New clash over homes in mayoral election row
War of words breaks out between Street and council leader
ABITTER war of words has erupted over the fate of the long overdue Perry Barr housing project, which is part of the Commonwealth Games legacy.
The homes site has been caught up in the battle for the mayoralty of the West Midlands, with polling day less than four weeks away.
Now an official complaint has been logged, alleging a breach of electoral law.
The dispute kicked off when Conservative mayor Andy Street wrote to Birmingham City Council’s Labour leader John Cotton offering to put the expertise of the West Midlands Combined Authority’s (WMCA) housing and regeneration team into the task of unlocking delays in the sale of homes on the council’s flagship Perry Barr scheme.
Mr Street said he could help speed things up on the beleaguered estate, so people could move in more quickly.
In his letter, he said this would involve the regional authority’s experts, under his leadership, taking responsibility for the site and so “taking the task of negotiating with mortgage
providers and potential buyers off your hands”.
The city council-owned estate features 968 homes already built, arranged in apartment blocks on land that was originally destined to be the Commonwealth Games athletes village, close to Perry Barr station. The apartments have sat empty for months because of delays – to the despair of local residents and people keen to move in – though they’re now subject to a sales drive.
More land is sitting undeveloped, also because of delays. The offer from Mr Street was made publicly, with his letter posted on X, formerly Twitter, and included criticism about the council’s handling of the issue.
He spoke of the WMCA’s exceptional record on housing and ability to bring in investment, before declaring he was making the letter public because of the volume of inquiries he had received about it. That sparked an immediate public retort from Cllr Cotton.
He claimed the offer was one made “in bad faith”, said it was inaccurate, and, worse, in possible breach of electoral law.
In a series of tweets, the council leader posted: “This is exactly why I and my fellow leaders have lost confidence in the mayor.
“To publicly issue this letter during the election campaign shows that he thrives trying to undermine local councils for political gain.”
He said of the Perry Barr scheme: “The mayor is trying to get involved in a sales process that is already under way. The council is working with its commercial property advisors to market some of the plots for sale, in which there has been significant interest. This will provide much needed housing in north-west Birmingham.”
He added: “I have referred this to the WMCA monitoring officer as the mayor has used Combined Authority resources to issue this letter during the pre-election period, rather than political resources.”
In response, a spokesman said: “The mayor is simply extending an offer to help solve the ongoing problem at Perry Barr. This is driven by a desire to help more families into the homes they need.”
Cllr Cotton and the Labour group across the region are supporting their mayoral candidate Richard Parker. Also standing are Sunny Virk, for Liberal Democrats, Siobhan HarperNunes, Greens, Elaine Williams, Reform UK, and independent Akhmed Yakoob.
It’s the latest clash between the two men this electoral campaign. Cllr Cotton sent a stinging letter to Mr Street last week, signed by fellow Labour council leaders in the combined authority area, publicly declaring a “loss of confidence” in him.