Last minute push to see Oldham appoint leader

An independent group will today bid to take over Oldham Council two weeks after the elections left the council in turmoil.

Cllr Kamran Ghafoor, who leads the third biggest group on council, is promising the borough ‘a fresh start’ and ‘full accountability’ but may not have the numbers to succeed.

Ahead of a crucial meeting today (May 20,) only Cllr Ghafoor, the leader of the Oldham Group, is pushing to lead the council after both Labour and Reform ruled out forming an administration. The political stalemate following elections earlier this month has led to criticism from the public and even talk of an outside intervention to sort things out.

Three nominations have also been put forward for Mayor, but it is not certain this position will be filled today, as planned.

Yesterday (May 19,) Cllr Ghafoor said: “Oldham residents voted for change. They voted for a Council that gets the basics right, respects every ward, listens to councillors, and stops hiding behind spin while services decline.

“The proposed Alliance is not about one party, one community, one religion or one individual. It is about bringing together councillors from different political groups and backgrounds to deliver a fresh start for the whole borough.

“For too long, Oldham has been run in a way where decisions are made behind closed doors, ward councillors are bypassed, scrutiny is weakened, and residents are left in the dark. That must now change.”

The LDRS has been told the Oldham Group is also being supported by the borough’s Liberal Democrats, Conservatives, and some independents. The alliance commits to fair funding across the borough, more scrutiny and transparency, a review of council finances, and full cooperation with the national inquiry into child sexual exploitation.

Labour still has the most councillors but stepped back from leading the council following recent election losses. An amendment put forward by Labour’s Couns Elaine Taylor and Graham Shuttleworth has called for the government to intervene.

The party claims they ‘will not stand in the way of any serious attempt to form a stable, lawful and functioning administration’ but ‘would not seek to work with any group who led divisive campaigns based on identity and grievance politics’.

Labour is opposing the nomination of Cllr Ghafoor as leader due to ongoing investigations into the collapse of a building he owns on King Street. They said: “Until those investigations conclude, it would be wholly inappropriate for the council as a lead agency to be led by a director of that company.”

Cllr Ghafoor however told the LDRS he is not being investigated personally, adding: “It’s just a political ploy to not want to make a decision and take responsibility.” He also said Labour’s claims about the Oldham Group were untrue and they were ‘here for the whole of Oldham not just a specific group of people’.

Reform’s leader Cllr Lewis Quigg said he was not going to spoil his party’s position but added: “I think it’s going to be a deadlock. It’s not going to be easy. We will wait and see what happens but I do not think much progress will be made today to be honest which is probably understandable given the numbers in the room.”

While he is putting Cllr Ghafoor forward as leader, Liberal Democrat boss Cllr Sam Al-Hamdani said the alliance was ‘a loose agreement on a series of priorities’ to avoid the government stepping in. He told the LDRS: “What we are trying to do is express a commitment to actually try and put a leadership in place.

“It is an absolute abdication of responsibility. It is [Labour and Reform’s] responsibility to ensure there is a stable administration in Oldham.”
Criticising the request for government intervention, he added: “We are talking about the death of democracy that the first time it’s been difficult to get an administration through, we say let’s give up then and let someone else deal with it.”