Applicant
Mr D. Bell
Respondent
Communication Workers Union
Summary
The applicant alleged breaches of the Union’s rules relating to the agenda of the Annual Conference, the withdrawal of his candidacy for election to the Executive Council of ICTU and the failure of the General Secretary of the Union to process a disciplinary complaint against himself and other officers. The Certification Officer refused to make the declarations sought by the applicant. Note: This decision was appealed by Mr Bell to the Northern Ireland Court of Appeal. In a judgement delivered on 4 April 2011 (GIR8136) the Court of Appeal upheld the Certification Officer’s refusal to make the declarations sought by Mr Bell in his first two complaints. It did not uphold his refusal to make a declaration on the third complaint but found instead that the Union’s General Secretary breached a disciplinary rule by not referring Mr Bell’s complaint against himself and two other officers to the National Disciplinary Committee. It ordered the Union to make that referral within 14 days. The full text of the judgement can be accessed on www.bailli.org