Gove sends six commissioners into Birmingham for five-year intervention

A team of six commissioners led by Max Caller have been appointed at Birmingham City Council as part of an intervention programme set to last five years, the Government has announced.

The decision by Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove was made in accordance with sections 15(5) and (6) of the Local Government Act 1999 and will see the team of commissioners afforded powers relating to governance, finance and recruitment and bring expertise in local government improvement, finance, HR, equal pay, housing, ICT and commercial projects.

The six commissioners, which is understood to be the most ever appointed to a council, will be joined by Lord John Hutton, a former Defence Secretary and Business Secretary, and John Biggs, former Mayor of Tower Hamlets, as political advisers to the council.

The appointments come a month after Birmingham issued its first section 114 notice in the face of equal pay liabilities worth up to £760m and the unexpected costs of implementing an Oracle IT system.

Functions now under the control of the commissioners include the governance and scrutiny of strategic decision-making, as well as functions associated with financial governance and scrutiny of strategic financial decision-making.

In addition, they will be responsible for the proper administration of the council's financial affairs and all functions associated with the council's strategic financial management.

These powers include control over the officer structure and recruiting senior officers at the council.

Under the intervention, Birmingham has six months to prepare and agree on an improvement plan focusing on housing, waste, finance, HR, governance and corporate services.

The council is also under directions to review the provision and operations of its corporate services, which includes its legal services.

Lead commissioner Caller has experience in multiple interventions and Best Value roles, including as Commissioner in Slough and Tower Hamlets and Best Value Inspector in Northamptonshire and Liverpool.

The following five commissioners will support Caller:

• John Coughlan CBE, former Chief Executive of Hampshire County Council. "Mr Coughlan has been asked to focus on broad improvement, by supporting cultural change and transformation and driving forward work on the long-term sustainability of the Authority. His role will operate alongside his role as Commissioner for Special Educational Needs and Disability services in Birmingham, for which he reports to the Secretary of State for Education."
• Chris Tambini, former Director of Corporate Resources at Leicestershire County Council. "Mr Tambini will focus on the financial position and recovery of the Authority. This will include supporting the Authority's work to develop and implement a plan for managing the significant equal pay liabilities that led to the Section 114 notices, and overseeing the steps needed to manage other budget pressures for 2023/24 and beyond, and to return the Authority to a position of long-term financial sustainability."
• Pam Parkes FCIPD, the current Executive Director for People and Transformation at Essex County Council. He was also part of the Best Value Inspection Team in Thurrock Council. "Pam Parkes will focus on supporting Birmingham to improve its Human Resource and Organisational Design capacity and to find solutions to the Equal Pay issue, including ensuring that appropriate steps are being taken at the required pace to address and manage its equal pay liabilities, in a way that is both sustainable and represents value for money."
• Jackie Belton, the Chief Executive of the London Borough of Bexley and the former Executive Director of Operations at the London Borough of Newham. Belton will focus on supporting the Authority's housing function.
• Myron Hrycyk, the Cabinet Office's Crown Representative for Oracle, IBM and Microsoft. He will focus on supporting the Authority to rectify its Oracle issues, improve IT and provide commercial insight.

Caller will be paid £1,200 a day for his work as lead commissioner. The other commissioners will be paid £1,100 a day.

According to Government documents, the council's leader, Cllr John Cotton, and its chief executive, Deborah Cadman OBE, welcomed the appointment of Caller in their representations to the Government.

During a joint presentation to the Government, the pair also asked for clarity on the format, scope and timelines of the planned local inquiry, noting the Authority announced in June this year its intention to hold a judge-led inquiry into the causes of its Equal Pay liabilities.

Michael Gove said: "Residents have been let down by Birmingham City Council's failure to get a grip of the significant issues it faces, from its equal pay liability to the implementation of its IT system.

"We are always committed to protecting the interests of taxpayers and we will take whatever action necessary to ensure this happens in Birmingham.

"That's why today I have taken the decision to intervene and appoint a team of commissioners to help return the council to a sustainable footing moving forward."

The appointment of the commissioners came as it emerged that Birmingham City Council's monitoring officer is subject to an investigation in relation to the provision of legal advice amid "strained" member-officer relations at the financially-beleaguered council.

The request for an investigation into Janie Berry, City Solicitor and Monitoring Officer, came from "some senior politicians” at the council, according to Grant Thornton in a report published late last week (29 September) making statutory recommendations under Schedule 7 of the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014.

The auditors’ report noted, however, that: “As far as we are aware, the Council had not […] commissioned or received legal advice that indicated that the Monitoring Officer had provided incorrect legal advice (noting in particular that the LGA was not commissioned to give legal advice to the Council but was rather offering a mediation and support role)."

Adam Carey