Senior Birmingham Labour Councillor Faces Party Investigation Over Alleged Abuse of Teenage Conservative Opponent
A senior Birmingham Labour councillor has been investigated by the party following a complaint that he was abusive toward a teenage Conservative opponent during a heated election count. Councillor Jamie Tennant, who represents the Weoley and Selly Oak ward, has been formally spoken to and reminded of the Labour Party's values regarding his conduct.
Details of the Alleged Incident During Election Count
The complaint centers on events that allegedly occurred during the mayoral and police and crime commissioner electoral counts in Birmingham in 2024. According to a council report summarizing the complaint, Conservative Hugo Rasenberg, who was 19 years old at the time, submitted concerns about Councillor Tennant's behavior.
Mr. Rasenberg claimed that Councillor Tennant made him feel deeply uncomfortable through repeated comments about his age and appearance. He alleged these comments were aggressive and made him feel unsafe, and were delivered loudly in front of a group of people with the apparent intent to publicly humiliate him.
Specific Allegations of Inappropriate Comments
The council report details that Mr. Rasenberg, who identifies as heterosexual, alleges that Councillor Tennant, who is openly gay, called him a 'twink'—a term used in some gay communities to refer to a man of slim build and youthful appearance—and said he was 'only hired as a piece of eye candy for people to look at.'
Further allegations include that Councillor Tennant claimed Mr. Rasenberg was 'unfit to do his job due to his age' as part of what the report describes as 'an abusive rant' intended to belittle him. The incident reportedly occurred during a fraught recount that resulted in Labour's Richard Parker narrowly defeating Tory incumbent Andy Street for West Midlands mayor.
Council Investigation and Party Response
The council's deputy monitoring officer ruled that the complaint could not be passed to the standards committee for formal investigation because Councillor Tennant was not acting in an official capacity as a councillor at the time. Instead, he was serving as a counting agent for the mayoral and PCC candidates during the election proceedings.
However, the report noted that Councillor Tennant has acknowledged that it was never his intention to cause distress to Mr. Rasenberg and certainly never intended to harass or humiliate him. It was suggested that Councillor Tennant might wish to apologize, and the complaint was referred to the city council's Labour group chief whip.
The Labour Party confirmed the matter was the subject of a fresh complaint in November 2025. In a statement, the party said: "We take all complaints seriously and they are investigated in line with our rules and procedures." The party confirmed that action had been taken in accordance with party procedures and that Councillor Tennant had been reminded of the party's values and the high standards expected of Labour Party councillors.
Councillor's Recent Decisions and Complainant's Response
Councillor Tennant recently announced he was leaving local politics and will not be standing in the May city council elections. He had originally intended to be the Labour candidate for Weoley and Selly Oak but told BirminghamLive he would no longer be standing. He has also recently left his job as head of office for Tamworth MP Sarah Edwards.
The councillor has spoken of seeking a 'reset' and better work-life balance. He has represented Weoley and Selly Oak ward on Birmingham City Council since 2022 and was elevated to the cabinet last summer during a reshuffle.
Mr. Rasenberg, now aged 20 and seeking a seat on the city council in May in Harborne, said the abusive comments were unacceptable. He told BirminghamLive: "Politics is a great arena to be in and there are a lot of older members of all parties who mentor and support younger members who are coming up, but it can be difficult."
He added: "There aren't clear HR processes in place if you do encounter issues or poor behavior, so a lot of people who come up against abuse just walk away instead. That means concerns can get overlooked or dismissed and I think it's really important to speak out."
Councillor Tennant has declined to comment when approached by BirminghamLive regarding the allegations and investigation.
