THE father of a young woman groped by the ex-leader of the county council has described him as a “ticking time bomb” following an independent review into the handling of her complaint.

The dad of the victim said he was pleased the review found Worcestershire County Council could have done more to communicate with his daughter after she complained of the assault by disgraced Dr George Lord.

Lord, now aged 79, groped the 19-year-old’s bottom in October 2010 when she bent over a plaque in County Hall, Worcester.

He was jailed for four years at Birmingham Crown Court last month for that attack and for three historic indecent assaults on a 14 and 15 year-old girl in the late 70s.

The results of an independent review into Worcestershire County Council’s handling of her complaint were published on Monday.

It ruled the council handled the complaint “appropriately” but more could have been done to keep the victim informed.

Her dad said: “We are dismayed to learn of the four other complaints of ‘unwanted attention and inappropriate contact,’ that have been reported prior to our daughter’s assault.

“We feel George Lord can only be described as a ticking time bomb, just waiting to go off and feel the county council should have acted in a more positive manner.

“George Lord was a very powerful man and has already proved he would abused this power in whatever manner he could.

“We wonder if any other employee of the county council had had four complaints against them for this sort of behaviour, would they still be in a job?”

He has called for a fully independent inquiry, conducted by a totally independent organisation.

The inquiry was conducted by Colin Williams, director of local government services at West Midlands Councils, a grouping of all 33 councils in the West Midlands.

Trish Haines, chief executive of Worcestershire County Council, said: “At the heart of this difficult chapter are five members of the council’s staff.

"Their wellbeing, requests for confidentiality and wish to move on with their lives are my primary concern.

“I also recognise that as chief executive of a large employer and public body I am accountable to the council’s elected members and Worcestershire’s residents.

“To balance these needs I took the initiative and held a briefing to take the media through the executive summary of the independent investigation report which found that the council had ‘provided significant and ongoing support’.

“This report was initiated as soon as I found out one of those five staff members felt we had failed her.

“This is something I was dismayed to hear about through the media, and came as a surprise as it runs contrary to any feedback the council had received from extensive prior dealings with the individual directly involved and those supporting her.”