Birmingham City Council leader loses no confidence vote
There were dramatic scenes this week as Birmingham City Council’s leader John Cotton lost a vote of confidence.
The symbolic blow for the council’s ruling Labour group came at the last full council meeting before local elections are held on May 7.
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All 101 council seats in Birmingham will be contested, which means the elections will decide which party or coalition runs the authority for the next four years.
It comes at a critical time for the city, which has suffered the fallout of a council bankruptcy and ongoing bins strike in recent years.
Tensions over these issues lingered over Tuesday’s meeting, which saw the Conservatives put in the no confidence vote in a last-minute amendment to a motion.
The Tory motion argued that Labour had ‘broken Birmingham City Council’ and triggered a heated debate within the council chamber.
When it came to the no confidence vote, the Tories were backed up by other opposition councillors to outnumber the ruling group.
Here’s a look at how the drama played out – and what it could potentially mean for the city.
‘Humilating and costly’
Several opposition councillors voiced frustration and fury over the recent turmoil that has plagued both the council and the city as the motion was discussed.
“We’ve had the council declaring effective bankruptcy which was humiliating and costly,” Conservative councillor Deirdre Alden said. “On top of more taxes, we’ve got a collapse in services so it’s a double whammy.”
Independent councillor Jane Jones, who previously left Birmingham Labour, said residents were telling her on the doorstep: “We pay more and more but our services dwindle and dwindle.”
She continued: “Of course, the dirty streets – that is the big topic of conversation.
“People have literally had enough of what’s happened to the city over 12 months and there doesn’t seem to any end in sight.”
A motion amendment, put forward by Coun Jones and Coun Rinkal Shergill, suggested that the bins strike and recent financial woes had placed a “heavy burden” on Birmingham taxpayers and “destroyed” the city’s reputation internationally.
Liberal Democrat councillor Colin Green said the council was “broken but fixable” and argued mistakes by the Labour administration had inflicted huge financial pain on the authority.
Conservative group leader Coun Robert Alden then told the chamber that a motion amendment, saying the council had no confidence in the leader, had been moved.
The following vote saw the amendment passed through, prompting applause from the opposition councillors in the chamber.
‘Turning point’ or ‘cheap trick’?
In the aftermath of the vote, Coun Robert Alden said: “Today’s vote needs to be a turning point for Birmingham.
“Labour’s leader has lost the confidence of the council because Labour has lost the confidence of the people.”
The leader of the opposition went on to argue that a “city with so much potential has been held back by Labour’s failure”.
Shadow cabinet member for health and social care, Coun Matt Bennett, added: “We brought this motion because enough is enough.
“With local elections just weeks away, the people will now have their
say and deliver the real change this city desperately needs.”
But Birmingham Labour soon hit back by accusing the Tories of playing a ‘cheap trick with the support of their allies in the Liberal Democrats and the Greens’.
They added it had “no implications for the leadership of the council”.
“We are carrying on with the job of investing £130 million into frontline services across the city under the strong leadership of Coun John Cotton,” they added.
At last month’s budget meeting, Coun Cotton said the council was no longer ‘bankrupt’ and that an extra £130 million was being invested in council services, focusing on “cleaner, safer streets”.
Birmingham-specific factors such as the equal pay and Oracle debacles contributed to the financial crisis, while Labour councillors have pointed the finger at funding cuts during the previous Conservative government.
The bins strike dispute between the council and Unite was sparked by the loss of the Waste Recycling and Collection Officer role, with striking workers claiming that they face a pay cut of £8,000.
Birmingham City Council has disputed this figure however and insisted that a fair offer had been made before negotiations ended last summer.
