High Peak Borough Council accused of voting excessively behind closed doors
A councillor has accused High Peak Borough Council of excessively using a restriction to consider certain voting matters behind closed doors which he claims has prevented information from being fully publicised.
The Labour-led council considered a motion from Conservative High Peak Borough Cllr Adrian Hopkinson at a meeting on October 15 for less voting behind closed doors in private on matters affecting residents so more voting could be publicised with more details in a public arena.
But the call was defeated after Labour councillors refused to support the motion despite Cllr Hopkinson’s concerns that the council has been using a Schedule 12A restriction excessively to consider certain matters privately preventing information on council voting from being fully publicised.
Part 2, of a Schedule 12A restriction, under the Local Government Act 1972, allows councils to exclude the press and public from council meetings or withhold specific documents and items.
However, Cllr Hopkinson, Leader of the council’s opposition Conservative Group, said: “The Conservative Group have become concerned regarding the excessive use of the Schedule 12A restriction.
“Only at the last meeting the Conservative Group challenged the use of this restriction when discussing the proposed closure of Carelink.
“This is just one example of several, another being The Springs Development [regeneration scheme]. The public have a right to know how their elected councillor votes, that should not be in Part 2, and is simply hiding from transparency. Confidence and trust has been lost by it’s excessive use and it is not helpful to councillors of all persuasions.”
The council opted to shut its Carelink service for elderly and vulnerable people after it was discussed at an Executive council meeting behind closed doors during Exempt Items despite calls by the Conservative Group for the decision to have been deferred so it could have been discussed at an open meeting.
Cllr Hopkinson also claims that discussions about the Buxton regeneration scheme, The Springs Development, have been dealt with similarly by the council behind closed doors.
He added that when the Local Government Act was introduced the intention was not to have a blanket use of this legislation.
Cllr Hopkinson added: “Openness and transparency are key to regaining trust and we all owe it to those who elected us to follow these principles as much as possible.
“High Peak Borough Council’s own Access to Information Rules already say that there is a presumption that information will be public, that it is unusual for an entire report to be exempt, and that exempt information should be put in a separate schedule to the report.”
Cllr Hopkinson had urged councillors to support the motion that the council ensures that this existing requirement is being applied consistently, rather than appearing to introduce a new approach.
He claims rules state that reports should be prepared with an appendix detailing content for Part 2 and this has allowed the whole report to be placed in Part 2 and voting has been taking place in Part 2 when there is no reason why the electorate should not know how their councillors voted.
Cllr Hopkinson claims transparency and openness are being lost.
He also claims this practice by the council does not follow the authority’s own rules due to voting being carried out under Part 2 of a Schedule 12A restriction.
Cllr Hopkinson added: “Whether intentional or not, voting has taken place in Part 2 when there is no apparent reason why the electorate should not know how their councillor voted.
“Transparency is paramount in politics and confidence in councillors has been lost. We owe it to the electorate to work to restore that confidence.”
Cllr Hopkinson claims High Peak Borough Council ‘s Labour Deputy Leader, Cllr Damien Greenhalgh, has publicly posted about accepting scrutiny and not shutting it out.
Cllr Hopkinson said: “We have some excellent, honest councillors whose integrity is being questioned, because we are all one group. That is simply not right and the leadership must follow our rules.”
Conservative High Peak Borough Cllr Nigel Gourlay, who represents the Chapel East Ward, said that in July, when the council was considering the closure of Carelink, Labour councillors voted to exclude the press and public.
He added members of the public including medical professionals were shut out of the discussion along with journalists covering a decision that would affect vulnerable residents.
“The administration argued that confidential staffing matters justified a private meeting. Of course, genuinely confidential information must be protected. But I remain convinced that Labour’s approach also spared its councillors the embarrassment of debating a deeply unpopular decision in public.
“Confidentiality should protect legitimate interests, not shield politicians from difficult questions,” he said.
Cllr Gourlay said: “Even where information falls within a potentially exempt category, the law requires proper consideration of the public interest in disclosure. Excluding the public should be a carefully justified exception, not a convenient administrative habit.”
He added: “I am not opposed to investment in Buxton, nor to sensible regeneration. But ambitious schemes require public confidence and that cannot be commanded by press releases or established behind closed doors. It must be earned through openness, meaningful consultation and proper scrutiny.
“High Peak’s residents are entitled to know how decisions are made, what alternatives have been considered, and why their elected representatives have reached their conclusions.
“The Labour administration needs to understand that public scrutiny is not an inconvenience to be managed. It is an essential part of local democracy.”
High Peak Borough Council was asked for a statement concerning Cllr Hopkinson’s defeated motion but at the time of publication the council had still not commented.