A FORMER legal adviser who lost a claim for unfair dismissal against Swansea Council has had an appeal against the ruling turned down.

The decision by the Employment Appeal Tribunal signals an end to the long-running legal saga between the authority and Malcolm Honey, which began after he was secretly filmed unloading his car with what his employers argued was holiday luggage while he was on sick leave.

Mr Honey, who had worked for the authority for 30 years, claimed he had been recuperating from a bout of bronchitis at a West Wales holiday cottage, and originally won his case against the authority in 2007.

The original tribunal had criticised decisions taken by the then director of social services Jack Straw, who had heard Mr Honey's internal appeal against dismissal.

But Swansea Council appealed the decision on the ground of bias, after arguing one of the lay members of the original panel which found against them had a conflict of interest.

And in June last year, the decision, which had included an order for Mr Honey to be paid £66,000 compensation, was overturned when the case was heard for a second time.

The judgement upheld allegations that Mr Honey had not been truthful in his answers, after he initially failed to tell his bosses he had been away when interviewed after returning to work, until informed of the video evidence, even though the tribunal chairman said the video footage shot by private investigators neither supported the claim he was too ill to work, nor undermined it.

The Employment Appeal Tribunal has now issued its judgement on Mr Honey's appeal, in which it concludes Swansea Council's actions "were those of a reasonable employer and dismissal was within the band of reasonable responses".

It also found that Jack Straw, now an executive director with the authority, had acted reasonably and that his "belief in the misconduct of the claimant [Mr Honey] was the genuine reason for his dismissal".

It adds: "The dismissal was fair. The reason was conduct and it was reasonable in all the circumstances to dismiss.

nino.williams@swwmedia.co.uk