Former Mid and East Antrim Council chief Anne Donaghy convicted over deletion of FOI email

Former Mid and East Antrim Borough Council chief executive Anne Donaghy

Former Mid and East Antrim Borough Council chief executive Anne Donaghy has been convicted of two charges connected to deleting or attempting to delete an email to prevent disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act.

Donaghy, 56, of Clonmore Road, Dungannon, was fined a total of £1,500 following a trial at Ballymena Magistrates’ Court.

The charges on which she was convicted concerned an email sent to the private email address of then-DUP leader and First Minister Arlene Foster during controversy surrounding post-Brexit arrangements at Larne Port in 2021.

Donaghy was cleared of a third charge of trying to have another email deleted.

Her co-accused, former Mid and East Antrim Borough Council director of corporate services Aaron McClelland, 49, of Clonmakate Road, Portadown, was also cleared of the single charge against him of trying to have an email deleted.

District Judge Alana McSorley fined Donaghy £750 on each of the two counts.

Judge finds intention was to prevent disclosure

In reaching her verdict, Judge McSorley said Donaghy had been under mounting political pressure at the time she instructed her personal assistant to delete the email sent to Foster.

The court had heard that Donaghy was facing political and media scrutiny over the council’s handling of issues surrounding the Northern Ireland Protocol and over a perception that she had been too close to DUP politicians.

Judge McSorley said the perception that Donaghy had been too close to the DUP “formed the basis”of her decision to delete the email.

The judge said the “irrefutable conclusion” was that Donaghy had intended to prevent disclosure of information.

The finding followed a trial in which the prosecution and defence offered sharply different explanations for why the email had been deleted.

Email related to concerns at Larne Port

The case had its origins in events surrounding the implementation of the Northern Ireland Protocol at Larne Port in early 2021.

On January 30 that year, Donaghy sent a letter to the UK Cabinet Office outlining concerns about the operation of the Protocol and the safety of council staff carrying out work at the port.

The court heard that the letter referred to “sinister graffiti” threatening staff working at border control posts.

After sending the letter, it was forwarded to a number of DUP politicians.

The court heard these included MPs Ian Paisley, Sammy Wilson and Jeffrey Donaldson, then-Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots and then-Economy Minister Gordon Lyons.

It was subsequently sent to then-DUP group leader on the council Gregg McKeen, then-mayor Peter Johnston and Arlene Foster. The correspondence to Foster was sent to her private email address.

Freedom of Information requests followed

On February 8, Mid and East Antrim Borough Council received a Freedom of Information request from a journalist seeking correspondence relating to alleged threats to council staff and the Northern Ireland Protocol.

The court heard that the council refused that request on health and safety and security grounds.

In April, Donaghy appeared before Stormont’s Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs Committee, where Alliance MLA John Blair questioned why the views of DUP representatives had been sought but those of politicians from other parties had not.

The prosecution said that by the end of April there was “increasing political and media scrutiny”surrounding the council’s handling of the issue and Donaghy’s relationship with DUP representatives.

Further Freedom of Information requests concerning the Protocol followed.

Court heard Donaghy asked PA to delete email

Central to the prosecution case was an audio recording of a conversation involving Donaghy and one of her personal assistants.

The court heard that Donaghy asked for the email sent to Foster to be deleted.

When told that “upstairs” already had a copy, Donaghy was recorded responding: “Oh no. Who sent that?”

The prosecution argued that her reaction supported its case about her intention in seeking to have the email removed.

One of Donaghy’s former personal assistants told the court that she deleted the email to Foster from both her inbox and sent items.

The email was subsequently recovered with assistance from the council’s IT staff.

Defence said Foster’s private address was the concern

Donaghy did not dispute during police interviews that she had asked for the email to Foster to be deleted.

Her defence, however, disputed the prosecution’s explanation for why she had done so.

The court heard that Donaghy said she was concerned about Foster’s private email address entering the public domain at a time when information was being leaked from the council.

She maintained that she knew hard copies of the correspondence had been retained and had sought the deletion of the electronic version.

Her defence barrister Michael Chambers KC argued there were “multiple points of reasonable doubt” in the prosecution case.

He also argued that there was no live Freedom of Information request on the date Donaghy asked for the Foster email to be deleted.

Mr Chambers questioned how an email could therefore have been deleted to frustrate a Freedom of Information request when no request was live at that point.

The prosecution rejected the defence interpretation of events and argued that the surrounding circumstances and evidence demonstrated Donaghy’s intention to prevent disclosure.

Judge McSorley ultimately accepted the prosecution case in relation to the Foster email and convicted Donaghy on two counts.

Donaghy cleared of third charge

The case also concerned a separate email sent to DUP councillor Gregg McKeen.

The court heard evidence from another of Donaghy’s former personal assistants, who said she had been asked by McClelland to delete that email but refused.

An audio recording played during the trial captured McClelland responding: “We never had this conversation.”

McClelland denied wrongdoing.

His defence argued that he had not repeated or pressed the request after the assistant refused and that hard copies of the emails had been retained in a locked cabinet.

Following the trial, McClelland was acquitted of the charge against him.

Donaghy was also acquitted of the third charge she faced, relating to an attempt to have the second email deleted.

Verdict follows years of controversy

The criminal proceedings arose from events during a period of intense political controversy surrounding post-Brexit arrangements at Larne Port and the council’s response to concerns about staff safety.

The court was required to determine Donaghy’s intention when she sought the deletion of the Foster email.

Her defence maintained that her concern was protecting Foster’s private email address and pointed to the retention of hard copies, while the prosecution argued the deletion was intended to prevent disclosure.

Judge McSorley rejected the defence case on that issue and found Donaghy guilty on two counts, concluding that she had intended to prevent disclosure of the information.

Donaghy was fined £750 for each offence, totalling £1,500. She leaves the proceedings convicted on two charges and acquitted on a third, while McClelland was acquitted of the only charge he faced.