Bickering and mistrust lands WECA on government watchlist

Bickering and mistrust among the Bristol region’s political leaders has landed the West of England Combined Authority on a government “watchlist”.

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities (DLUHC) is “keeping a close eye” on how the organisation responds to a damning report by external auditors who effectively ordered them to stop fighting, play nicely and heal their “strained relationships”.

Labour metro mayor Dan Norris, the elected head of WECA, and the leaders of the three councils that make up the regional body – Bristol, South Gloucestershire and Bath & North East Somerset – unanimously approved an action plan in December to fix the issues.

It committed the politicians and senior officers to cooperate better, along with a “peer review challenge” where outside experts come in to root out the problems and sort them, which is being carried out by the Society of Local Authority Chief Executives, also known as Solace.

But it has now emerged that the DLUHC has placed WECA on alert and is closely monitoring “whether any further action is necessary” after the work is completed, raising the prospect that it could send in government “best value” inspectors.

It follows a series of high-profile bust-ups, name-calling, dysfunctional public meetings with hours-long intervals and even one boycotted by the three council leaders, since Norris became West of England mayor in May 2021.

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Cross-party councillors on WECA’s audit committee were told on Thursday that work on the action plan was underway, including talks in February between the metro mayor, fellow Labour mayor of Bristol Marvin Rees, South Gloucestershire Council leader Toby Savage (Conservative) and B&NES council leader Kevin Guy (Lib Dem) on regional priorities and funding.

External auditors Grant Thornton’s report in November found five “significant weaknesses” in the organisation’s value-for-money arrangements and made three statutory recommendations, which are the most serious that can be applied to a public body and must be addressed urgently.

B&NES councillor Hal McFie said one of these “jumped out” – to establish a formal process for early consultation among the authorities on key proposals – and that focusing work on this would “get ourselves out of the trouble we’re in”.

He said: “I’m depressed to hear there was another 100-minute stoppage because it’s becoming clear to ordinary residents that there is something serious going on.”
A DLUHC spokesperson said: “We welcome the commissioning of Solace to undertake a peer review challenge.

“We wish to see a robust, wide-ranging review which diagnoses the issues in the authority and, where possible, provide assurance on the action plan and its delivery.

“This will then inform whether any further action is necessary.”

Main photo: Adam Postans

Read next:

• Feuding political leaders ordered to stop fighting and ‘play nicely’
• Bristol underground would cost £18bn, secret report reveals
• Environmental activists ‘hijack’ billboard to criticise WECA on public transport
• WECA mayor set to receive £20,000 pay rise

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