Information Regulator ICO Tells Us It Will Get Tough On Persistently Failing Councils

 

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“Will you be publishing data on councils or other public agencies who are repeated offenders on Freedom of Information requests (FOIs)? If you do already please let me know where it is. For example Bristol Council claims you said they don’t have to meet deadlines and could do a % of” Questions By Somerset Independents Leader Andrew Pope to Regulator ICO

 

Andrew Pope

Somerset Independents puts residents first. We find out the information that the Westminster political parties do not want you to know. We hold the Liberal Democrats, Tories, Labour and Greens to account. And we publish information for the benefit of Somerset residents.

There is a huge variation in how Somerset's councils deal with us.

We give a case study below of our investigations - led by our Leader Andrew Pope - since 2021 into councillors who did not pay their council tax.

Some are more secretive than others. Some councils are more obstructive. Some take more time than others. Some fail to meet their legal obligations. Some answer questions that we did not ask. And some are more helpful than others.

 

Who Are The ICO?

The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) regulates requests for information from public authorities including councils. This is governed by the Freedom of Information Act 2000, brought in by the New Labour Government led by Tony Blair.

Because of the persistent failures by some councils, the ICO has pledged to get tough. We asked them some questions about the ICO publishing the details of repeat offenders. They have responded. And their response is very promising.

The ICO told us that they:

"would commit to delivering more systemic enforcement action against public authorities that clearly and consistently fail to meet their FOI obligations"

 

A Case Study: Councillors Who Did Not Pay Council Tax

Here is an example of the variation in FoI compliance by councils. During our investigations into councillors in council tax arrears, below is a comparison of the responses from Somerset's - and nearby Bath & Bristol - councils. Our FoI requests were very similar to each of the eight councils, in investigations that began in 2021 and some of which are still continuing:

• Sedgemoor District Council responded to say that no councillors had been in arrears
• Somerset West and Taunton responded and gave information about six councillors in arrears and two councillors who had been in persistent arrears. One repeatedly declined to answer our questions. The other paid up and then was removed from the council.
  
• Somerset County Council responded by saying that they did not hold the information and that it was for the district councils to check on councillors. In other words, they passed the buck. This led to us making representations to them on the serious implications for the standards set by their councillors and whether their budgets are set lawfully. We showed that one councillor had broken the law.
  
• Mendip District Council (MDC) responded and revealed that a councillor had been in arrears. The councillor refused to resign or answer questions. MDC declined to give other information. We had to complain to the ICO to get the other information. Once the ICO had enforced over MDC, the council revealed that the same councillor had been in arrears over more than one year.
• Bath and North East Somerset Council responded to say that their councillors had all paid up by the time of the 2022 Budget Full Council meeting. This was an interesting interpretation of our questions, which may lead to further questions from us.
  
• South Somerset District Council (SSDC) did not respond quickly. They declined to provide information. The names of councillors were covered up. We had to contact the ICO, who enforced their powers over SSDC. Over a year later, our complaint to the ICO is still under investigation.
  
• Bristol City Council did not respond. They had to be chased to even respond. We had to involve the ICO to even get a response. Then Bristol refused to give the information. We have had to complain to the ICO again. The ICO are investigating.
• North Somerset Council did respond, but it was late. And the information they gave was completely bungled, with one councillor's arrears being missing when asked by us to do it again. This led to an apology to us by the Leader of the Council Steve Bridger. Eventually, three councillors were named - not two. We had to pressure the head of legal at NSC to get proper answers. The information that NSC failed to provide was eventually revealed to us.
  

So you can see the variations in responses to FoI requests to eight different councils. To say again, the questions were very similar but the responses and how the councils responded, or whether they responded at all, were vastly different.

It has been reported more than once by BristolLive (a.k.a. the Bristol Post) that Bristol City Council (BCC) is failing on FoI requests. BCC has claimed in public that the ICO has allowed them to only make a percentage of responses (see our question above).

It is clear that the ICO have had enough of persistent offenders like Bristol and South Somerset District Council.

We hope that the ICO will be true to its word and this will lead to better compliance with the law by Somerset's councils.

Who Are Somerset Independents?

Join Somerset's own campaign group and political party to celebrate Somerset's past, protect Somerset's present and prepare Somerset for the future. 

Our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) page is here.

We can be contacted at the link here and via Twitter @SomerInds, via Facebook at the Somerset Independents page and via email at somerinds [at] gmail.com.

EXPLAINER: What Is A Local Democracy Reporter? We Interviewed One to Find Out...

Somerset Independents Investigates

 

It’s the “purest form” of journalism being a “window into the Council” but your work might get garbled, edited or completely misinterpreted - even by media organisations - a Local Democracy Reporter (LDR) tells us.
 

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Somerset Independents puts residents first. 

Residents have been asking "What is a Local Democracy Reporter?" when they see it in articles on the BBC website, SomersetLive (if they can get past the ads), Somerset County Gazette and other local media outlets. 

And they've been asking, "How can one person work for so many media outlets?".

To get some answers, Andrew Pope (pictured) interviewed a Local Democracy Reporter from a City in England, who we have agreed to keep anonymous to protect his position and his career as a journalist.

Andrew Pope
Leader of Somerset Independents

Why did you take the job as an LDR?

“I thought it’s the purest form of journalism, because you’re doing exactly what a journalist is supposed to be doing.”

What do you see as the role of an LDR?

“To be a window into the Council so that people in the City or the Council that you’re doing it for know exactly what is going on. The Council do issue press releases that go to the newspapers but those press releases are always what the Council is doing, they are not two-sided. They are one-sided.

It’s the Council celebrating themselves and that’s not democracy so your job is to get straight through that press release into the Council. You’re not part of the Council, you’re an independent person and so people know that you are on their side and they tell you what the Council is actually doing.”

Who gets to use your work and are they allowed to modify the articles?

“It is published on The Wire which is run by the BBC. I put everything as an LDR on there... only 1,000 different publications in the country can access it.”

“They can completely (modify the articles), that’s the thing.”

So they can take a completely different editorial attitude to what you’d written?

“Yes.”

And what can you do about that? How can you complain if they garble your work?

“You can’t do anything about that. They can do what they want with your work, as long as they do it professionally.”

 

 

Daniel Mumby
Local Democracy Reporter

 

Daniel Mumby (pictured above) is the Local Democracy Reporter (LDR) for most of Somerset, the part of Somerset that is covered by Somerset County Council and the four district councils that fall within the same boundary. He is hosted by Reach (SomersetLive), not the BBC.

Stephen Sumner used to be the LDR for North Somerset Council and Bath and North East Somerset Council. He left many weeks ago. 

Somerset Independents have confirmed with Reach, who employ all LDRs in the Somerset/Bath/Bristol Region, that the position remains vacant. 

The job ad is at the link here, although the ad had expired one month before the time of this article.

Adam Postans is the LDR for Bristol, also hosted by Reach.

Reach is a private media organisation (formerly Trinity Mirror). It receives public money from the BBC for the LDRs. It is one of three media organisations that dominate LDRs across the UK, as shown by our analysis here.

Somerset Independents approached Reach LDRs to ask them to report on our investigations into councillors who were in arrears on their council tax - in all parts of the county of Somerset and in Bristol.

No story whatsoever has been published by Reach using our investigation, although we did provide significant information to the Reach LDRs. They did not prioritise it.

We have complained to their editors, Pete Gavan and Stephen D'Albiac, as we believe this story is clearly of significant public interest.

We know that the public is interested, from the reactions that residents express. Residents are usually outraged and angry when we tell them that councillors did not pay up.

Who Are Somerset Independents?

We stand up for residents and help residents to stand up for themselves.

Join Somerset's own campaign group and political party to celebrate Somerset's past, protect Somerset's present and prepare Somerset for the future.

We can be contacted at the link here and via Twitter @SomerInds, via Facebook at the Somerset Independents page and via email at somerinds [at] gmail.com.

Tories Go, Chief Executive Goes: Lib Dem Councillors at Somerset County Council Appoint New Chief Executive

Tory Councillor David Fothergill
is now ex-Leader of the Council

 

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Somerset Independents puts residents first. The Tories at Somerset County Council conspired with Boris Johnson's Tory Government to force through changes to Somerset's councils - against the wishes of the majority of Somerset's residents. If you remember, previously they had cancelled an election in which our candidates were ready to stand. Then we boycotted the 2022 elections which were not cancelled.

So we laughed with glee when Councillor David Fothergill refused to speak to the Local Democracy Reporter Daniel Mumby. He blamed "inappropriate" coverage by Mr Mumby. But everyone knows it was because the Tories had lost so many council seats in the May 2022 elections and Fothergill was having a strop.

Councillor Fothergill was, until then, the Leader of Somerset County Council. Now his "Local Conservatives" had lost control of the Council. Fothergill's candidates tried distancing themselves from Boris Johnson's corrupt Government despite working hand-in-glove with them - including proven dodgy Cabinet Member Robert Jenrick - to change Somerset's councils. Johnson has gone and so has Fothergill. Good riddance to both of them.

Sadly, the Lib Dems gained from the Tory demise. Lib Dem or Tory, same old story.

When the Lib Dems took majority control of the County Council, they discovered that Chief Executive Pat Flaherty was leaving to go to Harrow. Not the school, but the Council. Obviously they may have persuaded him to leave. These details are not shared with the public - see our reports on other senior officers at Somerset's councils who left under a cloud of mystery. The public just pay the council officer's huge wages, possibly huge severance package and suffer when they cut services against what the public wants or needs.

So the new Fib Dem councillors had to appoint a new Chief Executive. And they have chosen Duncan Sharkey. Unlike the lazy and censored news outlets in and around Somerset, Somerset Independents does not parrot press releases. If you want to read what Somerset County Council wants you to read, you can go to their website and see a huge photo of Mr Sharkey's impression of the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland. We include the same photo but much smaller.

Duncan Sharkey

Mr Sharkey is currently Managing Director at the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead. You can go and find out about what has happened there, if you know how to look.

It seems that we know more about Mr Sharkey than other media outlets. 

And it seems that we know more about Mr Sharkey's performance at previous councils than the Lib Dem councillors that hired him. Or perhaps they omitted some information from the County Council's PR spin?

Nice things are said about these highly-paid council officers by councillors when they join. 

Nice things are said about them when they leave by councillors (usually). Sometimes honest councillors make balanced assessments in public, but not often.

Mr Sharkey will be paid:

• £195,000 per year. Yes, you read that right:
• £16,250 per month or 
• £3,750 per week. 

This is what the Lib Dem councillors have decided.

Will Mr Sharkey be worth this huge sum? 

Will Mr Sharkey be able to cope with the huge change of scale from a Borough Council to the New Somerset Council that covers a much larger area and will destroy the district councils AND County Council, and take on bad debts, suffer proven bad councillors and take on the disastrous legacies of the districts and county councils? 

And does Mr Sharkey know where the skeletons are in the closet, some of which have been exposed by Somerset Independents and Somerset Tory MP Ian Liddell-Grainger (where are the other MPs - filling their coffers with Boris Johnson's corrupt payroll, or under investigation by Parliament)?

Somerset residents, who will pay his extortionate salary, are about to find out all of the above when he finally takes up the post in a few months time - the County says "the Autumn" which is a bit vague. The reasons for the vagueness were not explained.

Is Mr Sharkey "the boss" as described by the BBC's part-time reporter Ruth Bradley? No, he is the Head of Paid Service. The councillors are supposed to be the boss, especially Councillor Bill Revans but also his Cabinet. Councillors are supposed to represent the public.

But as readers of this website will know, many councillors lack the leadership required, and rely on officers who then can run things in their interests instead of the public interest. The proverbial "Sir Humphrey" as fans of Yes, Prime Minister will know.

That is not democracy, but bureaucracy. Sadly that seems to be all-too-common at Somerset's councils because the Lib Dem or Tory councillors are not up to the job.

Time will tell in all of these things.

Who Are Somerset Independents?

We inform Somerset residents. We advise Somerset residents to be able to stand up for themselves and to hold to account national and local authority.

Join Somerset's own campaign group and political party to celebrate Somerset's past, protect Somerset's present and prepare Somerset for the future.

We can be contacted at the link here and via Twitter @SomerInds, via Facebook at the Somerset Independents page and via email at somerinds [at] gmail.com.

UPDATE (25/1/23): Regulator Agrees With Bristol! - Regulator Confirms Investigation into Bristol City Council - Council Refuses TWICE To Tell Us Which Councillors Did Not Pay Their Council Tax - We've Complained To The Information Commissioner

 

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UPDATE (25/1/23)

You may find it hard to believe... But after many months since they were going to investigate, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has issued a Decision Notice as below, which shows that they agreed with Bristol City Council that they can keep the identity SECRET of councillor or councillors who did not pay their council tax.

The ICO, in their Decision Notice have written to us to say the following. Therefore the people of Bristol will not know the names of councillors who did not pay up.

"The Commissioner does not require the Council to take any steps."

and despite:

"The Commissioner considers that the complainant is pursuing a
legitimate interest and that disclosure of the requested information is necessary to meet that legitimate interest."

that the ICO decided:

"The Council explained its reasons to the Commissioner as to why the circumstances in this case are compelling enough that to disclose the information would be unfair and unlawful."

"The Commissioner has chosen not to put the council’s explanations in this decision notice, as to do so could, in itself, reveal personal data of the Councillor which could lead to their identity being revealed...
Having considered the Council’s explanations for this case, the
Commissioner has determined that there is insufficient legitimate
interest to outweigh the fundamental rights and freedoms of the
individual in this specific case and considers that there is no legal basis for the council to disclose the withheld information and to do so would be in breach of principle (a)...
The Commissioners decision is that the Council is entitled to rely on section 40(2) of FOIA to refuse to provide the information it has
withheld to this request."

We would also like to remind you that we asked local media outlets to cover this story. They did not.

---

UPDATE (23/7/22)

The Regulator has confirmed today that our complaint about Bristol City Council is now eligible for investigation by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).

We imagine that Bristol is used to this, as they have been reported, repeatedly, to have failed to meet their obligations under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (see below). Anecdotally, we know this from other concerned citizens such as Mike Owen (again, see below).

So we await the result of the investigation, which might be a long wait.

It confirms that we were right to go the ICO.

---

So we have submitted another complaint to the Information Commissioner's Office about Bristol City Council's refusal to name councillors and give details of arrears.

Local campaigner Mike Owen told us: 

"I was surprised how councillors could manage to ignore reminders, and offer the public excuses akin to the dog ate my coursework.

Marvin Rees promised to carry out checks on councillors' council tax arrears, can I assume that all is 'really' ship shape and Bristol fashion when no public update is provided?"

Our Leader Andrew Pope submitted a Freedom of Information (FoI) request to Bristol City Council in March 2022. 

 

Andrew Pope
Leader of Somerset Independents

The FoI was ignored by Bristol City Council. So Andrew contacted the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), who ordered Bristol City Council to respond. 

Eventually, they responded. And the FoI was refused by Bristol City Council.

Then Andrew asked the Council for an Internal Review. Despite taking an age for the internal review, Bristol City Council still refused to give out information on councillors in arrears.

Andrew has referred the case to the ICO in a complaint.

 

Why are you looking at Bristol?

Somerset Independents puts Somerset residents first. So why are we reporting on Bristol City Council, when it is not in Somerset? It is because:

• What happens in Bristol affects Somerset (e.g. on the resources for policing or on changes to governance such as the Mayor of Bristol being scrapped for a committee system - something which we are campaigning for in Somerset)
• Bristol City Council, like the district and county councils in Somerset, is mired in controversy and is lacking in even basic governance and accountability. Councillors in Bristol and Somerset must be held to account for this, in a democracy where citizens are concerned about the lack of representation.
  
• What happens in Somerset affects Bristol (e.g. the scrapping of the districts and county council which will have a knock-on effect on Bristol)

 

Our Victory In Somerset

Somerset Independents has claimed victory in its investigation of all district, county and unitary Councillors in Somerset on whether they paid their council tax or not. The results of our investigations are published on this website - link here.

 

Previous Investigations of Bristol Councillors

During our investigations in Somerset, we became aware from Bristol residents who contacted us that in 2017, the Bristol Post/BristolLive online published two stories on councillors at Bristol City Council that had been in arrears on their council tax. 

1. "Deputy mayor owed more than £5,000 in council tax arrears - and Labour group paid it - Councillor Asher Craig paid the arrears - thanks to loan from the Labour group", 28th March 2017, Ian Onions
   
2. "The five Bristol city councillors who fell behind with their council tax payments revealed - All of the councillors have given reasons for their late payments", 17th March 2017, Esme Ashcroft
    

A concerned citizen named Mike Owen had earlier submitted an FoI in January 2017. Bristol City Council had covered up the names in that case too, saying (emphasis added):

"Shortly prior to your request, checks were carried out on all 70 councillors to check their position in relation to payment of council tax. Five were found to be in arrears of two months or more and were contacted in this regard. All five have now cleared their arrears. On the basis that these arrears have been cleared in advance of the budget meeting, we are of the view that the adverse consequences of releasing the names of those councillors would be unnecessary and unjustified."

Mr Owen then requested an Internal Review. We do not know whether the outcome of this Internal Review was how the names were revealed. And we do not know whether the Bristol Post used this information in their reports. The instigator of the FoI is not credited in the report.

So the battle that Mr Owen had suffered, has been repeated in our experience by Andrew Pope, too. And possibly by others who have tried to get the information out of Bristol City Council.

We approached Mr Owen for comment on our investigation. He told us:

"I was surprised how councillors could manage to ignore reminders, and offer the public excuses akin to the dog ate my coursework.

Marvin Rees promised to carry out checks on councillors' council tax arrears, can I assume that all is 'really' ship shape and Bristol fashion when no public update is provided?"

Private Eye had also published details of arrears of councillors from the 2016-17 year in a nationwide expose of councillors (see image). They had not been blocked or refused by Bristol City Council. But both Mr Owen and Mr Pope had been blocked.

 

Again, we do not know what relationship there was, if any, between the Private Eye investigation and the Bristol Post's reports. Then in 2018, Esme Ashcroft of BristolLive again reported:

"Revealed: The Bristol, North Somerset, South Gloucestershire and B&NES councillors who missed council tax payments - Has your councillor made the list?", 29th May 2018

For 2016/17, Ms Ashcroft named:

• Asher Craig (Labour) - again as named in the Ian Onions report, 
• Sultan Khan (Labour)
• Harriet Clough (Lib Dem)
• Cleo Lake (Green)
• Stephen Clark (Green).

Then also in Bristol for 2018:

• Charlie Bolton (Green)
• Harriet Clough (Lib Dem) - AGAIN (also in 2016/17)
• Carole Johnson (Labour)
• Paul Goggin (Labour).

The report also named North Somerset and Bath and North East Somerset councillors, but that is not relevant here. Somerset Independents has done separate investigations into those councils - please see elsewhere on this website.

It has been difficult to find any more recent reports than 2018, if they even exist.

 

Why Are Media Outlets Not Publishing On Bristol Councillors in Arrears since 2018?

We wondered why or whether local media outlets had not investigated councillors and the Mayor on council tax arrears.

It may have been that stories had been written and then had been squashed by editors not wanting to upset "powerful people" - as we know one Editor (outside Bristol) told a journalist recently when he wanted to report on an abusive and offensive MP.

Or it could have been that Bristol City Council refused Freedom of Information (FoI) requests for every year since 2018 when they did reveal the names of recalcitrant councillors to the Bristol Post? That would be true to form of Mr Owen's experience and ours too. 

Since 2018 investigations by Bristol's media outlets seem to have dried up, or not made their way into the public realm.

However, the Bristol Post has reported on Bristol City Council's atrocious record in not responding to FoIs in time:

1. "Bristol City Council regularly misses legal deadline for answering information requests - Deputy mayor Craig Cheney has admitted the council has a "problem" responding to Freedom of Information requests", 16th April 2021
   
2. "Bristol City Council cuts Freedom of Information requests target so it can meet it - Authority says the change followed Information Commissioner's Office advice on 'realistic' goals", 2nd Nov 2021, Adam Postans
   

Somerset Independents has approached the Bristol Post on this story. It was not taken up by them. So as we have done with our other investigations, we are publishing it ourselves. And we have approached Pete Gavan, the Editor at the Bristol Post/BristolLive, to ask what has happened.

Somerset Independents will not be spending much more time on Bristol. We are volunteers that stand up for Somerset, not Bristol.

But we report this in the public interest in the hope that Bristol residents can pick up the baton and discover what is happening, and then do something about it.

 

Who Are Somerset Independents?

We help residents to stand up for themselves and challenge those in power.

Join Somerset's own campaign group and political party to celebrate Somerset's past, protect Somerset's present and prepare Somerset for the future.

We can be contacted at the link here and via Twitter @SomerInds, via Facebook at the Somerset Independents page and via email at somerinds [at] gmail.com.

VICTORY: Exposing Councillors' Council Tax Arrears - Our Campaign To Reveal Recalcitrant Councillors Who Hold Public Office

 

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Somerset Independents puts residents first. Since early 2021, we have been conducting investigations into councillors that have been in persistent arrears with their council tax.

We have covered the whole of the traditional County of Somerset, and investigated councillors at:

• Bath and North East Somerset Council which claimed that all councillors had paid up
  
• South Somerset District Council
• Mendip District Council
• Somerset West and Taunton District Council
• Sedgemoor District Council which claimed that all councillors had paid up
  
• Somerset County Council
• North Somerset Council
  

That is a lot of councillors - hundreds! 

The results of our investigations are on this website and this page will be updated with links to some of the articles, for your convenience. You can click the council names above.

The campaign has been successful and we are claiming a victory in the Somerset County Council area of the County, because almost all of those district and county councillors that we have exposed have either resigned, lost their seats or not stood in the 2022 elections, meaning that they will no longer be councillors when the district councils and county council are scrapped in 2023. 

All except one - Conservative Councillor Sue Osborne who has been elected to the County Council and will be part of the New Somerset Council. She persistently has failed to respond to our multiple attempts to get her to explain.

We are still battling with South Somerset District Council to get some of the information that we asked for over a year ago. Yes, they are still trying to cover up for their councillors, having kept their names secret until we forced them to expose the councillors.

Somerset Independents is grateful to the journalist who fought against Bolton Council when it tried to withhold the names of councillors in arrears in Bolton. Mr Haslam took it all the way to the Upper Tribunal, where Judge Kate Markus made a very important ruling that we have used to pressure those councils that did not want to follow the Nolan Principles of Public Life. It is a long ruling, but the most important part of it is paragraph 40. Judge Markus wrote in the Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber):

"40. But, in the case of a councillor, it is not only a private matter. A councillor is a public official with public responsibilities to which non-payment of council tax is directly and significantly relevant.  A number of specific features of this were advanced in submissions to the First-tier Tribunal.  In particular, section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 bars a councillor from voting on the Council’s budget if he or she has an outstanding council tax debt of over two months.  If a councillor is present at any meeting at which relevant matters are discussed, he or she must disclose that section 106 applies and may not vote.  Failure to comply is a criminal offence. Thus council tax default strikes at the heart of the performance of a councillor’s functions. It is evident that setting the council’s budget is one of the most important roles undertaken by councillors.  The loss of one vote could make a fundamental difference to the outcome. This adds a significant public dimension to the non-payment of council tax.  The very fact that Parliament has legislated in this way reflects the connection between non-payment and the councillor’s public functions.  Moreover, as the Commissioner observed in his decision notice, recent failure to pay council tax is likely to impact on public perceptions and confidence in a councillor as a public figure."

This ruling is key, but Haslam had to fight a long way to get there and it was done despite the Information Commissioner's Office, yes them, supporting Bolton Council to keep the names of councillors secret. 

We are standing on the shoulders of giants like Mr Haslam and Ms Markus, and those that helped them, and we are very grateful.

But we are not grateful to the so-called "media" that is supposed to cover Somerset. The only Somerset outlet that published our work was The Leveller. And the 60th Anniversary Edition of Private Eye nationally carried our work too, although the journalist that did the story, based on our work, got some facts wrong. We have asked him for an apology and we have asked Private Eye for a correction, as our name - not the journalists name - is on the story. Nevertheless, we are grateful that at least two organs carried this key story.

Every other media outlet in Somerset that we contacted refused to cover the story or did not respond to our media releases or other communications.

This raises serious questions about who decides what is in the public interest, and whether it should be private media organisations or the BBC, their editors and journalists, that decide what is or what is not, "a story".

We know that residents want to know about councillors who don't pay their council tax. It is so obviously a story of public interest. Our website stats prove it.

The investigation was done on a shoestring. We are volunteers that have determination, knowledge and the motivation to expose wrongdoing in the public interest.

So we published the results ourselves. That is the wonderful thing about the World Wide Web and community journalism.

Who Are Somerset Independents?

We are volunteers who work together to improve representation and to obtain the truth for Somerset residents, as we have done over councillors and their failures to pay their own council tax.

Join Somerset's own campaign group and political party to celebrate Somerset's past, protect Somerset's present and prepare Somerset for the future.

We can be contacted at the link here and via Twitter @SomerInds, via Facebook at the Somerset Independents page and via email at somerinds [at] gmail.com.

EXPLAINER: What's Wrong With Having Labour/Lib Dem/Green/Tory Party Councillors in Somerset's Councils?

 

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Somerset Independents puts residents first. We exist to improve representation in Somerset and to stand up for residents.

We are frequently critical of the Westminster parties and we say:

 Labour

 Lib Dem

 Green or 

 Tory...

 Same old story.

The fact is that now, after the 2022 local elections, that there will be fewer independent councillors in (most of) Somerset. We say (most of) because this does not apply to North Somerset Council and Bath and North East Somerset Council.

In those elections, there were only three councillors out of 110 (2.7%) elected to the County Council that in 2023 will become the New Somerset Council unitary authority when it replaces the four districts and the county council.

All of the independent councillors on the districts will go. And there will be 107 out of 110 councillors (97.3%) who are members of the Westminster parties - Labour, Lib Dem, Green or Tory. We do not include town and parish councils in these figures, but the Westminster parties have infected those councils too - sometimes in disguise by standing for the county council for their party, and then standing as a fake "independent" on the town and parish at the same time in 2022 elections - as pointed out by Scott Ward from Independents for Frome in his response to the attack by The Leveller on IFF.

Below is an explainer as to why we believe that Westminster parties should have no say in our local councils. We hope that it is useful to residents and that it helps to explain. Let us know your views by getting in touch.

We believe that councillors should represent their local residents, by listening and acting on their concerns. Having Westminster parties telling councillors what to do, via the whip and other mechanisms, gets in the way of doing this. There is also a pernicious influence of local media, which involves unaccountable decisions over what is and what is not in the public interest. This is the local politics of news.

In the main, there are two key tensions and conflicts in being an elected representative in a party-based elected democracy (e.g. a Member of Parliament or Councillor). One is between the representative's political party and the representative's constituents.

On a particular policy, the constituents may have views that are perceived to be not very “informed” by evidence or debate, but nevertheless they are the people who elected the representative, and who can vote them out. On the other hand, the party also enabled the representative to be selected as their candidate, provided them with support and had policy positions that may or may not match the constituents’ views. The representative may choose to take the party line, or may take a line determined from some or all of their constituents. All of these tensions can interfere in how the representative demonstrates accountability (or not).

If the ideal of democratic accountability is to be observed, an elected representative would always do what their electors wanted (Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s "people's will"). However, this leads to the practical concern of how the "people's will" is to be determined. Such issues raise other concerns related to the democratic goods of democratic legitimacy and popular control.

The other tension is between the representative's politics as an individual and the representative's party policy. In the UK Parliament, the party whips intervene in this matter, enforcing discipline on party members to obey the whip and vote according to party policy. There are levels of discipline, with a "three-line whip" being the strongest. Punishment for disobeying the whip is unspecified, but it does not require too much imagination to expect that MPs could lose selection at election time, have the progression of their political career halted, or suffer more devious "briefings" to the media about matters that may be political or even highly personal.  

With the implementation since 2000 of the Strong Leader and Cabinet or even more undemocratic Mayor and Cabinet model in the vast majority of councils across England, the flaws of the Westminster system have been replicated in those councils. It is just councillors instead of MPs.

The media and lobbying also intervene in policy and decision-making. The media can act as guardians of communities, taking a popular issue, making it into a story that sells newspapers and taking a particular line on the issue (e.g. opposing the fluoridation of water in Southampton). Or it can select and embellish stories that encourage viewing of television news, or hits on websites or subscriptions to magazines. Media power itself has come under the spotlight with the Leveson inquiry.

Lobbying is notorious for lacking transparency, and accusations of corruption of elected representatives have focussed heavily on corporate lobbying and PR. There is also a debate over whether "civil society groups" can, or should, create a new type of "accountability" by trying to influence government policy, despite not being accountable to the political structure of representation. Instead, they are only accountable, if that can be said, to their own members, their boards of trustees, or other groups that are not necessarily representative of the constituents that elected that government. Religious leaders also occasionally intervene in politics, despite the widespread view that "politics and religion should never mix". Despite this view, the Church of England remains traditionally privileged over other religions in the UK Parliament as well as law. For example, its bishops sit in the House of Lords - itself an unelected body.

All of the reality of the tensions and conflicts described above interfere in the ideal of democratic accountability of elected representatives to local residents - this is the ideal that Somerset Independents aims to promote.

 

1. What do you think of the above explainer?
2. Is it helpful?
   
3. Do you agree?
4. Do you disagree?
5. Have we persuaded you?
   

Who Are Somerset Independents?

Join Somerset's own campaign group and political party to celebrate Somerset's past, protect Somerset's present and prepare Somerset for the future.

We can be contacted at the link here and via Twitter @SomerInds, via Facebook at the Somerset Independents page and via email at somerinds [at] gmail.com.

Giant Private Companies Are Dominating Publicly-Funded Local Democracy Reporting

Analysis By Somerset Independents

Somerset Independents puts residents first. We report on the stories that matter to local residents. But we cannot do it all on our own. There must be others who stand up for residents, right? Who is reporting on the reporters? We are.

Analysis done by Somerset Independents shows that privately-owned media giants will continue to dominate the reporting of local democracy, and will continue to receive public money via the BBC Local Democracy Reporting Service from 2021-2024 across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Our article here explores What Is A Local Democracy Reporter?

Just three companies - Reach, JPI Media and Newsquest - control over 83% of all 118 contracts for Local Democracy Reporters (LDRs). The giant three also control over 84% of all individuals employed as LDRs.

The remaining 17% of contracts are distributed amongst fifteen companies. And the remaining 16% of LDRs are split thinly amongst those fifteen minnows.

More analysis by Somerset Independents

The Local Democracy Reporting Service is funded by the BBC from public money, with the money going to the privately-owned media companies. It is a public-private partnership (PPP). LDRs are hosted by the private companies, with reporting and editorial lines of accountability within those companies. LDRs do not report back to the BBC. Media outlets can subscribe to the output of LDRs.

In all, eighteen companies were awarded LDR contracts. Reach (formerly Trinity Mirror) got 51 of the total 118 (43.2%) awarded - with 75 of the total 165 LDR reporters being with Reach. JPI Media were awarded the second highest number of contracts, 24 (20.3%) and 35.5 (21.5%) of reporters. Newsquest were awarded the third highest number of contracts, 23 (19.5%) and 28.5 (17.5%) of reporters.

DC Thomson were the next highest number of contracts, with just 5 and 3.5 reporters. The fourteen other companies were awarded a total of 15 contracts.

This domination by three companies raises serious questions about editorial influence and accountability in the reporting of local democracy in the United Kingdom.

---

Source: “New Local Democracy Reporting Service contract holders revealed - Eighteen news organisations will employ Local Democracy Reporters from July 2021”, https://www.bbc.com/lnp/ldrs/2021_contracts/. 

LDRs Funding Allocation document: (“Table A: Allocated contracts and reporters by operating company”), https://bbc.com/lnp/documents/ldrs_suppliers_2021_v1.pdf

Standing Up For Democracy

Another Tory and Lib Dem Attack On Democracy - Two Years On From When We Formed Somerset Independents as a Campaigning Group For Residents

Our Emblem

Somerset Independents was formed in March 2020, at the beginning of the UK Government's and Somerset's councils disastrous response to the Global Covid-19 Pandemic.

It was formed as a campaign group to stand up for Somerset residents, because the Westminster parties - Conservatives, Liberal Democrats, Greens and Labour - were continuing to let Somerset down.

Since then and over the last two years, some things have changed.

Since then and over the last two years, some things have stayed the same.

Our Aims have stayed the same and when we registered Somerset Independents as Somerset's only dedicated political party, the Aims were written into the Constitution that we submitted to the Electoral Commission.

These Aims were informed by what residents told us, because we are residents too.

The failings of the Westminster parties have continued.

And their latest failure is the forcing of a change to how Somerset is governed by councils. A new, illegitimate Council forced upon Somerset residents against their will.

Who is responsible, residents ask us? Chiefly it has been the Conservative Government and the Conservative councillors on Somerset County Council. 

The Government continues to be so badly led by Boris Johnson and the Somerset County Council also continues to be so badly led by the Conservative Leader of the Council David Fothergill.

These Conservatives do not stand up for Somerset residents. They let Somerset down.

And the so-called "opposition" of Liberal Democrats on the County Council and on the district councils, have been limp in their opposition.

This is because the Liberal Democrats think they can take control of the New Somerset Council at these 2022 elections.

WE HAVE BOYCOTTED THESE ELECTIONS. And we have explained why on this website and in the local media.

We are boycotting these elections because it should be Lib Dems, Tories, Greens and Labour that are held to account by Somerset residents.

To stand candidates at these elections would be to condone the actions of the Conservatives and the inaction of the Lib Dems.

Please remember that we were ready to stand candidates at the County Council elections to make it a Referendum on whether to have the New Somerset Council ... BUT THE TORY COUNTY COUNCILLORS CANCELLED THE ELECTIONS for the County Council and had their friends at Westminster force the new Council upon Somerset instead.

So when this new Council is formed, we ask you to ask the Lib Dems, Labour, Greens and especially the Tories:

1. Why did they ignore the advice of the democracy experts at De Montfort University.?They ignored Somerset residents who voted in 2007 by 82% to 18% to NOT have a unitary authority. So why now?

2. Why did they do it to Somerset when it has been such a failure in Cornwall and Wiltshire and when the West Somerset and Taunton merger was also such a failure that cost a fortune to taxpayers and was another unwanted reorganisation? 

3. Who is going to pay and how many tens (or hundreds?) of millions of pounds of taxpayers money are they going to waste, doing it?

4. What will be the bad debts inherited from the district councils? 

5. Why did they ignore the evidence from De Montfort University's experts on democracy in the FoLGIS Report? 

6. Was this just a way to fix the elections to favour the Westminster parties?

Leader of Somerset Independents, Andrew Pope, says:

Andrew Pope

"Somerset residents are asking a lot of questions, and that needs to continue, despite the attempts by the Westminster parties to ignore them. 

All Somerset residents are going to pay for this attack on democracy to gerrymander Somerset for the benefit of the Westminster parties.

Somerset residents' lives will continue to be ruined by those who put themselves and their party first, instead of residents first.

They don't intend for it to be for the benefit of Somerset residents.

That's why Somerset Independents were the ONLY campaigners who fought for a YES/NO Referendum, but the Lib Dems and Tories didn't want the proper Referendum. And Labour and the Greens were typically lazy and irrelevant.

We were ready to work cross-party and with people in no party like us, but there were insufficient allies to work with - this includes so-called independents who in Somerset seem to mostly be anything but independent - just look at the lists of Parish/Town council candidates - with some so-called independents standing as "Independent" and also standing for the Tories for the New Somerset Council!

In other campaigns, like the successful campaign that I worked on against the Solent Devolution Deal and Elected Mayor in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, there were allies who I was able to work with across the Region. But sadly, not here in Somerset. This process will probably end up with an elected Mayor, just like arch-Tory and anti-democrat Michael Heseltine wants.

There was a Referendum, but it wasn't a YES/NO Referendum - just a choice between two buckets of manure. As we told them when we spoke at their council meetings, we've got enough manure in Somerset, thanks.

It will now be even more difficult for independents to be elected to the Council, and the Westminster parties know this. They have the money - independents do not. 

This is proved by the dearth of candidates, as reported by Local Democracy Reporter Daniel Mumby.

As Mumby reports, out of 337 candidates standing in 55 divisions (2 seats in each division), just "23 standing either as independents or with no affiliation or description."

Even if ALL of these 23 candidates were elected, they would not have a majority. We will leave it to Somerset's voters to decide who to vote for, or whether to vote at all. It will be the usual low turnout.

And the vast majority of those elected will be of the usual low standard and they will continue to leave Somerset residents in the manure.

So residents should not and cannot let them ignore the Westminster parties' atrocious actions, and Somerset Independents will do what it can with its meagre resources and volunteers, to work with Somerset residents and continue to stand up for Somerset residents."

Just 1 of 5 Somerset Councils Confirms All Councillors Paid Their Council Tax - the rest are in shame...

Standing Up For Residents

Last year, we published our investigation into all Somerset district and county councillors and exposed those councillors that were outed by their own councils.

Somerset Independents should not have had to do this investigation, as it should be normal that ALL councillors pay their council tax. This is what residents expect and councillors make decisions that impact hundreds of thousands of people in Somerset. It is also the law that councillors cannot vote on the council budget if they are in arrears.

Us volunteers at Somerset Independents should also not have to investigate, as surely the local media should be investigating. But none of the below do much investigating of Somerset's councils.

• BBC Bristol a.k.a. BBC West
  
• SomersetLive/Reach, including the "Local Democracy Reporter" Daniel Mumby who is attached to Reach at SomersetLive but gets funded by the BBC
• (Somerset) County Gazette
  

However as reported on this website, and in national and local investigative organs Private Eye and The Leveller, Somerset Independents discovered that councillors were persistently in arrears:

• in the east of Somerset at Mendip District Council (MDC) and South Somerset District Council (SSDC), and 
• in the west of Somerset at Somerset West and Taunton (SWT) AND on Somerset County Council (SCC) too.

The County Council did not want to know if any of its councillors were in arrears. When we enquired, they palmed off responsibility for checking onto the districts and expected councillors to be honest to declare any arrears when at Somerset County Council.

We've discovered and reported that County Councillors are NOT NECESSARILY honest, as shown in our reports on former Tory Councillor Neil Bloomfield, who is also a SSDC councillor for Martock.

Council Tax Recalcitrant
Councillor Neil Bloomfield

So what about Sedgemoor's councillors?

In the financial year ending in 2021, our investigations showed that over the two years, only one of the five district and county councils in Somerset had no councillors in arrears TWO YEARS IN A ROW.

That was Sedgemoor District Council.

We asked them the same questions as last year, again this year.

And again, they've told us that no councillors on Sedgemoor District Council were in arrears.

We won't be congratulating them, as this is how things should be.

Andrew Pope, Leader of Somerset Independents and leader of the investigation, says:

Andrew Pope

 

"Other Somerset councils and other councils nearby have been asked the same questions that we asked them last year.

And shockingly, we have discovered more councillors who have been persistently in arrears, and more councils who are prepared to try to cover up and protect their councillors instead of answering our questions.

We will be reporting more very soon, particularly on those councillors who might think it is OK for them to stand again in the elections in May."

West Country Voices Refuses To Publish Our Article on Somerset Councillors Who Didn't Pay Council Tax

 

West Country Voices Formerly Bylines

Following our continuing and long-running investigations into Somerset councillors who persistently failed to pay their own council tax, our Leader Andrew Pope was asked by the Editor of West Country Bylines, Anthea Simmons, to write an article for them to publish.

West Country Bylines has recently renamed itself West Country Voices.

Below is the article which West Country Bylines then refused to publish! 

Here is what Somerset Editor Mick Fletcher said in the refusal:

"Anthea Simmons has forwarded your emails on council tax to me as Somerset editor for West Country Bylines. We have carefully considered the matter but do not feel there is sufficient evidence of serious and deliberate wrongdoing to justify our publishing an article on this topic.  Thank you for your interest in Bylines

 

Best wishes

 

Mick Fletcher"

 

Andrew Pope says: 

Andrew Pope

"I wrote to Mick Fletcher and Anthea Simmons, pointing out that we know that there is definitely evidence of serious and deliberate wrongdoing by several Somerset councillors.

And we know that Private Eye and The Leveller HAVE published our work.

We also know that Somerset residents have thanked us for our investigations and hard work.

So we are publishing the article... despite West Country Bylines refusing to."

Arrears Of The Year: Somerset Councillors Put Up Our Council Tax But Did Not Pay Their Own

In February 2021, campaign group Somerset Independents asked councillors at all four district councils, and Somerset County Council, to not increase council tax for Somerset residents during a Pandemic. But councillors did put up our council tax and have spent public money on the wrong things. Some councillors did not pay their own council tax over months and even years. 

In a detailed and prolonged investigation, residents at Somerset Independents exposed these councillors and their councils for their wrongdoing.

Who Are Somerset Independents?

Somerset Independents is a campaign group of Somerset residents that was formed during the first Coronavirus Lockdown in March 2020. It was formed by residents to stand up for residents and for promoting the good reputation of the County of Somerset in the West Country, in the UK and overseas.

At the 2021 budget meetings of all councillors, we asked councillors at all four district councils, and Somerset County Council too, to not put up council tax during a Pandemic. 

But councillors did put up our council tax. And some of them did not pay their own council tax - some of them over months and even years in arrears. Our investigation exposed these councillors and their councils for their wrongdoing.

Why Should We Care About This?

Councillors hold public office and are elected to serve the public. Elected office is supposed to be a privilege and it is a responsibility, because authority comes with responsibility. But these councillors in arrears on their council tax have brought the office of councillor, and their councils, into disrepute.

Somerset residents told us that it was "disgusting" and that these councillors should resign. We agreed. 

So we asked each councillor to resign, asked them the same questions and offered all of them a right of reply. Most of the councillors have not even replied, despite multiple contacts by us. Those that did reply, refused to resign. Some claimed to have paid up - though only after we had exposed them.

What Did The Councils Do To Make Sure That Councillors Paid Up?

Councils did not make sure that councillors paid up. They remained in arrears for months and in some cases, years.

Worse, and showing how far councils will go to protect councillors, two of the district councils - South Somerset and Mendip - even tried to cover up the names of the councillors. Somerset Independents had to fight hard to expose these rogue councillors, involving local media and complaining to the Information Commissioner's Office about the councils.

The other three councils answered our Freedom of Information requests. Sedgemoor said that they had no councillors in arrears. Somerset West and Taunton Council gave us the names of the councillors in arrears. They also gave us the written correspondence of chasing councillors up and ensuring that councillors did not vote on the budget and council tax matters. Because to do so, for a councillor in arrears, is a criminal offence.

Somerset County Council told us that it was the responsibility of the district councils to ensure council tax was collected, and that county councillors were expected to declare their interest. Some councillors are "dual-hatted", being on the district council and county council too. More about this later.

What If The Councillor Was Facing Financial Hardship?

The vast majority of residents that we asked told us that there is no valid excuse for a councillor, because residents are expected to pay. 

Somerset Independents was formed to stand up for residents. Once a resident becomes a councillor, they hold a privileged position and elected office. They are no longer just a private individual. This is a very important distinction.

We fought for residents to not have their council tax increased. But councillors did it anyway. So we believe that there is a valid and urgent need for an investigation to see whether those councillors paid their own council tax. And whilst the majority of councillors did pay up, some councillors did not pay and for a long time.

Resident after resident told us that there is no valid excuse for a councillor not to pay their council tax over a prolonged period. Residents say that one or two months is reasonable and can just be an administrative error in a busy life. But that is all.

We have not investigated private individuals who have not paid up. In fact, we have tried to help them by asking for council tax to remain the same and for council tax to be spent well. But councillors ignored our requests to not increase council tax. Councillors are not private individuals while they hold office.

Councillors expect residents to pay up, even when councillors wrongly put up council tax during a Global Pandemic. Councils pursue non-payers. We understand that unpaid council tax can be deducted from the allowance that councillors receive. Have the councils done this? If not, why not? Councils need to tell the public who ultimately fund Somerset's councils.

Councillors hold a privileged position of elected public office and are supposed to set an example. They also vote on the council tax and set the council's budget in February of each year, at the so-called "Budget Meeting" of their Full Council.

Cases elsewhere in England have proved that councillors are not private individuals when it comes to non-payment of council tax. It is a public matter because they hold public office. 

For example, after a four year battle by journalist Dale Haslam in Bolton in 2016, Judge K Markus QC in the Upper Tier Tribunal ruled that the identity of councillors should not remain secret and that it is in the public interest that they be revealed. The most important part is paragraph 40 of the ruling - see * below.

It is incredible to note that the case had to go to appeal, because the Information Commissioner and the First Tier Tribunal agreed that the councillor's identity remain secret.

 

So What Happens Now on the Arrears Of The Year?

The Bolton case is important and the ruling by Judge Markus is clear.

So Somerset Independents has named the councillors and their councils on our website. We will be revealing more details, because it is in the public interest. Both Private Eye and The Leveller have reported on our investigation and also offered the right of reply to the councillors.

Somerset Independents will continue our investigation, and urge the councillors to resign. Too many of these councillors think they can get away with it.

We are investigating whether criminal offences were committed by any councillors in voting on budget-related items while disbarred, and whether they properly declared their interest at the council meetings. 

Somerset Independents has the evidence, including the official minutes and recordings of the meetings, that at least two councillors did commit criminal offences in voting on budget-related matters while disbarred, and that interests were not declared at meetings, despite the law requiring them to.

We are considering whether to give the evidence to Avon and Somerset Police and what action we expect the councils to take on these councillors in arrears.

Andrew Pope, Somerset resident and Leader of Somerset Independents

* Judge Markus wrote in the Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber):

"40. But, in the case of a councillor, it is not only a private matter. A councillor is a public official with public responsibilities to which non-payment of council tax is directly and significantly relevant.  A number of specific features of this were advanced in submissions to the First-tier Tribunal.  In particular, section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 bars a councillor from voting on the Council’s budget if he or she has an outstanding council tax debt of over two months.  If a councillor is present at any meeting at which relevant matters are discussed, he or she must disclose that section 106 applies and may not vote.  Failure to comply is a criminal offence. Thus council tax default strikes at the heart of the performance of a councillor’s functions. It is evident that setting the council’s budget is one of the most important roles undertaken by councillors.  The loss of one vote could make a fundamental difference to the outcome. This adds a significant public dimension to the non-payment of council tax.  The very fact that Parliament has legislated in this way reflects the connection between non-payment and the councillor’s public functions.  Moreover, as the Commissioner observed in his decision notice, recent failure to pay council tax is likely to impact on public perceptions and confidence in a councillor as a public figure."