Nearly Three Months Later, Southern Daily Echo Corrects Reporting of Southampton Census - But Only After We Intervened

 

Daily Echo 1st December 2022

"11.6 per cent (of Southampton's population) is white" reported the Daily Echo in December 2022

The Southern Daily Echo has apologised for its coverage of the Census for Southampton by the Office for National Statistics. 

In a printed article on 1st December 2022, the Southern Daily Echo had previously reported that "11.6 per cent is white" of Southampton's population. Clearly this is false reporting of the facts. Anybody who lives in Southampton would say this is incorrect.

 

Daily Echo, p.5 1st Dec 2022

The false information appeared under the headline "Census reveals city of diversity" and was front page news under the headline "A REAL MIX - CENSUS DATA REVEALS HOW CITY HAS CHANGED - READ THE FULL REPORT ON PAGE FIVE" with a photo of Southampton's Bargate. 

 

"11.6 per cent is white" said the Echo

 

The article "full report" was in fact only half a page. It also appeared on the Echo website, which we understand has been corrected.

A second article written by another Echo reporter repeated the same misinformation.

Neither article provided any context or explanation for the false claim.

Southampton Independents campaigner and NCTJ-trained journalist Andrew Pope contacted the Editor of the Daily Echo, Ben Fishwick, with a set of concerns about the article's accuracy and how it could be interpreted. 

 

Former Councillor Andrew Pope
and our Co-Founder

Eventually, on 23rd February 2023, almost three months later, the Echo printed the correction, saying that: 

"We apologise for the error and are happy to correct the record."

The correction appeared on page 16, in the corner next to an article with headline "Pub set to expand" and above adverts that took up half of the page.

 

Daily Echo, 23rd Feb 2023, p. 16

 

 

The Correction

In actual fact, the ONS website clearly states in bold that:

"In 2021, 10.6% of usual residents in Southampton identified their ethnic group within the "Asian, Asian British or Asian Welsh" category"

Coincidence? You decide.

And the ONS site also clearly states that in 2011, that the ethnic group of usual residents was 85.9% white. By 2021, this had decreased to 80.7%.

We will leave you to draw your own conclusions as to how these "errors" were made, but you can see in the photo that the Echo "Correction" states that "the correct figure (of non-white Sotonians) is one in five"  - meaning the figure for white Sotonians is four in five - close to the 80.7% white figure above from the ONS. 

However, the Echo blames it on third party analysis, saying that:

"This was due to the stories being based in part on third party analysis of Office for National Statistics data".

Yet the ONS itself clearly states the above facts at the above link. We do not have any explanation as to how the ONS analysis could have been missed. We found it immediately using a Google search.

You can decide for yourself why it took so long to correct, and why the mistakes were made in the first place. The Editor of the Echo has been offered the right of reply.

We stand up for Southampton and its residents. That was why we were formed.

Conservative Leader Refuses To Comment On Southampton's Near Bankruptcy - Who Represents The People of Southampton and Our Money?

Improving Representation in Southampton

... Labour Council Leader does not respond and Southampton Liberal Democrats also have nothing to say

by Andrew D Pope, 4th March 2023

Former Independent
Councillor Andrew Pope
on BBC South Today

Labour, Lib Dem or Tory, Same Old Story

The Leader of the Conservative Group of councillors on Southampton City Council, Daniel Fitzhenry, has declined to comment on the Council being warned by the departing Chief Financial Officer of the City's near bankruptcy.

Conservative Councillor Daniel Fitzhenry
Photo: Southampton City Council

Councillor Fitzhenry told me:

"I am comfortable with our position on the budget, our approach and the differences between us and Labour, but thank you for the offer of the “right of reply”, which I will decline."

It is perhaps no surprise that he does not want to comment on our revelations, but it is disappointing for the people of Southampton who have a right to representation and who expect a functioning opposition by councillors.

Councillor Fitzhenry was named in our article on the dire financial warnings by John Harrison, who warned councillors at the February 2023 Budget Full Council meeting of a "precarious" financial position with unsustainable spending and reliance on depleted Council reserves.

As reported here, the Chief Executive Officer Mike Harris has also declined to comment.

 

Who is Representing the People of Southampton?

There are currently forty-eight councillors on the City Council, three per ward in the sixteen wards of the Council. Labour has a majority of councillors, with the Conservatives in opposition.

The Leader of the Council, Labour Councillor Satvir Kaur, has not responded to the offer of a right of reply. 

Labour Council Leader Satvir Kaur
Photo: Southampton City Council

Perhaps Councillor Kaur cannot find the words to defend the indefensible of leading the Council to the financial precipice.

Neither have Southampton Liberal Democrats provided any comment, although they have been approached. They have one councillor on the Council. 

There are now no truly independent councillors on the Council. In 2018, there were four, including me. 

 

Councillor Quits Labour... Sort Of...

However, around the time of the February 2023 Budget Full Council, one councillor has resigned from the Labour Party, Councillor Professor Barrie Margetts. Southampton Independents had been in touch with Councillor Margetts months ago. He said that he was considering his position, after being de-selected by Southampton Labour.

Councillor Barrie Margetts
Photo: Southampton City Council

From Cllr Margetts' public comments, he seems unsure whether he is in Labour or not. I would not say his comments make him truly independent at all, especially when he is praising the leadership of the Council as the City faces a financial mess.

 

How Is Southampton City Council Run?

So the Conservatives, Labour and Liberal Democrats have nothing to say when approached by Southampton Independents to comment on the financial mess. 

No doubt councillors had plenty to say in the Council Chamber at the Budget meeting, but most of that "hot air" (as many residents view it) goes unreported, apart from a smattering of coverage. Indeed, there was more local and national (here and here) coverage of what the departed Chief Financial Officer wrote in the report to councillors, than reporting of what councillors had to say.

This shows what passes for democracy in Southampton these days, with the Council operating a "Strong Leader and Cabinet" (SLC) model of governance that excludes the vast majority of councillors. 

The SLC model has been retained, instead of bringing in a modern committee system that the people of Bristol voted for in 2022 and also the people of Sheffield in 2021. The MCS is no panacea, but allows local ward councillors more of say than "Strong Leader and Cabinet". 

 

A More Democratic Future For Southampton?

It is interesting that at the point of the Referenda in both Bristol and Sheffield, that both councils were Labour-run under a SLC model.

The MCS is more democratic than a small group of Labour or Tory councillors leading Southampton to the financial precipice.

In May, there will be all-out elections for all fifty-one seats on Southampton City Council in May. 

 

Moving The Boundaries But Keeping the Westminster Parties?

There was a recent review of the boundaries by the Boundary Commission for England (BCE) that found that there was a need for three more councillors and a shuffling of the boundaries of the wards. Of course, there was a "consultation", but this did not seem to alter the decision to add more councillors.

 

Will The Point of Accountability (Elections) Lead To Change, Or More Of The Same?

We will see what the people of Southampton will say when they cast their votes, and whether independent councillors stand for election and if they will be elected instead of the Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrat councillors that have proved they are not up the job of looking after the public money entrusted to them.

Improving Representation for Southampton residents

Councillors Dish Out Money To Highly Paid Officers and Decide the Budget in Secret - And Now Southampton City Council Is Near Bankruptcy

 

Former Councillor Andrew Pope
Speaking on BBC South Today

by Andrew D Pope*, 27th February 2023

Last week, at the February 2023 Budget Full Council of councillors, Southampton residents were horrified to hear the dire warnings of the state of the finances of Southampton City Council. This is public money, after all.

As reported by Southampton Independents, the Budget Full Council heard that councillors had been spending public money "unsustainably", leaving the Council in a "precarious financial position". The Council is near bankruptcy because it could soon be having to issue a Section 114 notice. Put simply, Labour has been spending too much money.

The warnings came from the Chief Financial Officer John Harrison, who we exclusively reported has now left. It appears from Mr Harrison's LinkedIn posts available to the public that his departure was planned months ago with the knowledge of Council officers - and presumably with the knowledge of the Leader of the Council, Councillor Satvir Kaur. As far as we are aware, no other local media outlet has reported his departure, and the Council itself was silent in its press release on the Budget. Such silence is worrying, given the parlous state of the City.

So where did the money go? Southampton Independents has reported on the profligate spending of Labour over the ten years it has spent and mis-spent millions if not billions of public monies at the Council.

Like ten of the least eleven years, Labour has been in control of the Council money and the Council Budget. This is not public money. This is not the Labour Party's money. It belongs to the people of Southampton. The Budget Full Council is decided in public, but last week there were items on the agenda that were deemed to have to be discussed without the press and public being able to see it.

Southampton Labour Allows More High Pay for Council Officers

In April 2022, the Taxpayers Alliance compiled a Council "rich list" of high pay at councils in England.

Southampton City Council appeared on that list. According to the information, the Labour-run Authority had doubled the number employees paid a six-figure sum - £100,000 or more.

It was reported that:

"During the 2020 and 2021 financial year, 12 staff members took home a six-figure salary – up from nine the previous year."

Whatever your views about the pay of Council officers being paid over £100,000, it is councillors that have allowed it. But it is only a special select group of councillors - most are not involved.

Millions Of Public Money Dished Out In Secret By A Few Councillors

But it is not just the Budget that has elements decided in secret. The decisions over employment of senior officers and their pay is also done behind closed doors. 

It is councillors who decide the salary of senior Council employees and who choose chief officers. But it is only a select group of councillors that do so. The vast majority of councillors are not involved in the committee that decides. It is called the Chief Officer Employment Panel. 

This Panel is normally just a handful of people, even as low as three councillors and usually the Leader of the Council, Leader of the Opposition Group and possibly one or two others. The meetings are minuted but the vast majority of the detail is hidden from public view behind agenda items that involve exclusion of the press and public. When you add up all these officers on more than £100,000 each the total becomes millions of pounds.

Making Decisions in Secret But You Voted Them In To Act For You

It is that small group of councillors that the people of Southampton should be asking questions of, because they are ones responsible for the appointment of these officers and their pay. And the dire state of the public finances is mostly down to the Labour Party that has been in control of the Budget for ten of the eleven years since 2012. Officers are supposed to advise councillors, and councillors are supposed to provide strategic oversight and direction to officers.

Neverthess, the total of senior officer pay is a small amount compared with the overall budget of the Council. However, the parlous state of the Council and its finances are decided by councillors, in co-ordination with officers who are supposed to provide wise advice to councillors. At the 2023 Budget, a long paper was presented to councillors to remind them of their responsibilities. It remains to be seen quite why they needed reminding. Surely councillors are already acting responsibly. Or are they?

Since the Taxpayers Alliance research, Labour has restructured the senior officers. The Chief Executive was changed. And now the Chief Financial Officer has left. Such turnover does not breed confidence in the leadership by Labour and in particular by Satvir Kaur, who is also Labour's Parliamentary Candidate for Southampton Test, with incumbent MP Alan Whitehead "retiring".

The People Voted Them In And Can Vote Them Out

There will be all-out elections in May 2023. The people can choose who represents them, because all 51 council seats will be up for election due to boundary changes. Whether the people will be able or willing to boot out those responsible for the current financial disaster, remains to be seen.

* Andrew Pope was a Southampton City Councillor between 2011-2019, being affiliated to Labour between 2011 to 2015 and Independent 2015 to 2019. He holds a Masters degree in Global Politics from Southampton University and is in training with the National College for the Training of Journalists.

EXCLUSIVE: Southampton City Council Warned Of Bankruptcy By Chief Financial Officer Who Left Immediately After

And the Council Chief Executive Officer declines to comment...

by Andrew D Pope*, 25th February 2023

Andrew Pope, former Independent Councillor

Southampton City Council is in a financial crisis and the captain has just left the boat after telling everyone that it is sinking. But the rats are still on board.

At its annual Budget meeting on Wednesday 22nd February 2023, Labour-run Southampton City Council was warned that it was near bankruptcy, in a "precarious" financial position and was spending unsustainably. 

The warnings came in the report to elected councillors by the Chief Financial Officer (a.k.a. Executive Director Finance and Commercialisation [S151]) John Harrison, who Southampton Independents can exclusively reveal has now left the Council, just days after signing off the reports that were presented to councillors. Mr Harrison's departure, confirmed by his LinkedIn page, seems to have been immediately after his warnings. Nevertheless, his name appeared at the top of the report to councillors, as shown on the Council's own website. 

So was the ship sinking? Or was it not sinking? Mr Harrison would also have signed off the Section 25 under the Local Government Act 2003, a very grave duty for an Officer of a Council. 

The report to councillors states:

"The Chief Financial Officer is required to make a statement on the adequacy of reserves and the robustness of the budget. This is a statutory duty under Section 25 of the 2003 Local Government Act. This statement is longer than normal, because of the considerable financial risks the authority now faces."

Several pages follow to underline the risks, including warnings of a "precarious" position, consideration of cuts to budgets, a potential serious S114 notice stopping all but essential spending and more.

Ultimately, in a democracy, it is the Leader of the Council Satvir Kaur that has to answer to local residents at the ballot box in May. That is, if residents are aware of this crisis.

We are trying to determine the full reasons for Mr Harrison's departure, but we understand that his departure may have been planned. Without any statement from Mr Harrison or from the Council at budget time, who knows? Mr Harrison cannot be contacted at the Council any longer.

But the timing could not be worse for our City or its finances. Perhaps the Council could have clarified this, but the Council did not mention Mr Harrison's departure in its press release on the Budget. Neither have other local media outlets, at the time of publication of this article.

Southampton Independents reported on the dire inancial warnings earlier this week. The Chief Executive Officer Mike Harris was offered the right of reply, as both he and the Leader of the Council, Labour Councillor Satvir Kaur, were named in the article.

Chief Executive Declines To Comment

In his response, Mr Harris declined to comment. He said:

"Your article is a political blog, and as a politically neutral council officer, I have no comment to make"

Mr Harris would have known about Mr Harrison's departure. He could have commented. But he did not.

At the time of writing, Councillor Kaur has not responded to our request for comment. She would also have known about Mr Harrison's departure and his replacement, Mel Creighton. Ms Creighton was in the same Chief Financial Officer (S151) post before Mr Harrison.

We also contacted the (now former) Chief Financial Officer Mr Harrison by email. An automatic email response was returned (more junior officers have been redacted, because we only name the most senior officers):

"I am now on leave ahead of my final day in post with Southampton City Council on Friday 24th February 2023. .<redacted>.. From Monday 27th February Mel Creighton will take up the post of Executive Director - please redirect any queries to her at Mel.Creighton@southampton.gov.uk after this date, or contact her PA <redacted>"

Labour or Tory, Same Old Story

The usual blame game gibberish has been spouted by Labour Council Leader Satvir Kaur in trying to blame the Tories. As reported by us in our analysis of who has been in power, the Labour Party has been in power in Southampton's Civic Centre for a decade from 2012 to now, except for just one year in 2021/22 when the Conservatives took control. 

And in response the Conservative Spokesman for the Council Budget, Councillor John Hannides has tried to blame Labour. Labour councillors have been the ones making the decisions for almost all of the last eleven years. 

Yet Tory councillors have applauded many of their decisions, with Tory Councillors like Jeremy Moulton even claiming some of the Labour decisions as their own. To put the Council finances in context, the Conservatives have been in power in Westminster since 2010 and as reported by us previously, have savagely cut grant funding to councils, restricted council tax rises and left the country in an economic mess.

As a Former Councillor, I Warned The Council And Residents

In my eight years on the Council, I sat through and spoke at annual Budget meetings, challenging spending and the decisions of whomever was in control of the Council. I was also due to takeover the City's finances as Cabinet Member for Finance. But I declined the opportunity, because I knew that the officers at the council and the other councillors in Cabinet were not up to the job, in the context of the Westminster party system and Leader and Cabinet model of running the Council. 

The current situation proves that I was right. I was not going to go down with the Council under the captaincy of Labour's failed leaders. Instead of joining the Labour Cabinet, in 2015 I quit Labour to become an Independent councillor. And with Southampton Independents and its team, I worked to warn residents and hold the Council's failures to account. I am still doing it, now as a volunteer and reporter - not a councillor. It appears that Mr Harrison has made a similar calculation, after providing the dire warnings officially this week.

Think About The Future Of Southampton

Amid the boring and predictable Labour and Tory bickering, one thing is for sure, as we always say, it's another case of Labour or Tory, same old story. And it's the people of Southampton who will pay the price for the failures of the Westminster parties, their councillors and of Westminster MPs to protect our City.

There will be all-out elections in May for the Council. The people of Southampton could vote a Modern Committee System in later this year, as voted for by the people of  Sheffield and Bristol, if Independent councillors are voted in. Let's see whether that happens or whether Southampton gets more of the same old story.

* Andrew D Pope is one of the co-founders of Southampton Independents and was a councillor between 2011-2019, being Labour between 2011 and 2015 and an Independent between 2015 and 2019. He chose not to stand in 2019.

Southampton City Council Nearing Bankruptcy Warns Chief Financial Officer - Who Has Been In Power?

 

Independent Councillor Andrew Pope*
on BBC South Today opposing an Elected Mayor

Sadly, it's another case of Labour or Tory, same old story.

by Andrew D Pope*, 23rd February 2023

At yesterday's Full Council meeting of Southampton City Council, councillors considered the budget proposed by the Labour-run Authority.

The budget papers presented to councillors contained dire warnings by the Chief Financial Officer John Harrison of a: 

"precarious financial position of the authority, the high level of financial risk currently faced and the lack of adequacy of reserves".

The chief legal officer also felt the need to remind councillors of their duties on behalf of the public and public money. Why did they need reminding? And aspects of the budget were kept secret. Why? It's our money that they are spending.

Reports have even mentioned that Mr Harrison warned that Southampton could face bankruptcy. Reserves of public money have been drained by profligate spending by councillors over many years and many budgets. When I was on the Council*, I raised many objections about spending, doing so behind the scenes, speaking at public meetings and via Southampton Independents campaigns.

Who Is On The City Council?

The majority of councillors are Labour. The Council also has Conservative councillors and one Liberal Democrat. There are no longer independent councillors. I was one of them but in 2019, I had had enough after eight years of serving the public (trust me, if you represent your council area properly and hold those in power to account, it can be very stressful)*.

Is Labour Credible with Our Public Money?

In short, no - not nationally and not locally. And neither are the Tories.

Today, the Leader of His Majesty's Loyal Opposition, Labour's Sir Keir Starmer has pledged that if Labour wins the next General Election his aim will be to make the UK the highest growth economy in the G7 group of industrialised nations. Labour has also promised to "give power away" to local councils such as bankrupt Croydon and elected mayors such as the soon-to-be-sacked Marvin Rees in Bristol and Police interviewee Joe Anderson in Liverpool.

Can Starmer's promises be believed? Not really, based on the evidence of Labour's record nationally and locally.

How credible can Starmer's promises be, given Labour's record in national Government and in local government? They are not credible promises. Yet the Tories have also now ruined our economy.

Can we trust Labour in power in our Council chambers? Not if you look at Southampton, or Croydon, or Bristol, or Liverpool and many other Labour-run councils.

Let us not forget that the last Labour Government led by Tony Blair and Gordon Brown bankrupted the nation's finances, with Labour Minister Liam Byrne leaving a note to say that "Sorry, there is no money left" and Labour's economic meltdown allowing the Conservatives to be elected to Government with the Liberal Democrats as their junior Coalition partners.

It is useful to look at the record of Labour in Southampton in managing the City Council's finances, and of the financial context of Government decisions. England has a highly centralised government system, unlike other countries like Germany, the USA and Australia that operate a federal system of government. The vast majority of power lies in Westminster, not in Council chambers.

Nevertheless, councils wield power over public money and large authorities control large budgets of tens or even hundreds of millions of pounds.

Labour councillors have been in power of Southampton City Council for every year since 2012, except for just one year when the Conservatives took control between 2021-22. The Conservatives were in power before Labour in 2012.

Therefore the City Council's budget has been decided by Labour councillors for 10 of the last 11 years.

Spending decisions such as wasting tens of millions on the Arts Complex, as investigated and published by Southampton Independents, were made by Labour councillors. Some of those decisions, including on the Arts Complex, were also backed by Conservative councillors. The current Leader of the Council Satvir Kaur and now Chief Executive Mike Harris were heavily involved in some of these decisions over this time. 

And as a Councillor, as shown in the minutes of Council meetings and on the Southampton Independents website, I questioned these decisions and neither Councillor Kaur nor Mr Harris could not or did not provide adequate answers on many occasions. They will be offered another opportunity in a right of reply to this article.

How Is The Council Funded?

The context for City Council funding is that Council finances depend not only on locally-gathered monies from council tax paid by residents and business rates paid by businesses, but also on Government grants from Westminster.

Who Has Been in National Government? The Tories, Mostly

The Tories have been in power since 2010, and have cut Council funding savagely. Conservatives and Liberal Democrats were in Government between 2010-2015, under the David Cameron and Nick Clegg partnership. Cameron took control briefly between 2015 and 2016 and resigned when he failed to lead the Remain campaign in the EU Referendum. 

Since then, our country's people have suffered serial failed Prime Ministers - Theresa May, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and now Rishi Sunak.

Tory Government has brought us disaster after disaster including delaying and then bungling Brexit, their disastrous and in my opinion, near treacherous handling of the Covid-19 Pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis caused at least in part by disastrous economic management by Rishi Sunak as Chancellor, followed by the brief "lettuce" Prime Ministership of Liz Truss with Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng.

The Tories deserve to lose the next General Election. They already got battered at last year's local elections, including in Somerset where they lost control of the County Council. It looks like they will be clobbered again in May across England and various sources tell me that the Tories are not optimistic. Let's not forget the above - that Labour's record shows that they are not a better alternative, proven by their failures nationally and locally.

Does The Tory Government Let Off Labour's Failings in Southampton?

No, because the Council decisions over its large budget have also been the wrong decisions with the wrong priorities, and it has not just been the Arts Complex. It is carrying on, right now and in yesterday's Budget. This is why the Officer has issued this warning. It is his duty on behalf of Southampton's people and our public money.

So...Who (Again) Has Been in Power?

Yes, it's Labour or Tory, same old story - with the Liberal Democrats agreeing to cut Council funding when in Coalition with the Tories. Whether nationally or locally, these Westminster parties have let us down.

What Is To Be Done?

If only there was someone or a group of independent campaigners who knew about Council finances from the inside and could sort it out. 

Southampton Independents was originally formed precisely to do this. Our activity was paused between 2019 and 2022, with a watching brief operated by our co-founders on matters in Southampton. What we saw being done by Labour and Conservative councillors was deeply worrying.

There are City Council elections in May where all seats will be available. If you think you could be a Councillor, get in touch with Southampton Independents. We will provide advice and support.

And if that does not happen, it will simply be more of Labour or Tory and the same old story.

Southampton Independents

* For full transparency, Andrew D Pope was a backbench Labour City councillor from 2011-2015 and resigned from Labour to become an Independent councillor for Southampton Independents between 2015-2019. He chose not to stand for election in 2019. Andrew holds a Masters degree in Global Politics and International Relations from Southampton University.

Southampton City Council Wants You To "Celebrate" The Demise of City Reds Buses - And Nobody Wants To Mention The "M" Word

Southampton City Council
Facebook Page

"We have no current plans to increase fares but we must be mindful of the increase in our own costs due to the current high level of inflation" say Bluestar

by Andrew D Pope, 21st February 2023

Southern Daily Echo
"Fares will not be increased"

UPDATE (25/2/23): Neither Councillor Eamonn Keogh, nor Conservative Group of councillors, nor Liberal Democrat councillor, nor Bluestar have responded to our request for comment. We did ask.

The Labour-run Southampton City Council has asked members of the public to celebrate a "new dawn", in the almost Maoist China sense, of a monopoly in buses in Southampton, by going along for a photo opportunity at the Bargate. Yes, that's right, Southampton now has a monopoly for buses with City Reds going under.

Just a day before this "celebration", Labour Councillor Eamonn Keogh who is the Cabinet Member responsible for transport in Southampton, spoke on the Council's Youtube channel from Vincents Walk, near to the Bargate. Councillor Keogh that it was a "sad day" that City Reds had gone, but "fortunately" Bluestar would help bring "innovative" buses to the City. Opposition councillors from the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats have been asked to comment. Councillor Keogh has also been asked for a response. There are currently no independent councillors.

What is a Monopoly and Why Should I Care?

A monopoly is when one company is the only one providing a product or service. In the UK, monopolies are supposed to be regulated and prevented by the Competition and Markets Authority. But not it seems, when it comes to Southampton's buses. Perhaps buses are exempt from competition? But not according the records of the CMA because previous investigations have been undertaken in other parts of England. And various Government guidance has been issued, for example here.

Monopolies are regulated because according to economists who believe in economic theory, and they would say that significant evidence supports the theory, monopolies can abuse their position. Customers can suffer, suppliers can suffer, prices can go up. Nobody can go to a competitor, simply because there are none. Whether this will happen with Southampton's buses remains to be seen. What is the difference between centralised state control, for example in China or the Soviet Union, and a monopoly run by an exclusive company?

Contrary to what many people believe, Southampton City Council does not own or run Southampton's buses. As I discovered when as a City Councillor I ran an Inquiry, and produced a City Council report, into buses and sustainable transport at Southampton General Hospital, the Council subsidises some routes ran by commercial bus operators with public money. Buses used to be run by councils, but that was a long time ago before they were privatised by the Conservative Government.

Now there is no market for buses. Passengers cannot choose between competing bus providers. It is now a monopoly. So what are the differences between public ownership in a monopoly and private ownership in a monopoly? Southampton passengers are about to find out.

City Reds Is Dead and Bluestar Is Now The Only Southampton Bus Company 

Yet despite its new dawn of a monopoly, Bluestar has not commented on the monopoly position that they now enjoy, despite being asked directly by me. Bluestar's parent company Go South Coast have also taken over other bus services in the South and West of England, when competitors have gone bust. 

When it became clear that City Reds was going to disappear, in January 2023 I contacted Go South Coast's Managing Director Andrew Wickham, whom I had observed praising Southampton City Council and other Council's policies on Twitter. This is strange behaviour for the managing director of a bus company. Mr Wickham has also backed the very unpopular Portswood Broadway closure being promoted by the Labour-run Council, in an email response to Southampton Independents.

Are Local Media Asking The Right Questions?

Nobody seemed to be asking the questions that concern consumers in a monopoly - and in this case let's call them passengers. If local media were asking, the answers did not seem to be being covered in a big way by local media outlets. Of course, any advertising revenue received from Bluestar would not tarnish the editorial or journalistic decisions by those outlets. Surely, those media outlets would always provide impartial and clear information for Southampton residents, regardless of the advertising revenue. 

The demise of City Reds has been covered, but the new monopoly has not. The word monopoly was not used in the above article in the Daily Echo (see top of article). Neither does another recent Echo article. And this BBC article, despite the BBC not being a commercial news organisation does not mention the "M" word either! So much for journalism in Southampton? According to the Press Gazette, a recent BBC review of economics coverage found a lack of knowledge and impartiality, so perhaps it is not surprising.

The Bluestar media release to local media outlets may have been caused by the questions that I asked them and not by any questions raised by the Daily Echo.  Indeed, the article above reads like a press release. I have asked Bluestar's PR agency.

Will Prices Go Up and Will Services Be Cut?

I asked Mr Wickham about Bluestar's new monopoly position in Southampton, with the question:

"What would your company say to passengers and citizens of our City to assuage any concerns that Bluestar might abuse its monopoly position?"

You may notice in his response below that Mr Wickham does not really answer my question on the monopoly. He does not even mention the monopoly but he does mention the demise of City Reds (First Bus). And he does not rule out price rises. You can draw your own conclusions from his response. 

"My team has worked hard to ensure people living and working in the area will continue to enjoy comprehensive bus services here from Sunday 19 February. We are also offering employment to existing Southampton First Bus drivers - with improved pay and conditions - to minimise the impact this decision could have on their livelihoods.

Our investment in a fleet of low emissions buses in the city means those who travel with us enjoy comfortable, convenient, journeys across Southampton - and we are looking forward to welcoming new customers over the coming months. I can assure local people that we will continue to look for ways to improve our offering here. 

We have no current plans to increase fares but we must be mindful of the increase in our own costs due to the current high level of inflation, so we will be monitoring this situation continuously and will react accordingly."

Bluestar has been receiving Government subsidies for fares. This will end. Will prices go up then? Will services be cut? Time will tell, especially when the City Council's celebration at the Bargate fades into irrelevance.

What do you think? Get in touch and tell us.

Southampton Football Club Doubles Commitment to Women's and Girls' Football

 

St. Mary's Stadium, Southampton
England versus Wales

Owners Sport Republic confirm long-term support for female football at Saints

by Andrew D Pope

Fans of the Southampton Football Club Women’s Team will be relieved to hear that Sport Republic, the owners of Saints (“The Club”), have re-affirmed their commitment to the girls’ and women’s programme at Saints.

A source close to The Club, who asked not to be named, told me:

“the club is investing over £2m into the programme annually.”

This reassurance and the doubling of funding from 2019 follows fans’ concerns over the men’s team struggling at the bottom of the Premier League, that there might be “a little bit of history repeating”, as Dame Shirley Bassey once sang.

Under previous owners in 2005, when the men’s team struggled, the women’s team was dropped and redundancies followed, including the sacking of Southampton women’s football legend Sue Lopez. Lopez was head of women’s football at Saints at the time.

Fans of the new Saints women’s team, which was started in 2017, did not seem to know of Sport Republic’s ongoing commitment and were fearful of the future, despite promising signs and progress up the leagues since the team rose, phoenix-like and twelve years on from the ashes of the scrapped 2005 team.

So as a fan myself and upon learning this, I did some research and found that unlike other football clubs in the Barclay’s Women’s Super League (WSL) and Barclay’s Womens’ Championship, the finances of the Saints womens’ programme were not transparent, at least according to the records at Companies House.

Records at Companies House submitted by the owners of The Club showed that while there was a separate company for girls’ and women’s football, it was a dormant company. Therefore it was not possible to see the finances of Saints women’s programme separate to the men’s team and the parent companies of The Club.

In other words, female football was completely financially dependent on male football.

The approach of Saints to their football company structures was in contrast to other football clubs in the WSL or Championship, who had already submitted separate accounts and returns for their women’s teams, with those returns being for separate companies for womens’ football. More information about female football can be gleaned from those clubs’ returns, but not for Saints.

There was a lack of transparency for Saints because the finances for the women’s team were not shown separately from the records at Companies House. Instead, they were bundled under the parent company or group of companies. Opacity instead of transparency.

The Club’s accounts at Companies House stated an intention to transfer the girls’ and women’s programme to the dormant company, at some unspecified future time.

That time has now come, my investigations have now discovered and as confirmed directly to me by The Club.

To get a reassurance for fans under this veil of opacity, I approached The Club for comment, to see if they could help. They were helpful.

A spokesperson for The Club, who asked not to be named but who agreed to be quoted, told me:

"Thanks for your message and interest in the women’s teams.

We have indeed transferred the women’s and girls’ programme to a separate legal entity as required by the FA, with this season (22/23) being the first season in that structure. 

Up to season 21/22 the revenues and costs were included in the Southampton Football Club Ltd results.  I’m afraid I’m not able to provide any detailed financial information on the women’s and girls’ programme other than to say the club is investing over £2m into the programme annually.

You are correct that the women’s first team was only recently restarted but the closure of the team pre-dates my time here I’m afraid and I don’t believe there is anyone at the club now who was involved with the women’s team at that time."

The Saints women’s team is relatively new. It was formed in 2017 and won Division 1 of the Hampshire County women’s league in its first season. In 2019, it was reported that The Club would invest £1 million annually to reach the WSL, according to Managing Director Toby Steele.

So not only has Sport Republic’s commitment remained. Spending has also now doubled from that time, I have confirmed directly with The Club.

Saints have risen dramatically since being formed in 2017. They are now in the second tier of women’s football, in the Women’s Championship.

In addition to the doubling of funding, Saints Women now play their matches at St. Mary’s Stadium in Northam, Southampton. St. Mary’s is the home of the men’s team too. In the 2021/22 season, the women played at AFC Totton’s ground on Salisbury Road in Totton, just over the River Test from the West of the City of Southampton.

During the 2022/23 season, attendances at St. Mary’s have boomed. Interest in women’s football has increased massively since the England team’s success at the Women’s European Championships. The Coach of Saints Women, Marianne Spacey-Cale, commented positively on “the boost” shortly after the win in July 2022.

Southampton FC are capitalising on the boom. I attended my first Saints Women’s match at St. Mary’s Stadium in 2022 and I am one of many new season ticket holders.

Thousands of other fans now enjoy the home matches and crowds are continuing to increase and to get louder at St. Mary’s.

New songs are being invented for the women’s team to add to the traditional “When the Saints go marching in!”, which is played by the Saints Brass band and sung at every match.

Some of the new songs are being invented by a dedicated supporters group that has grown substantially during the 2022 season.

Jude from the Southampton FC Women’s supporters group, which is affiliated to the Football Supporters Association (FSA), asked the owners at the recent Saints Fans Forum about their commitment to the women’s team.

And in their response to Jude’s passion for the women’s team and their success, the owners represented by Martin Semmens and Toby Steele, confirmed their commitment once again to the girls and women’s programme.

This commitment to the women’s team comes regardless of what happens with the men’s team.

So things are looking very bright for Saints Women, with them in third position in the Championship and firm commitments from Sport Republic to the future of the women’s teams and the future of the girls’ programme. And the supporters are being rewarded for their commitment to the women’s team with an increased media profile for female football, a voice for fans, matches at the same stadium as the men and trials of coaches to away matches.

It seems that there will not be a little bit of history repeating under the ownership of Sport Republic, at least when it comes to female football.

*Article reproduced with permission from Andrew D Pope's exclusive article on his Substack Blog. 

OPINION: LABOUR COUNCIL GIVING PUBLIC LAND AWAY TO HOUSING DEVELOPERS AT BARGAIN PRICES AT CHRISTMAS WITH SPECIAL DEALS DONE BEHIND CLOSED DOORS

Yet ANOTHER Labour Robbery of Public Assets

 

  ... AND THE TORY COUNCILLORS APPLAUD LABOUR FOR FOLLOWING TORY POLICIES ON HOUSING! 

by Andrew Pope - Independent

Former Independent Councillor Andrew Pope

This is a really interesting timing of the Council's announcement, just before Christmas, that the Labour-run Council will be giving away public land to developers at bargain prices, including below the market rate. This is confirmed in the report that went to the Labour-run Cabinet of councillors on 20th December 2022. 

In the report approved by Labour's Cabinet, the option to sell all land at best market value was not recommended in the report. And the details are to be dealt with under what is called "exempt matters" which means that the public will not be able to see the details.

We have offered Southampton City Council the opportunity to comment on the proposals and answer our questions.

Why did they release this press release just before Christmas (copied below this article in case they decide to delete it*)? 

 

Labour's Withering Rose
in Southampton

It's almost like the PR lackeys at the Council, under the instruction of Council Leader Labour Councillor Satvir Kaur didn't want the public to know about giving land away to developers and not delivering value for council tax payers and local residents, which councils are required to do by law - and for good reasons. 

So it is interesting timing that they put the press releases out just before Christmas, hoping that nobody would notice. 

Residents have noticed and they are not happy about it.

Sweet deals for developers is what former Tory Housing Spokesperson Cllr Peter Baillie advocated for years, but Labour are doing it and carrying on Tory policies.

It's like residents say back to me now - Labour or Tory, same old story. 

Labour have broken their own promises. How do I know? Because I was in the Labour Party for ten years, including as a Labour councillor before I decided to become an Independent and quit Labour.

In the 2012 Labour Manifesto for the Council, and in public statement after public statement, Labour councillors including the Cabinet Member for Housing Councillor Warwick Payne pledged for council-owned homes, not giving the land to developers. 

But the Labour Council, which has controlled the Council for nine of the ten years since 2012 - and approaching ten years now, has failed to deliver those  council-owned homes over ten years and broke their pledges over housing. Now I have the stats to prove it, obtained directly from Southampton City Council. 

Not only did Labour fail miserably on council-owned homes. They also failed to live up to the 2012 Manifesto pledges which already used weasel words to deceive the public into voting Labour. 

How do I know? You can't see their pledges on the Labour Party's website because they have removed them. They do not want to be held to account for their failed promises. 

But fear not. I have copies. Why? Because I was a Labour councillor and I co-ordinated the 2014 Labour Manifesto. The first part of this process was auditing the delivery or not of the pledges from 2012. 

When I was doing this, I went to the Leader of the Council Simon Letts and told him that Cabinet members did not know their portfolios and did not know what the Council was spending millions of pounds of public money on. 

And those Cabinet members certainly did not want accountability for failing to meet the 2012 pledges. I suggested to those Cabinet members that they be sent to scrutiny to account for the pledges. They did not want that at all. I'm sure that you can work out why not, because they knew that they had not met many of the pledges.

One of the many reasons that I left Labour in 2015 and became an Independent councillor was Labour's failure to deliver the council homes that they promised. 

And even when I was a Labour councillor, I spoke up in the Council Chamber at Scrutiny meetings to criticise Councillor Warwick Payne as Cabinet Member for Housing, and that he did not have a grip on his officers to provide leadership to them. That was because I put residents first, not party loyalties.

Councillor Payne was eventually removed as Cabinet Member for Housing and replaced with none-other than the current Leader of the Council Councillor Satvir Kaur. Worryingly, Councillor Kaur is now Labour's preferred candidate to succeed Alan Whitehead as the Labour MP for Southampton Test, which is the constituency in the West of the City.

Let's not forget that it was Councillor Kaur who could not answer my questions in the Council Chamber about the millions of pounds of public money that she spent on the Arts Complex, instead of on essential public services. That's why we used the Labour Highwayman graphic on our leaflets. 

The Internal Audit Report
on the Arts Complex
That I Gave to the Echo

 

The graphic would just as easily apply to the Tory councillors too, because the only councillor opposed to the Arts Complex / Studio 144 millions was me. The Tories supported the profligate millions. 

I was the one councillor of forty-eight City councillors who challenged the Audit Committee and the Chief Financial Officer. I was the one councillor who took the information in the Internal Audit Report (see extract above) to the Daily Echo who put it on the front page, quoting the former Leader of the Council Simon Letts saying that he did not care why the Arts Complex was over-time and over-budget.

Councillor Kaur could not answer my questions about the millions. But Councillor Kaur did not replace Councillor Payne as Housing Cabinet Member until after he was the same Councillor who said that residents of tower blocks did not want sprinklers. I had it in writing and Cllr Payne's false claims are still on this website. 

Daily Echo April 2017
During Our Sprinklers Campaign

I said in early 2017, before the Grenfell disaster, that sprinklers save lives and it was a campaign that I led across Southampton to have them installed, exposing the failings of the Council to protect residents on fire safety - in the Daily Echo, on Wave 105 FM, BBC Radio Solent, ITV Meridian News and BBC Radio 5 Live. Sprinklers have saved lives and property in Southampton, including in Millbrook Towers in the ward where I used to be a councillor. 

New figures that I have obtained on what was actually delivered on fire safety by the Council and what is still to be delivered MANY YEARS after Shirley Towers and Redbridge Towers fires are however very concerning and we have published on that already, with more to come.

Now - thanks to figures obtained directly from officers of the Council - I have a whole lot more evidence on the Council's failures on housing - FOR TEN YEARS OF FAILURE ON HOUSING, by Councillor Payne and Councillor Kaur.

It really is just another case of Labour or Tory, same old story. Meanwhile, Southampton Independents will continue to stand up for residents and businesses in Southampton.

* Council press release, 20th December 2022

Southampton City Council approves first Affordable Housing Framework sites

Today (Tuesday 20 December) Southampton City Council approved the first set of council-owned sites to be transferred to Affordable Housing Providers as part of the new Affordable Housing Framework which was approved at Cabinet earlier this year

20/12/2022

This is one of the tools the council will use to ensure more affordable homes in the city which includes continuing to work towards the direct delivery of council homes.

The framework will allow the council to use its own land to address the significant need for affordable housing in Southampton and will provide the opportunity for development of social rent, affordable rent and shared ownership properties which will help people get onto the housing ladder and own a share in their home.

The first set of council-owned sites are either vacant sites, empty buildings or have an approved decommissioning plan in place meaning that delivery of the much-needed new homes can be achieved quicker. The first set of sites will provide an estimated total of up to 300 homes.

The council anticipates that several providers will be appointed and the framework ready to move forward early in 2023.

As of October 2022, there were a total of 7,508 households on the housing register with wait times ranging from 1 year and 4 months up to over 11 years. The council has set a target to increase the supply of affordable housing by 8,000 homes by 2040 which will help to reduce the wait times for those on the housing register.

Councillor Lisa Mitchell, Cabinet Member for Housing and the Green Environment, said: 

“We know that poor quality housing has a significant impact on residents’ health and wellbeing, which is why it is so important that we provide good quality affordable housing so our residents can achieve a high-quality life and we enable people to live independently for longer by supporting their mental and physical wellbeing.

“The new affordable housing framework will accelerate the delivery of new homes and help us work towards our commitment to providing at least 8,000 affordable homes by 2040.

“We will work with Affordable Housing Providers to build new homes and work in collaboration with partners to provide more affordable housing and build better, stronger and more resilient neighbourhoods that foster city pride”.

UPDATE (9/1/23): PETITION AGAINST LABOUR-RUN COUNCIL'S CRAZY PROPOSALS ON PORTSWOOD HIGH STREET (BROADWAY)

One of our emblems

UPDATE (9/1/23)

Our Andrew Pope appears in the Daily Echo. We said that we would listen to residents and act on their concerns. The full article appears below (without the image used by the Daily Echo):

 

Former Councillor Andrew Pope
on BBC South Today

 

"‘Are you prepared to stand for council in May?’

This is the question being asked by Southampton Independents, a campaign group run by ex-independent councillor, Andrew Pope.

In his letter, which was hand-delivered to households in the city, Mr Pope called on people to ‘act’, in response to what he calls a ‘crazy’ road scheme in Portswood.

The letter reads: “Is enough enough? Will you act? Are you prepared to stand for council in May? Southampton needs Independent councillors. Will you join residents to stand up?”

Southampton City Council’s Portswood Broadway plans have attracted huge interest over the last three months, including petitions, council representations and media coverage.

Southampton Independents, who signed the now closed ‘SAY NO’ petition, claim that the petition’s 821 signatures only represented part of the total number of those who disagree with the plans.

Mr Pope said: “Southampton Independents have listened to residents and businesses. Their concerns must be listened to and the Council’s proposals for Portswood Broadway by the Labour-run Council must be abandoned.

“Because the vast majority of residents are opposed to the plans to close off part of the main road, causing chaos in the area, Southampton Independents

have listened and acted. We have signed the e-petition on the Council website.

“We have expressed the concerns of residents to councillors that you had to ‘sign up’ on the website first and that this put people off signing. Despite this

barrier, 821 people signed it before it closed on December 31.”

Councillor Eamonn Keogh, cabinet member for transport and district regeneration, said that the recent public consultation will ‘ultimately help shape’ the Portswood Corridor scheme.

He said: “As a council, we want to work with all interested parties to agree a scheme that can be supported and progressed.

“We are currently compiling a report which includes the results of the public consultation. The report, which will be made available in February, will outline key concerns and areas of support raised by the public and will include an officer recommendation on how to address these concerns.”

---

Southampton Independents have listened to residents and businesses. Their concerns must be listened to and the Council's proposals for Portswood Broadway by the Labour-run Council and Labour Councilor Eamonn Keogh, must be abandoned.

 

We have signed the petition on the Council's e-Petition site.

 

We recommend that you also sign the petition. You only have to register a name and email address. So far, there are 812 signatures. 

 

Another e-petition in support of these damaging proposals for residents and businesses has achieved only one quarter of the number.

 

The petition against the proposals reads:

 

"We the undersigned petition the council to abandon the current proposal to close part of Portswood Broadway to through traffic.

The limited benefits of the proposed scheme will be far outweighed by significant and unacceptable adverse impact to local businesses and residential neighbourhoods which includes 3 Conservation Areas. There is already a traffic problem in the surrounding areas without potentially another 12,000 cars a day adding to the congestion and pollution. We all want a greener environment but shifting one problem and creating another i.e. traffic from an A road (a major road intended to provide large scale transport links within or between areas) to a residential area is NOT the answer."

Contact us to tell us what you think about these proposals and why the Labour-run is hammering motorists across the City.