Tower Hamlets to seek oral hearing for judicial review of inspection decision

The London Borough of Tower Hamlets has formally applied for an oral hearing after being refused permission on the papers to bring a judicial review challenge relating to Eric Pickles' decision to send in inspectors.

Tower Hamlets started its legal action in July over the Communities Secretary’s decision to appoint inspectors from PwC to probe alleged irregularities in grant allocations made by the Panorama television programme.

The council is seeking to require Eric Pickles to provide his reasons and grounds for ordering the audit at the cost of local taxpayers.

However, at the end of August Mr Justice Kenneth Parker refused permission for judicial review proceedings, rejecting all grounds put forward by the council.

Local Government Lawyer understands that Tower Hamlets was unable to meet with its counsel to discuss the authority's options within the seven-day timeframe for renewal of an application, so took the decision to preserve the status quo by paying the relevant fee.

The Communities Secretary meanwhile told the House of Commons this week that he expected PwC to deliver its report in "a matter of days".

"I understand that the consultants have finished their report, but the facts will have to be checked with Tower Hamlets, and only when that process has been completed will I be briefed on it," Pickles said.

"I shall then have to make a 'minded' statement, because Tower Hamlets will obviously have the right to respond before I make a final statement to the House."

The Department for Communities & Local Government has since confirmed the process that is being followed:

• On Thursday (11 September) PwC sent certain factual information, which they might include in their full report, to Tower Hamlets for fact-checking.
• Where individuals have given information in interviews which may be referred to in the report, PwC will also be sending relevant information to that individual by the end of the week.
• The council and individuals receiving this information will have 10 working days to comment to PwC on its factual accuracy. "All this information has been provided by PwC on a strictly confidential basis solely for the purpose of this fact-checking exercise, the DCLG said.
• From 25 September PwC will be considering all the comments received, and finalising their inspection report, "which must include any matters identified where the council has not complied with its statutory best value duty".
• As required by statute once PwC has finalised its full report, it will then send a copy of that report to the Secretary of State and to Tower Hamlets.
• Once the Secretary of State has received the report, "he will give it careful consideration". Subsequently, in due course, Pickles intends to exercise his statutory power to publish the report, and to make any statement he considers appropriate to Parliament.
• If the Secretary of State is satisfied that Tower Hamlets Council is failing to comply with its best value duty, he may exercise his powers of statutory intervention.

"Statutory intervention may take a number of forms including directing a council to take any action that the Secretary of State considers necessary or expedient to secure its compliance with the best value duty, or directing that certain parts of the council’s functions be undertaken by the Secretary of State or by a person - for example a commissioner - appointed by him for that purpose," the DCLG said.