We’ve previously covered Labour-run Knowsley Council’s controversial payments of over £250,000 during the last dozen years for official presences at the Labour Party conference. During that period the council never paid for presences at other party conferences saying that, “Knowsley does not attend any other party political conference, it attends the Labour Party Annual Conference as the party in power.”
However, despite the change of government last autumn Knowsley Council continued with its payments for Labour’s autumn 2010 conference and did not make any appearance at the conferences of either of the two parties in power.
Knowsley Council has now said that it will no longer pay to appear at any party conferences bringing an end to its highly unusual policy. Some other councils have also paid over the years to appear at one or more party conferences, but these appearances have had far stronger justification than Knowsley, e.g. Liverpool appeared at all three autumn party conferences in one year as part of its successful campaign to become European City of Culture.
By bringing its policy to an end now, and by having continued with its Labour appearances last year, the council is left with a track-record of paying to appear at Labour conferences both in power and out of power and never paying any other parties.
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27 Comments
Good to see such an abuse of power has stopped. Party conferences should never be used in this way, I would even question Liverpool. If ministers are to be lobied it should be at Westminster.
And so as not to appear two faced the LibDems have announced that they will not be taking any public money from exhibitors at its 2011 Conference and hence the following exhibitors at the last conference will not be invited this year:
Leeds City Region Partnership
Lloyds Banking Group
Royal Mail
The Manchester Partnership
BBC
Sheffield City Council
And no subvention payments will be taken from Birmingham City Council for bringing the conference to town.
On the other hand pigs might fly!
@ toryboysnevergrowup
A very convincing defence of Labour’s corrupt local government practices. I’m won over.
@toryboysnevergrowup – seriously, read the article, realise the irrelevancy of that point, and try subscribing to the maxim you state in your pseudonym.
Henry
And what are the far stronger justifications for all the listed bodies wishing to pay for exhibition stands at the LibDem Conference?? I await the explanation as to why Sheffield City Council felt it necessary to promote tourism in Sheffield at the LibDem Conference in Liverpool with great anticipation – or perhaps even better why Lloyds Bank felt that it needed a stand (to campaign for bigger bonuses?).
I would imagine Sheffield was at Liverpool as it’s the next venue for the Lib Dems spring conference and wants to encourage delegates to come there. Lloyds were at all three conferences so at least were consistent, I remeber some of the people on the stand telling me of their dread of the forthcoming Tory conference!
@toryboysnevergrowup – the local council for the city where the next conference is due to be held will normally (regardless of its political affiliation) have a stand at the preceeding conference to help promote things like hotel accommodation and other local businesses – thereby helping boost the local economy.
Given that the LibDems were already coming to Sheffield for their Spring Conference – i fail to see why the Council felt that it needed to waste public money in further promotion of tourist opportunities. As for LibDems wanting to boost the local economy in Sheffield by a spring confernce at the same time as the national party was doing exactly the opposite by withdrawing funding from Sheffield Forgemasters words almost fail me. I’m sure that the good people of Sheffield will be able to pass their verdict at the next local elections.
@toryboysnevergrowup
I live next door to Knowsley and know people who live there and pay council tax there.
The report in August makes clear that Labour-controlled Knowsley have paid £170,000 to the Labour Party over the last 4 years. That’s an average of over £40,000 per year.
How on earth can you justify that?
How on earth can you justify that?
I don’t and I am not trying to do so – but perhaps you should look at the behaviour of those you can influence more and I suspect are stil contributing public money to Party coffers without little prospect of a return. You might also ask if the LibDems are happy to receive money from a Council that bans poets from libraries – such behaviour does not meet the usual definition of liberal.
http://sheffieldpolitics.com/2011/01/31/council-bans-poet-ian-mcmillan-from-library-event-due-to-fears-of-political-comments/
typo – s/be “with” rather than “without” in the last post -apologies
@toryboysnevergrowup
So how much did the following pay to exhibit at the 2010 Lib Dem Conference:
Leeds City Region Partnership
Lloyds Banking Group
Royal Mail
The Manchester Partnership
BBC
Sheffield City Council
More that £40,000 each? And did they each pay £170,000 + over the last 4 years?
Grow up!!
I don’t know how much they paid – but they were on the exhibitors list. If something is wrong I fail to see how the monetary amount has much to do with it unless it is negligible which it clearly isn’t. Sanctimony has always been one of the LibDems main vices hasn’t it.
Simon
While we are on the subject of local councils funding conferences – lets talk some real money. Perhaps you might wish to explain why Liverpool Council needed a £1m a year conference subvention fund – which you will see was one of the largest in the country and as great as other places with larger conference centres. What is the justification for this??
http://minutes.belfastcity.gov.uk/Published/C00000115/M00009538/AI00007359/$ConferenceSubventionFundforBelfastandNorthernIreland.docA.ps.pdf
I live in Knowsley and think it’s justified.
It’s a labour run local authority with a massive majority plus funding the Tories or the LIB DEMS would be like pushing your arm into a lions cage after having your two legs bitten off.
@toryboysnevergrowup
Sheffield City Council have only once had a stand at a Lib Dem Conference and that was so they could sell accommodation to delegates at the next conference which was being held in Sheffield. It also meant people who didn’t want to book there and then could get information to help them when they did. Thereby bringing in money to the city. If one of the other parties decides to have a conference in Sheffield then I would expect the council to do the same for them. That’s very different from what Knowsley was doing.
@toryboysnevergrowup – Knowsley was basically lying to its council tax payers, using their money to subsidise the Labour conference. Councils often take stands at the conference where they are host and ones where they’re the next host – the problem here is that Knowsley wasn’t doing that, and the lie became clear when Labour lost last year.
One side point – it’s normal practice for exhibitors to be given passes to the conference. It would be interesting to know how many Knowsley got and to whom they were given.
I’m not defending Knowsley – we’re not as bad as Knowsley is hardly a convincing argument. Re Sheffield and Liverpool perhaps someone could say how much they paid to the LibDems in subvention payments before mounting their moral hobby horses. Re Sheffield – it is not the norm for Spring Conference/other Conference venues to turn up at previous conferences – couldn’t they just but a web address in the Conference magazine for those who really want to book 6 months in advance – it isn’t as though they wouldn’t be coming anyway in most cases. Given Clegg’s attitude towards Sheffield Forgemasters – I wasn’t aware that bringing money into Sheffield was a LIbDem priority – as for banning poets from libraries!
Having made three freedom of information requests in relation to Knowsley Council exhbiting at the Labour Party Conference I think the following details would help clarify things:
1. No one is suggesting that a political party is at fault per se from allowing public sector organisations (whether councils, statutory organisations, quango etc) to exhbit at their party conferences. What is the issue is (a) whether an exhibition stand is a good use of public money – does it actually achieve anything?, and (b) whether it is right to continually exhibit or have any presence at the conferences of just one specific political party.
Party conferences bring huge economic benefits to a town or city (and immense media coverage) which is why most councils that own a conference centre have offered subventions to political parties, often irrespective of political party that is exhibiting. Equally a year before a town or city hosts a party conference it makes great sense to be promoting the city where a political party is next expecting to hold their conference – to maximise bookings for accommodation etc. In fact a council that failed to exhibit in such circumstances would be missing a huge trick.
2. Some councils or public sector organisations have very clear campaigns and messages, and in some cases an exhibition stand can play a part in achieving something for that council, or organisation. Liverpool City Council were for example successful in their bid to win European Year of Culture. It has to be said their exhibition stands at all three party conferences also attracted immense media coverage – including from memory front page of the Guardian from their presence at the Labour Party Conference. Equally the BBC (which btw is not a Government run organisation) should be be talking and updating politicians of all political parties. It is worth pointing out that the BBC also use their exhibition stand for live interviews as well during the conference season. I would equally defend Digital UK being at the party conferences.
Quite frankly Knowsley Council, exhibiting for a decade at the Labour Party conference don’t seem to have brought benefits to Knowsley by their yearly presence at the Labour party conference, or delivered in any other way. They have even used the argument (see past reports on this story) that they only exhibit at the party of government – well that arguement didn’t apply in 2010.
Now if Sheffield Council or any council were exhibiting, year after year, at just one political party conference I think serious questions might have to be asked. But that isn’t the case.
Knowsley Council stand out a mile as abusing their position and wasting a great deal of public money.
Finally, having made three freedom of information requests to Knowsley Council I have to say that on each occasion they breached the Freedom of Information Act by failing to respond to inquiries within 20 working days.
I think that alone just sums up the record of the council.
“Given Clegg’s attitude towards Sheffield Forgemasters – I wasn’t aware that bringing money into Sheffield was a LIbDem priority”
Given that council approval ratings from local business in Sheffield have shot up since the Lib Dems took control of the council then the answer should be clear. It was under Labour that the council was deemed one of the least business friendly in the country, it was Labour who blocked IKEA from coming to the city when they wanted to bring loads of jobs to the city and it was Nick Clegg who, (some years ago, well before we thought we’d be in government), asked the party to look at Sheffield and see if it would be suitable as a venue for our conference.
Liverpool were awarded European City of Culture in 2003 – so I doubt the point is of relevance to their subsequent considerable conference expenditure. And although Mark is obviously au fait with the marketing arguments for conferences – this doesn’t mean that public bodies cannot get their message across in more cost efficient ways than attending Party conferences, and probably a lot more cheaply when they do so. Believe it or not most attendees at Party conferences are political anoraks and not as influential as they like to think they are.
As for the BBC – it is a public body and it is very wasteful at Party conferences – if you don’t believ me just look at how many staff they take compared with other media organisations.
As for council approval ratings in Sheffield I await the next elections with keen anticipation.
Toryboysnevergrowup: When you say, “it is not the norm for Spring Conference/other Conference venues to turn up at previous conferences” what’s that based on? The examples I checked all showed it was the norm. I’ve not checked every conference venue for every major party over the last two decades true, but the evidence I did use contradicts your statement. So can you provide some details as to what your comment is based on? Thanks.
Mark
I don’t think it used to be common to see stands for Brighton, Bournemouth and (formerly) Blackpool exhibiting at each other conferences – it is only in more recent time that the newer venues have felt it necessary to promote themselves even after they have been awarded the conferences.
Toryboysnevergrowup: I’ve seen stands for those ‘traditional’ venues at party conferences. It may be the case that newer venues put more into their marketing activities, but even if so that does rather make the point that what Sheffield has been doing is not out of the ordinary from the activities of other councils with conference venues – and so doesn’t explain or excuse Knowsley’s activities.
One thing I’ve found extremely helpful is when the next venue to host a conference shows up, has a stand, and runs an accommodation bureau so that delegates can book their digs for the next time out.
“and so doesn’t explain or excuse Knowsley’s activities.” I have never said it does – the question i posed is a more general one as to whether it is appropriate for the LibDems to take money from other public bodies.
Alex Foster – I’m afraid the convenience of attendees at party conferences who wish to book accomodation 6 to 12 months in advance isn’t the reason why local authorities exist. Couldn’t such a service be provided more cost effectively by a telephone number and a weblink in the Conference magazine/party website?
@toryboysnevergrowup
Whether a local authority or business books a stall at conference is a question of 1) Whether it is doing business there 2) Whether it will help future business it should promote 3) Whether it needs to improve it image with a cohort of conference goers. (Examples of this in the past have been Nestle, under widespread criticism from members for its promotion tactics for baby formula in Africa) (Whether this has any effect is a matter for the management concerned).
Leeds City Region Partnership; The Manchester Partnership</b)- probably promoting their area for business or a future conference
Lloyds Banking Group – 1 and possibly 2 & 3
Royal Mail – 1 (selling stamps, giving info and often having an ATM).
BBC – Definitely 1 – they will have TV and radio crews there, including BBC Parliament. 2 -They can promote services and give out technical help. Probably 3 – the BBC is often a whipping boy (often wrongly) and needs all the friends it can get.
Sheffield City Council – 1& 2 (promoting their area for business or a future conference). As a venue for the next conference, they have an interest in smoothing people’s access for accommodation and travel, maximising the number of attendees and getting people to have a good impression for future visits.
Birmingham has at least two conference venues to fill, with the accompanying business for accommodation and food outlets and was used for two LibDem conferences within the last year.
Has Knowsley got conference venues, hotels and food outlets suitable for national conferences? Do they even get people from a Liverpool conference staying or eating there? Why are they only going to one national conference when any business case could be made for going to 2 or 3?