BOURNEMOUTH’S council leader Peter Charon will have to publicly apologise to one of his colleagues and will be the subject of two further investigations following a string of complaints about his behaviour, the Echo understands.

Cllr Charon, who has been accused of bullying several of his own backbenchers, was the subject of a behind closed doors Standards Board assessment sub-committee meeting on Wednesday.

The outcome of the meeting has yet to be confirmed by the council but it is believed Cllr Charon will be told he must apologise to Cllr Mark Anderson, who had complained Cllr Charon attempted to bully him over the proposed off-shore windfarm.

It also looks likely that complaints from Cllr Beverley Dunlop and Cllr Jane Montrose will be investigated further. Cllr Dunlop’s complaint accused Cllr Charon of emailing other councillors in relation to a personal issue while Cllr Montrose’s complaint followed a cabinet discussion about the suspension of Stephen Parker – the chief accountant suspended for sending out a warning email to all councillors about the Mouchel deal.

But once again Cllr Charon courted controversy by emailing the head of legal services Joy Postings on the morning of the meeting and urging committee members to be careful in their consideration of the complaints against him.

Normally, the views of the person being complained about are not sought in advance of an assessment sub-committee meeting and the Echo understands that his email did not go down well with committee members.

When contacted by the Echo, Cllr Charon said that he had not yet been notified as to the Standards Board’s rulings, and said it was “extraordinary” that he was left in the dark.

He said he did “set out some concerns” in an email to Ms Postings but declined to comment further.