Cheshire East Council's suspended chief operating officer resigns
Cheshire East Council's most senior financial executive has resigned.
Chief operating officer Peter Bates was suspended, along with two colleagues, as part of an investigation into their conduct which began in April 2017. Chief executive Mike Suarez and legal officer Bill Norman, who were also suspended, have also since resigned. The council, which previously called the suspensions a "neutral act", said it would not comment on "individual staffing matters". The BBC understands part of the investigation has focussed on the way the council awarded some contracts. Cheshire Police has been running a separate investigation into contracts and have passed a file to prosecutors. No arrests have been made. Mr Bates , Mr Suarez and Mr Norman have made no comment.