A COUNCIL leader has missed 35 out of 54 meetings in the past year - one of the worst attendance records for the whole authority.

Over the past 12 months, Cllr Chris Roberts has missed 10 planning board meetings - including the highly controversial decision to hold Olympic equestrian events in Greenwich Park - and attended only three.

His poor record is reflected across other committees and meetings with the local authority’s own figures giving him the third worst attendence rate in the council.

Cllr Roberts was expected to be at 54 meetings in the past 12 months including cabinets, cabinet committees and full council meetings.

But the leader turned up to only 19 - an attendance rate of just 35 per cent.

He has failed to attend any meetings of the Children’s Trust board, which helps develop services for young people, and only four out of the 28 Cabinet Committees, of which he is the chairman.

Cllr Roberts has also missed three out of eight full council meetings and four out of the nine cabinets he is meant to chair.

Leader of Greenwich Conservatives Cllr Spencer Drury said: “I really would have expected him to attend full council, cabinet and cabinet committees - that’s what he’s paid to do.

“I think this shows that he doesn’t really prioritise the council.

“With a large Labour majority, he’s never going to lose a vote in the council so he probably doesn’t see the point.”

Cabinet Committees are made up of a small number of cabinet members who meet to discuss urgent, minor or confidential issues.

The leader missed meetings of this committee on issues including money given to the Cutty Sark and funding to tackle serious youth violence.

Among the other planning boards he missed were two on Kidbrooke’s landmark Ferrier Estate redevelopment and one on Woolwich Arsenal hosting the Olympic shooting events in 2012.

Fellow member for the board Paul Webbewood said: “As a general rule he’s not pulling his weight on the board. It’s very unsatisfactory.”

He added: “He quite often doesn’t attend council meetings. It’s possible that he has important business to attend to but he never gives a reason.

“I think it’s reasonable to infer he doesn’t give it a high enough priority.”

News Shopper tried to speak to Cllr Roberts directly but were instead given a statement from a council spokesman.

He said Cllr Roberts had withdrawn from the Olympic planning meetings voluntarily because of his “high profile and active role” in retaining them as venues.

The spokesman said: “The leader takes his council responsiblities extremely seriously.

“He has a strong track record of attending meetings and speaking out to make his views known on a number of high profile cases, including the Greenwich Market application.”

He said the cabinet committee requires only two of its three named members to attend and the chairmanship was frequently delegated to others.

The spokesman said Cllr Roberts was only an ex-officio member of the Children's Trust and would “attend only when broader corporate council issues may be at stake”.

BOTTOM OF THE PILE - COUNCILLORS WITH THE LOWEST ATTENDANCE RATING

Cllr Terry Hales (Labour) - Woolwich Riverside - 30 per cent

Cllr Chris Taylor - (Conservative) - Coldharbour and New Eltham - 30 per cent

Cllr Chris Roberts - (Labour) - Peninsula - 35 per cent

Cllr Paul Tyler (Labour) - Glyndon - 43 per cent

Cllr Clare Morris (Labour) - Middle Park and Sutcliffe - 44 per cent

Cllr Norman Adams (Labour) - Kidbrooke with Hornfair - 44 per cent