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| Councillor Simon Letts Photo: Southampton City Council |
Our Co-Founder and Member of the Independent Network Andrew Pope says:
"Southampton Labour Party's own documented meeting minutes from 2017, that I somehow obtained despite quitting Labour in 2015 and kept for years for the right moment, show that Southampton Labour Party members didn't stop Letts. They gave in with barely a whimper.
There is no evidence in the minutes of challenge, just an explanation of what Letts intended to do. So everybody in the Southampton Labour Party at that meeting, including now Green Party Agent Lisa Fricker who would simply 'communicate' Letts' cruel decision, is complicit in Labour's cruel cuts.
Labour or Tory, same old story, yet again! Like I said when I quit Labour in 2015, Simon Letts and Southampton Labour cannot be trusted."
Who and What Is Simon Letts?
Councillor Simon Letts is currently the Cabinet Member for Finance on Southampton City Council. He was brought in because in her short reign, the previous Leader of the Council Satvir Kaur, brought the Council to its financial knees and on the brink of bankruptcy. Kaur is now the MP for Southampton Test and incredibly, a Junior Minister in Keir Starmer's Government. Kaur admitted that she did not understand Council finances, yet somehow occupied these roles.
You would think that Southampton Labour Party and its members would control its councillors and hold them to account. We present here a case study in why you cannot trust them to do so, and why they allow Letts to be out of control and why he cannot be trusted with public money. When it took control of the Council from the Tories in 2012, Labour continued to make cruel cuts. Labour or Tory, same old story? You bet.
We present here the facts and the evidence. You can decide for yourself what type of person Simon Letts is. You can decide whether you think he is fit to be Leader of the Council, or responsible for the public finances in Southampton.
Splits and Factions in the Labour Group of Councillors
As it is nationally with Keir Starmer's Government, Labour is not fit to run the Council, nor the country. And Labour politicians in Westminster or Southampton cannot decide who they want to be Leader.
We understand from sources inside and outside the Labour Group of councillors that Letts wants to be Leader again, despite his previous failures as Leader and then being voted off the Council completely in 2018.
Who is his opponent? The current Leader Alex Winning is up for election in May in Shirley, where Labour has lost successive by-elections.
Southampton Independents was founded because of Labour councillors like Simon Letts and in spite of people like him. When our Co-Founder Andrew Pope quit Labour in 2015, he criticised Letts publicly. It made front page news in the Echo, authored by the respected former political reporter at the Echo, James Franklin.
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| Andrew Pope when Councillor Photo: Southampton Independents |
Arts Complex Wastes Tens of Millions of Public Money
Simon Letts was voted off the Council in 2018 by his constituents in Bitterne ward, after our campaign to expose his misuse of public funds, with the help of Cabinet Member Satvir Kaur, on the Arts Complex.
Andrew Pope obtained an internal audit report about the Arts Complex, a report which he had pressured the Chief Financial Officer Mel Creighton into writing.
Pope provided the report to the Echo, in the public interest. The Echo's reporter Rachel Adams, who Pope had contacted, then rang Letts and Letts went nuts.
So the Echo put it on the front page, pointing out yet another over-spend by the Arts Complex and that Letts said he did not care why it had over-spent.
Letts lost his Bitterne seat shortly after at the local elections in 2018, and therefore leadership of the Council.
Southampton Independents had planned it, and had timed it, forensically. The people of Southampton were rid of Letts for a time on the Council. He went off and tried to be Southampton Itchen MP, but lost to Tory Royston Smith, twice.
Southampton Labour's Bilious Recycled and Re-treaded Councillors
But the Southampton Labour Party recycles failed councillors like Simon Letts. There are other examples of defeated councillors being regurgitated like an unwanted. bile-inducing meal. Their councillors lose elections but somehow end up back on the council. As former Tory Leader of the Council Royston Smith once referred to some of his own recycled councillors as "retreads". And like retreads, are they safe, whether Labour or Tory? No.
Letts Cruelly Closes Kentish Road Respite Centre Despite Massive Opposition
Another factor in Letts' demise was the campaign to try to save Kentish Road respite centre from Letts' cuts as Leader of the Council. Southampton Independents joined the campaign and provided advice to Lisa Stead and Amanda Guest, the latter of whom, much to our disgust and disappointment, later became a Tory councillor. We supported their campaign to save the respite centre.
But Simon Letts closed it in 2017. We can exclusively reveal the Southampton Labour Party machinations that enabled Letts to do this, despite massive public opposition and the punishment of vulnerable adults and their families.
Southampton Labour Party's Feeble Questioning of Letts
We have obtained the minutes of Southampton and Romsey Labour Party Executive Committee from Wednesday 22nd Novermber 2017 during the time that Letts closed the Respite Centre. Here is a very relevant section:
"Kentish Road – Concerns have been raised about the closure of Kentish Road from members and service users and Simon spoke openly on many of the issues that we asked him, including the new buildings at 32b Kentish Road and Weston Court. The CQC report states that the provision requires improvement. It currently costs £212 per person per night to use Kentish Road. There was 72 service users and 62 have currently found new care packages, 8 are looking at their options and 2 want only Kentish Road. The decision to change the use of Kentish Road will save 1⁄4 million pounds and will be used for patients with complex needs who require nurse led care but have delayed discharge from hospital because they are not well enough to yet go home but aren't ill enough to stay in hospital. Mencap and SCA have also expressed an interest in using the building for new headquarters but Simon said they would prefer to keep it linked with social care. It will also cost £30,000 to get 32b Kentish Road ready for use but Weston Court and the other options are ready to use now. Simon has offered the service users to co-design 32b. The final decision will be made next week and Simon will send Lisa (Fricker) a statement to email out to all members."
Andrew Pope says:
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| Andrew Pope Photo: Southampton Independents |
"Their own documented meeting minutes show that Southampton Labour Party didn't stop Letts. They gave in with barely a whimper. There is no evidence in the minutes of challenge, just an explanation of what Letts intended to do. So everybody in the Southampton Labour Party at that meeting, including now Green Party Agent Lisa Fricker who would simply "communicate" the decision, is complicit in the cruel cuts.
It's ironic that Lisa Fricker was recently an election agent with the Green Party in the Shirley ward by-election. The victorious Green Party candidate in Gorton and Denton has been making promises that they cannot keep. All the big parties are the same. They lie to get power and then let everyone down.
When Fricker was on it, her Executive Committee could have decided to admonish Letts. Clearly from the minutes, it didn't. It just gave in to Letts.
Their minutes weakly express "concerns". The public opposition was much, much more than "concerns". It was vital.And eventually, after Letts was defeated in the 2018 local elections, the new Labour Leader Christopher Hammond said it was not their "finest hour". That is an understatement, because later in 2019 the Local Government Ombudsman ordered compensation for the victims of Letts' cruel cuts to the respite of vulnerable adults.
Is Letts repentant? I doubt it. He paid with his seat, but he ensured the suffering of vulnerable adults and families with his heartless decision.
Now, he is responsible for the finances of the Council. How can anybody trust Simon Letts and Southampton Labour to make the right decisions for Southampton and its people?"
Southampton Independents has offered the right of reply to Lisa Fricker, Alex Winning and Simon Letts. Christopher Hammond lost the leadership of the Council to the Tories for one year and then did not stand for re-election.
If we can find who to contact at Southampton Labour Party, because their website is completely lacking in transparency over who are the officers on the Executive Committee now, we will offer them a right of reply too.
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