SIX high ranking Westminster City Council figures were today found guilty of "wilful misconduct" in a "homes for votes" scandal.

But former Bolton School pupil Mr Robert Lewis was NOT one of the six named following the investigation by district auditor John Magill.

Deputy Westminster city solicitor from 1986-88, Mr Lewis was involved in the district auditor's provisional findings published in 1994.

But he issued a statement at the time saying that he "strongly rejected the provisional findings" and he would be "challenging them vigorously."

He was a trainee solicitor with Bolton Council between 1975 and 1977.

Today, the BEN attempted to contact Mr Lewis, but a colleague said he was not commenting at present. The six named guilty today, including former council leader Dame Shirley Porter were hit with a £31.68 million surcharge bill.

The others were two leading Tories David Weeks and Peter Hartley and three officials Graham England, Paul Hayler and Bill Phillips.

The district auditor's 2,000 page report into allegations of vote-rigging in marginal wards of the Tory flagship authority concludes that the council was involved in "gerrymandering."

He accused the Conservative group of 1990 of attempting to fix elections by a policy of clearing council homes and selling them off at knock-down prices to buyers thought more likely to vote Tory.

Milton Keynes South West Tory MP Barry Legg, a leading light on the council at the time was cleared of misconduct - but found to be aware of the "party electoral reasons" which triggered the controversial housing policy.

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