POLICE are investigating a former Labour council leader amid claims he holidayed with contractors.
Jim McCabe, who led North Lanarkshire Council until earlier this year, has long acknowledged that he is friends with people who have obtained multi-million-pound business from his local authority.
However, now his former council has invited Police Scotland to examine new evidence that Mr McCabe and his wife travelled to Turkey with an executive from controversial construction firm Mears Scotland.
It is understood Mr and Mrs McCabe took the trip with Mears' official Steve Kelly and his wife after North Lanarkshire renegotiated a deal with the construction firm.
Mr McCabe has not denied going on holiday with the Kellys.
He said: "All holidays I have been on, I have paid for. And I can prove that beyond any doubt."
North Lanarkshire Council chief executive Paul Jukes has formally asked detectives to review the trip.
A spokesman for the local authority said: "The chief executive was made aware of information, which he passed to Police Scotland. "We understand the police are looking into the circumstances and we will have no further comment."
Police Scotland's commander in Lanarkshire, Chief Superintendent Roddy Irvine, said: "We can confirm that information has been passed to Police Scotland and the circumstances are being reviewed."
Details of the McCabes' trip with the Kellys emerged during an unrelated investigation at neighbouring Glasgow City Council.
Mr Kelly's wife, Joan Parr, was last summer suspended along with her superior, the £120,000 director of land and environmental services Brian Devlin.
Glasgow council auditors found bookings for the holiday on her work computer and passed it to colleagues in North Lanarkshire. Ms Parr is no longer under investigation by her employer.
It was announced on Thursday that Mr Devlin was "leaving after five years to pursue other career interests outwith Glasgow City Council". He had been suspended on full pay since May.
Mr McCabe early last year told The Herald that he was friends with both Mr Kelly and Mears managing director, Willie Docherty, husband of Glasgow Lord Provost Sadie Docherty.
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