A complaint against a councillor has been dismissed as “obviously" politically motivated.

Last night, a group leaders’ panel met to discuss a complaint brought forward by a former Conservative candidate against West Finchley Labour Councillor Kath McGuirk, in relation to council tax.

Earlier this year, Barnet Borough Councill reported Cllr McGuirk for a potential breach of the Local Government Finance Act 1992.

The council said that at the time of the council budget debate on March 4, she was in arrears with her council tax, dating back to 2010, and that it was inappropriate for her to vote in the budget meeting.

Cllr McGuirk defended her actions, stating the council had “mistakenly” issued her demands for council tax arrears and a court summons.

Following an investigation, police decided not to charge Cllr McGuirk.

The group leaders’ panel subsequently also dismissed the complaint last night.

Councillor Alison Moore, leader of Barnet’s Labour group, said: “I raised the issue about it being a vexatious complaint. It had come from Myles Longfield, who has been a Conservative candidate in West Finchley. It was mischievous.

“When it came to the papers, he had asked to be kept anonymous. That was disingenuous at best, and made it so obviously political. I believe it was politically motivated and the Conservative councillors saw that.”

Cllr Moore said the original issue was a technical breach, and that it cannot happen again. She added that it should not have been brought to the panel, which was the decision of the former monitoring officer Maryellen Salter, who has recently left her role at the local authority. 

She added: “The police had already dealt with it. There’s a question about how much it has cost at a time when money is tight.

“The only sanctions open to the panel is to put it in the hands of the leader concerned. The whole thing was a bit of a nonsense.”

Councillor Richard Cornelius, leader of the council, said: "Clearly it's a matter of internal Labour party discipline.

"Whilst there may have been a technical breach, the leaders' panel is there to deal with serious matters, rather than a technical breach."

Speaking about the complainant, Cllr Cornelius said: "It's a matter for the person concerned why he brought it.The police have dealt with their part, and we have dealt with ours."