THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE of Carmarthenshire County Council (CCC), Mark James, has refused to clarify whether he will be paying the damages won in a court case to the authority, as he had previously stated.
CCC funded his legal battle with Jacqui Thompson over comments she made on her blog. According to the BBC, this cost the authority more than £35,000.
Mrs Thompson was ordered to pay Mr James damages of £25,000, as well as £5,000 in interest and £15,000 in fees for an enforcement hearing in March.
All of the money must be paid by 2032.
In 2012, Mr James said any money won in the court case would ‘be paid over to the authority’. When questioned by the BBC this week on whether this was still the case, his solicitors, Acuity Legal, said that he ‘did not intend to give any further statements or any interviews on this subject’.
Last month at a Carmarthen County Court hearing, Mark Spackman, who was talking on behalf of Mr James, said that his comments to give the money to the authority was made ‘on a voluntary basis’ and were ‘irrelevant’ to the hearing about a possession order on Mrs Thompson’s house.
At the same hearing, Judge John Parsons said: “Mr Spackman has told us he’s entitled to change his mind… and it appears he has.”
A CCC spokesperson said: “The council’s position on this matter is well documented and subject of public record. There is nothing further to add.”
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