Revealing council coups and multiple debacles — what it’s like to cover a council in crisis
Birmingham City Council recently made headlines internationally when the largest council in Europe effectively declared itself bankrupt.
Government commissioners will now run the council, while a political war of words is now raging over who is to blame for the collapse of the council’s finances.
Yet for residents in Birmingham, the news may have shocked — but it certainly wasn’t a surprise.
For years, BirminghamLive, and the Birmingham Mail, have been revealing stories which depicted chaos, confusion and jaw-dropping errors at the authority.
Politics and people editor Jane Haynes has led this coverage. In a Q&A posted on publisher Reach’s LinkedIn page, Jane shared some of what she has witnessed — and why local journalism is so important for local residents…
You have spent months reporting on Birmingham City Council — why is it important to the people of Birmingham?
Birmingham City Council is currently the local government poster child for inept management and financial disarray. Commissioners appointed by Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, are on their way to take over council affairs. This is because the council has catastrophically failed to balance its books, and is the local authority equivalent of ‘bankrupt’. The impact of this failure is going to have a deep and lasting impact on the city.
What challenges did you encounter?
The council’s reputation for openness and transparency is generally poor, this has meant relying on searching through reports and datasets and turning to inside contacts for information that is denied by formal channels. Opportunities to interview senior politicians and senior officers are strictly rationed, but the new leadership is definitely seeking to be more open, which is a really positive step.
What is the reality now for Birmingham residents?
An emergency budget will be unveiled later this month. I’d predict a mass selloff of assets — likely to focus on quickly offloaded land and property rather than listed landmarks tied up in complicated ownership arrangements. There will be scathing cuts to some services.
Around 1,000 jobs in the council could go. Council tax and business rates are likely to rocket next year.
What role do you think local news played in this story?
We’ve been profoundly important. Through close contacts developed over time, I’ve been able to expose a range of issues and have led the way on reporting.
This has included exposing a Labour Party coup to oust the previous council leader, and the debacle inside the city’s bins service that meant bin men had been knocking off early for three years.
Union contacts and councillors have been willing to share information, knowing I will treat it fairly and with discretion.
Either I or a colleague have attended every single council meeting where critical issues have been discussed, further exposing issues that would otherwise have been missed.
What would you like to see happen next?
I hope Birmingham City Council emerges from this chapter, reshaped, more open and transparent with its residents, and providing services closer to the people it serves.
My role continues to be to hold politicians and officers at the council to account, and we will continue to do that on behalf of our readers.
