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MPs to hold inquiry into imposition of commissioners on councils

The Communities and Local Government Committee is to hold an inquiry into the imposition of commissioners on Tower Hamlets and Rotherham councils.

The committee said it would examine "the effectiveness of the takeovers and the process of returning power to the local authorities". It also aims to identify any lessons for possible future interventions.

In Tower Hamlets, commissioners took over grant-making functions, the sale or disposal of property and council publicity, while in Rotherham they assumed executive control of the local authority following the child sexual exploitation scandal.

The CLG committee said it would look to question commissioners and councillors from the two local authorities as well as a minister from the Department for Communities and Local Government.

It is inviting written submissions on the following areas:

  • The actions taken by Rotherham and Tower Hamlets to address failings before commissioners were imposed;
  • The criteria for imposing commissioners on elected authorities;
  • The effectiveness and performance of commissioners;
  • Commissioner governance and decision making, and their relationship with elected councillors;
  • DCLG procedures and the criteria for returning functions to local authorities;
  • The extent to which other local authorities and their partner organisations have responded to and learned lessons from Rotherham and Tower Hamlets;
  • How DCLG monitors the performance and government arrangements of local authorities.

The deadline for written submissions is Monday 13 June 2016.

Clive Betts MP, chair of the committee, said: "Seizing control of a local authority's powers is an extremely serious step for any Government to take.

“We will look very carefully to see if this has been done effectively in Tower Hamlets and Rotherham and explore the efforts being made to return democratic control to the two communities.

“The committee is also keen to see if the process can be improved for possible cases in the future."