On the 1st of November 2022, Birmingham Labour attempted to introduce a new loophole that would have allowed councillors to hide links to exempt accommodation on commercial interest grounds. This would have added a further layer of secrecy to controversial Exempt Accommodation ownership by city councillors. A motion to Council from the Cabinet Member for Housing called on Standards Committee to insert a clause into existing rules on the Councillor register of interests so that details of ownership can be kept secret if they believe them to be ‘commercially sensitive.’ The Localism Act, which sets out requirements for all councillors to declare pecuniary interests, only allows information to be withheld from the public register where disclosure could lead to the member, or a person connected to the member, being subject to violence or intimidation. The Labour motion would have allowed councillors to also hide details where they believe their financial interests would be impacted, a position which would be an affront to the principles of openness and transparency, not fit with the spirit on the law and may even be unlawful.
This was only stopped by a Conservative amendment, which removed Labour’s loophole, being approved at the full council meeting.
Perhaps the most worrying occurrence of this week’s full council session was that the Labour council gave a special dispensation to all councillors with regard to declarations for this item. This meant the constitutional requirement to declare a pecuniary interest and leave the room for the duration of the item without voting was suspended for the meeting.
There are only 5 reasons such a dispensation can be granted, one of which is, if the number of members with a pecuniary interest– and so unable to take part in the debate - are such that the control of the council in the chamber would be lost. There are 101 Councillors on Birmingham City Council, of which 65 are Labour Councillors.
In March 2022, a meeting of the Full Council was abruptly halted by the Labour Chief Whip when a call by Cllr Gareth Moore (Erdington, Con) for Councillors to declare interests in exempt accommodation during the debate was made. The point of order was rejected by the Labour Lord Mayor and a number of Labour councillors left the meeting.
The move is the latest in a string of incidents from Birmingham Labour connected to ownership and interests in Exempt Accommodation, a controversial type of housing that has raised significant concerns in Birmingham due to its rapid growth, impact on local communities and poor quality of support for residents (which a parliamentary select committee has described as ‘beyond disgraceful.’) Former Councillor, Paulette Hamilton, now MP for Erdington, was found to have breached the code of conduct by failing to declare her interests in the sector ahead of a Cabinet decision on which she sat. Meanwhile, the newly elected Labour Councillor for Stockland Green Cllr Amar Khan, an exempt accommodation hotspot in the city, is reported to be facing a standards investigation for allegedly failing to declare his own interests in the sector.
Councillor Ken Wood (Con, Sutton Walmley & Minworth) Shadow Cabinet Member for Housing and Homelessness said:
“The public would be right to ask exactly what it is Birmingham Labour are trying to hide? The law, and principles of good governance are clear, councillors with a pecuniary interest cannot hide behind commercial sensitivity to disguise their ownership of exempt accommodation or any other financial interests they have. Special dispensation should also only be granted on a case-by-case basis, it is highly concerning that Labour sought, and were subsequently granted, such a sweeping dispensation on this issue. Trying to use loopholes in this way, when locally and nationally we are trying to fight the scourge of poorly run exempt accommodation shows contempt for all those Brummies affected by it.”
Labour-led Birmingham City Council were also recently reported to have failed to act on issues at exempt accommodation they own within the city which had been causing problems for a local primary school for a decade. They have also failed to implement actions agreed on a cross-party basis to introduce and enforce covenants on council-owned or sold housing to prevent the conversion of family homes into exempt housing. A Local Conservative’s amendment has now forced them to agree to implementation by the end of the calendar year.
Councillor Robert Alden (Con, Erdington) Leader of the Conservative Group on Birmingham City Council said:
“The stories of vulnerable people being systematically failed are horrific. Birmingham Local Conservatives have repeatedly called on both the government and Birmingham City Council to take action on this issue. We welcome the recent select committee report which has adopted our calls for bringing Exempt Accommodation into the planning system and ensuring supported housing meets a good standard with the proper help offered to those in need. It is deeply concerning, however, Birmingham Labour are still failing to act on their own responsibilities, including managing their own properties appropriately, using covenants to protect family homes, and ensuring that all financial interests are appropriately declared. The time for talking is long over, it is time they started acting in the interests of Birmingham residents, and not just seeking to protect their own interests or deflect attention elsewhere.”
Additional News
- A copy of the Labour Motion, including calls for a commercial sensitivity clause can be found here Document.ashx (cmis.uk.com)
- The select committee report can be found here Exempt Accommodation (parliament.uk)
- A copy of the previously agreed motion calling for covenants on housing can be found here (minute 19572) BIRMINGHAM CITY COUNCIL (cmis.uk.com)
- New MP Paulette Hamilton failed to declare housing firm link in £1.5m council debate - Birmingham Live (birminghammail.co.uk)
- Probe into claims new Labour councillor in hostels hotspot 'failed to declare' housing link - Birmingham Live (birminghammail.co.uk)
- City MP Paulette Hamilton says sorry after council probe found she broke strict rule - Birmingham Live (birminghammail.co.uk)
- https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/raped-killed-exploited-act-now-25356628?utm_source=linkCopy&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=sharebar
- https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/drug-deals-rape-trauma-no-25030979
- Edgbaston house at centre of drugs claims is owned by West Midlands Police advisor - Birmingham Live (birminghammail.co.uk)
