Reform UK councillors have demanded a halt to the disposal of what they call Tamworth's 'family silver' during a heated extraordinary meeting of Tamworth Borough Council, but Conservative members branded the gathering a 'farce' and a waste of time.
Meeting called over asset disposal concerns
The extraordinary meeting was called by Reform UK following concerns that council assets were being disposed of without proper scrutiny. Before the debate began, councillors were instructed not to mention any individual asset, as details of many are confidential due to commercial sensitivity.
However, Reform UK councillors repeatedly referred to individual assets during the debate, namely Park Farm Community Centre. The meeting called for all assets to be held in abeyance until the new unitary authority is established in 2028.
Tamworth Borough Council currently holds 577 assets, including Tamworth Castle, Tamworth Business Centre, and the ground at Tamworth Football Club.
Reform UK's stance
Councillor Peter Utting (Reform) said: "We all, every single one of us, represent the community and the residents of Tamworth and should always consider their interests first. All assets of the council and residents, as it's their money which has paid for this in the first place, should be protected and run to the benefit of all. Especially if it is used by the community and is of high public interest. Selling the family silver is not the answer."
He added: "The voice of Tamworth has changed substantially in the recent elections in May. The taxpayers of Tamworth spoke emphatically for change in every single ward. We must listen hard to them, the people we serve."
Conservative response
Councillor Martin Summers (Con) said that, once the new unitary authority is established, all of Tamworth Borough Council's assets will transfer to the new authority, and the borough council will have no control over them. He described the meeting as a farce and a waste of time.
He told the meeting: "At my meeting of the prosperity, place and environment committee the other week I had brought forward the asset disposal strategy to talk about and guess what happened; as we had everyone waiting there to discuss the disposal strategy a certain group decided they didn't want to hear that and killed the item before we got to discuss it. We didn't get to make any comment on it, we didn't get to have any scrutiny of it, we didn't get to make any recommendations about it. It got killed stone dead. We couldn't make any recommendations to cabinet, it was completely devoid of any input and it got passed through cabinet. It is already done. We have no chance now of making any changes to that asset disposal document. So this whole thing now tonight is a complete and utter farce, it is a waste of time."
Resolution reached
Following several heated exchanges and suggestions of amendments, Mayor Ken Norchi ordered a short recess to allow group leaders to agree to a final motion. After the recess, Councillor Jeremy Oates proposed that a piece of work should take place with all councillors to identify which assets should be considered for disposal and which should be transferred to the new authority.
Councillors unanimously agreed to the motion. The proposal could see informal sessions held to discuss the future of individual assets. It is understood that decisions already made on asset disposals cannot be revisited where legal agreements are already in place.
