate it.

Cllr McDonald claimed council leader, Cllr Nick Psirides (Con, Norton) instructed a senior officer to send out wrong information on a consultation document and tampered with a recording made of the meeting at which the decision was taken.

The accusations came from a meeting on August 30 when ward boundary changes were discussed.

At the meeting two weeks ago, the committee refused to investigate Cllr McDonald's claims saying its purpose was to agree a code of conduct, agree standards of behaviour and recommend training to councillors.

Cllr McDonald said this week he saw the whole thing as a "cover up."

"I am shocked and dismayed that the district council did not investigate the tapes. The very fact they won't investigate demonstrates a cover up," he said.

Bromsgrove District Council's head of administrative services, Vince Harrison, said: "It is not within the committee's terms of reference to carry out investigations."