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West Country Voices Formerly Bylines
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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:
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Andrew Pope
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"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."
