That this House condemns Westminster Council's plan to hold a secret late night meeting on 16th December to consider requests from current and former Conservative councillors criticised during the 'homes for votes' inquiry to be paid hundreds to thousands to pounds of council tax-payers' money; notes the advice from a leading QC and the legal adviser to John Magill, the Council's former auditor, that such payments would be completely unlawful; and calls on the Council's current auditor to intervene immediately to prevent this outrageous abuse of public office and public funds.

That this House condemns Westminster Council's plan to hold a secret late night meeting on 16th December to consider requests from current and former Conservative councillors criticised during the 'homes for votes' inquiry to be paid hundreds to thousands to pounds of council tax-payers' money; notes the advice from a...

That this House deplores the attempt by Brent Conservative councillor Peter Golds OBE to strangle fellow Conservative councillor Jack Sayers following an argument about town twinning at Brent Town Hall on 27th October 1997 which resulted in Councillor Sayers receiving medical treatment for the injuries he sustained; notes that Councillor Peter Golds was honoured for 'political services' and that his violent behaviour is but the latest disgraceful example of yobbish and thuggish behaviour by Brent Conservative councillors; and calls upon the Conservative Party to expel Councillor Golds from membership and to hold an inquiry into the behaviour of the Brench Conservative group.

That this House deplores the attempt by Brent Conservative councillor Peter Golds OBE to strangle fellow Conservative councillor Jack Sayers following an argument about town twinning at Brent Town Hall on 27th October 1997 which resulted in Councillor Sayers receiving medical treatment for the injuries he sustained; notes that Councillor...

That this House congratulates the record number of Labour councillors elected on 4th May and, in particular, the 1799 new Labour councillors elected in seats gained and those Labour councillors elected in the 42 councils where Labour gained control; and notes that with 48 per cent. of the vote this was Labour's best ever Local Government result and that Labour now has more seats than the Tories and Liberal Democrats put together and that while the Tory vote fell to its lowest level, the Liberal Democrats also saw their share of the vote fall by 4 per cent. from 1994 giving a clear message from the public across the whole country of their trust in and support for Labour councils at the local level and the quality of services they provide and their belief that, at national level, only Labour offers the hope of a real and viable alternative to this discredited and untrustworthy Tory Government.

That this House congratulates the record number of Labour councillors elected on 4th May and, in particular, the 1799 new Labour councillors elected in seats gained and those Labour councillors elected in the 42 councils where Labour gained control; and notes that with 48 per cent. of the vote this...

That this House notes with concern that documents revealed by the District Auditor's public hearings into gerrymandering by Westminster City Council indicate that Councillor Mike Young, current leader of the Council, was fully aware of the strategy to secure electoral advantage by concentrating resources on marginal or key wards; notes that he was in charge of the so-called Quality of Life initiative, one of the schemes within the strategy; further notes that the Auditor is now considering adding Miles Young to the list of those facing surcharge over the Homes for Votes scandal; therefore believes it to be totally inappropriate for him to lead a group of Conservative councillors to picket the offices of the Auditor on 22nd February and to issue a press release calling for 'urgent action ... to rein in the Audit Commission'; and further believes he should immediately resign as Leader of the Council in view of the conflict of interest between his potential liability to audit action and the urgent need to restore proper standards of conduct to Westminster City Council.

That this House notes with concern that documents revealed by the District Auditor's public hearings into gerrymandering by Westminster City Council indicate that Councillor Mike Young, current leader of the Council, was fully aware of the strategy to secure electoral advantage by concentrating resources on marginal or key wards; notes...

That this House recalls that on 3rd March 1994, commenting on the action of a Labour councillor who took part in an estimates meeting while in arrears with his council tax, Councillor Ronald Smith, the leader of the Conservative Group in Sunderland City Council said, 'I think it is absolutely deplorable. To think that he has the audacity to sit on committees and give his view on finances and he's sitting there in arrears. I think it is appalling that he should do that and it is appalling for the leader of his group to allow him to do it. If it was a member of the public, his feet wouldn't touch the ground and they would be exposed, and I see no reason why he shouldn't be exposed...even more so'; is, therefore, surprised to learn that on 22nd June 1992 Councillor Smith was summoned to appear before Sunderland magistrates for non-payment of ??673.35 in respect of non-domestic rates owing on 5 Albion Place, Sunderland; further notes that Councillor Smith took part in the estimates meeting on 11th March 1992, while in arrears; also notes that it is an offence under section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act to take part in council business relating to finance while in arrears of domestic rates; regrets that this section does not apply to non-domestic rates and believes that this loophole should be closed; and finally notes that the Labour group suspended for six months the offending Labour councillor and invites the Conservative Group to do likewise with Councillor Smith.

That this House recalls that on 3rd March 1994, commenting on the action of a Labour councillor who took part in an estimates meeting while in arrears with his council tax, Councillor Ronald Smith, the leader of the Conservative Group in Sunderland City Council said, 'I think it is absolutely...

That this House notes that Brent Conservative councillor, Mr Bill Duffin, the current Chair of the Housing Committee and former Tory councillor, Leslie Winters, failed to declare a financial interest in a planning application by their employer which they promoted in the council; notes that Tory councillor, Mr David Tobert, was in breach of the council's code of conduct for members involved in planning applications; further notes that the current Tory group leader, Mr Bob Blackman, has blatantly ignored the Prime Minister's call for Tories to oppose sleaze and corruption by refusing to condemn this breach of the electorate's trust; calls on the Prime Minister to make good his promises to rid the Conservative Party of sleaze and corruption by taking immediate firm action against Tories on Brent Council in accordance with his statement to the House made on Tuesday 18th October in Prime minister's Questions; and regrets that Tory rule in Brent has sullied the name of the area, associating it with bribery, corruption and a complete lack of principle in the pursuit of power.

That this House notes that Brent Conservative councillor, Mr Bill Duffin, the current Chair of the Housing Committee and former Tory councillor, Leslie Winters, failed to declare a financial interest in a planning application by their employer which they promoted in the council; notes that Tory councillor, Mr David Tobert,...

That this House notes that two Brent Conservative councillors, Mr Bill Duffin, the current Chair of the Housing Committee, and Mr David Tobert, have failed to declare a financial interest in a planning application by their employer which they promoted in the council; further notes that the current Tory group leader Mr Bob Blackman has blatantly ignored the Prime Minister's call for Tories to oppose sleaze and corruption by refusing to condemn this breach of the electorate's trust; calls on the Prime Minister to make good his promises to rid the Conservative Party of sleaze and corruption by taking immediate firm action against Tories on Brent Council in accordance with his statement to the House made on Tuesday 18th October in Prime Minister's Questions; and regrets that Tory rule in Brent has sullied the name of the area, associating it with bribery, corruption and a complete lack of principle in the pursuit of power.

That this House notes that two Brent Conservative councillors, Mr Bill Duffin, the current Chair of the Housing Committee, and Mr David Tobert, have failed to declare a financial interest in a planning application by their employer which they promoted in the council; further notes that the current Tory group...

That this House notes that the decision of Brent Council's Development Control sub-committee to ignore the advice of their officers and grant planning permission to Mr Jim Carlon for the use of The Kingdom, 229 Kilburn High Road, as a restaurant is contrary to the policy of the council on the grounds of loss of residential accommodation, opposition to any further A3 uses on Kilburn High Road, intensification of existing use beyond a satisfactory level in terms of noise and disturbance to residents and increased parking; records its respect for councillors Janice Long (Labour) and Peter Nelke (Conservative) who opposed the decision; invites councillors Sayer (Conservative), Joseph (Labour), Maloney (Labour), Tobert (Conservative) and Cummings (Lib-Dem) to explain the reasons for their decision which has reinforced public concern at the extent of corruption in Brent Council which is so extensive that the Development Control Sub-committee has become known as the brown envelope committee.

That this House notes that the decision of Brent Council's Development Control sub-committee to ignore the advice of their officers and grant planning permission to Mr Jim Carlon for the use of The Kingdom, 229 Kilburn High Road, as a restaurant is contrary to the policy of the council on...

That this House notes with concern the activities of local developer Mr Jim Carlon in the use of his influence within local political parties to control the planning decisions of Brent Council, in particular his attempt to pack the local Kilburn ward Labour Party selection meeting to ensure the reselection of former councillor M. Rashid, who had consistently voted to overturn local planning guidelines in order to benefit speculative developers by registering six members who he claimed lived at The Kingdom, 229 Kilburn High Road; further notes that when visited by a Labour Party official to inform him of the disqualification of these phoney members he was in the company of Councillor John Warren, former Tory deputy leader of the council and former councillor Leslie Winters (Conservative); further notes that Councillor B. Duffin (Conservative) records his employment by Jim Carlon in his entry in the members' register of interests; and calls on all Brent councillors to sever their links with Mr Carlon.

That this House notes with concern the activities of local developer Mr Jim Carlon in the use of his influence within local political parties to control the planning decisions of Brent Council, in particular his attempt to pack the local Kilburn ward Labour Party selection meeting to ensure the reselection...

That this House calls on Westminster Conservative councillors to explain why schemes in an environmental project called Quality of Life were, according to internal Tory documents, to be targeted as far as possible into eight marginal wards in Westminster; notes that this targeting was part of the so-called Building Stable Communities strategy whose aim was to gerrymander the 1990 local elections; further notes that the councillor in charge of the Quality of Life project was Miles Young, currently the Leader of Westminster Council; calls on him to explain why in 1987 he put forward proposals that were subsequently implemented for the unlawful targeting of environmental and enforcement spending in the marginal wards, his role in the eviction of homeless young people from the Ambrosden Hostel in his marginal ward of Victoria and its subsequent sale to developers at ??2 million below its market value as part of the gerrymandering strategy and his role in co-ordinating unlawful party political publicity expenditure by the council through the so-called BSC Communications Strategy; and also calls on Robert Davis, the current Chair of the Planning Committee in Westminster, to explain why he wrote a paper in 1987 advocating that planning enforcement resources should, in line with BSC strategy, be concentrated in target marginal wards to ensure that the right type of homes are provided bringing with it the right sort of voters.

That this House calls on Westminster Conservative councillors to explain why schemes in an environmental project called Quality of Life were, according to internal Tory documents, to be targeted as far as possible into eight marginal wards in Westminster; notes that this targeting was part of the so-called Building Stable...

That this House condemns the leader of the Liberal Democrats in Hackney, Councillor Colin Beadle, for not paying his council tax last year and for laughing at the overwhelming majority of people in Hackney who did pay; notes that at the last local elections Beadle's nomination for the Council was signed by a well known Nazi and former member of the National Front called Gary Russell; further notes that Beadle's only contribution in the current election campaign has been to make a number of racist allegations, which he has had to withdraw because of threats of libel writs; and calls on all decent people to have nothing to do with the Liberal Democrats in Hackney.

That this House condemns the leader of the Liberal Democrats in Hackney, Councillor Colin Beadle, for not paying his council tax last year and for laughing at the overwhelming majority of people in Hackney who did pay; notes that at the last local elections Beadle's nomination for the Council was...

That this House congratulates Councillor Joe Connolly on his election as the first ever Freeman of the Borough of Rossendale; pays tribute to his 37 years of public service on behalf of the people of Rossendale; and wishes him well in retirement.

That this House congratulates Councillor Joe Connolly on his election as the first ever Freeman of the Borough of Rossendale; pays tribute to his 37 years of public service on behalf of the people of Rossendale; and wishes him well in retirement.

That this House believes that free debate is the essence of democracy and that local government is at the front line of this democracy; regrets therefore that at the full meeting of Birmingham City Council on Tuesday 12th April the leader of the Conservative Opposition, Councillor Bernard Zissman, led a walkout of half of his group members and therefore was not present at the debate on the Education Committee Report; applauds the courage of Conservative Councillor Allan Blumenthal, a City Councillor for more than 10 years, for writing to his leader saying how embarrassed he and his colleagues were by the walkout calling for Councillor Zissman to consider his position as leader; and calls upon the national Conservative Party leadership to explain to Councillor Zissman that organising walkouts of the debating forum of the largest local authority in England is not the action of a mature political leader.

That this House believes that free debate is the essence of democracy and that local government is at the front line of this democracy; regrets therefore that at the full meeting of Birmingham City Council on Tuesday 12th April the leader of the Conservative Opposition, Councillor Bernard Zissman, led a...

That this House deplores the shameful attacks made by Conservative Councillors on Leicester City Council against the Right Reverend Thomas Butler, Bishop of Leicester, following his plea in the Leicester Mercury for tolerance, respect and understanding between people of different religions and cultures; fully supports the views of the Bishop that it would be `tragic if local politics began to be divisive of the communities' in Leicester; calls on the Prime Minister forthwith to dissociate himself from the unwarranted and disgraceful attack by members of his party on the integrity of the Bishop of Leicester; and asks him to join with all people of goodwill to reaffirm the commitment to the promotion of good community relations throughout Britain.

That this House deplores the shameful attacks made by Conservative Councillors on Leicester City Council against the Right Reverend Thomas Butler, Bishop of Leicester, following his plea in the Leicester Mercury for tolerance, respect and understanding between people of different religions and cultures; fully supports the views of the Bishop...

That this House is deeply concerned at the dumping by Stirling Conservatives of Councillor Frank Saunders, the Leader of the Conservative Group on Central Regional Council, who has been deselected as candidate for the Viewforth division because of his disagreement with the Government's plans to butcher Scottish local government and in particular its plans to break up Central Region; notes that Colonel Saunders has been a member of the Conservative party for 52 years and a councillor for over 30 years and that his fellow Conservative councillor Susan Dukes said in the Stirling Observer 'Councillor Saunders is an honourable man and an experienced councillor who believes that the interests of the people must come first'; notes the comment of yet another Conservative colleague, Councillor Janice McNicol, 'We felt the Conservatives were missing out on the opportunity to show that they were above that awful word gerrymandering - To produce particles of blue across Scotland was not the way to go about the forming of local government' - and that she the thought Conservatives were above that; and conclude that the deselection of people such as Councillor Saunders speaks eloquently of the lack of free speech in today's Conservative Party and that Edinburgh District Conservative councillor Brian Meek is right to pose the question in regard to the Saunder's case, 'Are we supposed to be speaking puppets?'.

That this House is deeply concerned at the dumping by Stirling Conservatives of Councillor Frank Saunders, the Leader of the Conservative Group on Central Regional Council, who has been deselected as candidate for the Viewforth division because of his disagreement with the Government's plans to butcher Scottish local government and...

That this House calls on the honourable Members for Denton and Reddish and for Stalybridge and Hyde, as trustees of the Tameside Community Care Trust, the majority shareholder in Tameside Enterprise Limited, co-owned with Tameside Borough Council and Ashton under Lyne Labour Party, to explain the serious allegations of corruption and financial mismanagement detailed in the BBC Radio 4 "Face the Facts" programme broadcast on 13th January; notes the widespread involvement of Labour councillors, their spouses, friends and relations, the debts of ??2 million and up, and the cuts in staff conditions negotiated with NUPE; and calls for a thorough investigation by the District Auditor, the Fraud Squad and the Charity Commissioners.

That this House calls on the honourable Members for Denton and Reddish and for Stalybridge and Hyde, as trustees of the Tameside Community Care Trust, the majority shareholder in Tameside Enterprise Limited, co-owned with Tameside Borough Council and Ashton under Lyne Labour Party, to explain the serious allegations of corruption...

That this House notes with alarm the contents of a confidential memorandum written by Nigel Rix, former land and property manager for Hertsmere District Council naming Conservative Council leader Michael Byrne at the centre of irregularities in property dealings worth ??1 million; notes the memorandum discloses that senior council officials were involved in meetings with Councillor Byrne, who urged that Rialto Homes be allowed to join the shortlist of second round tenders even though their initial bid for ??1,700,000 was not amongst the top six; further notes the same memorandum reveals that in August of 1993 Councillor Byrne engaged in further advocacy on behalf of a Rialto subsidiary, Bayfordbury Estates, who had bid ??306,000 for land which had attracted a best bid of ??430,000 and that Councillor Byrne then indicated that Bayfordbury would increase its bid to ??450,000 if Hertsmere would allow 15 rather than 11 dwellings on the site; believes this case demonstrates the need for legislation to protect whistle-blowers; and urges the Right honourable Member for Sutton Coldfield, as Tory Party Chairman, to make clear that Back to Basics does not mean back to backhanders by instituting an urgent internal inquiry into the dodgy dealings of Tory councillors on Hertsmere Borough Council.

That this House notes with alarm the contents of a confidential memorandum written by Nigel Rix, former land and property manager for Hertsmere District Council naming Conservative Council leader Michael Byrne at the centre of irregularities in property dealings worth ??1 million; notes the memorandum discloses that senior council officials...

That this House applauds the action of the Liberal Democrats' London Region in issuing an ultimatum to the Liberal Democrat councillors in Tower Hamlets to accept the findings of the internal party inquiry which found that Focus leaflets pandered to racism; but regrets that purposeful action to root out racism in the Liberal Democrats has been dismissed by the Liberal Democrat Lancashire County Councillor, Tony Greaves, as 'political correctness'.

That this House applauds the action of the Liberal Democrats' London Region in issuing an ultimatum to the Liberal Democrat councillors in Tower Hamlets to accept the findings of the internal party inquiry which found that Focus leaflets pandered to racism; but regrets that purposeful action to root out racism...

That this House notes that the Liberal Democrat leadership has still not expelled the two Party activists condemned by the Liberal Democrats' own inquiry of 'pandering to racism' in Tower Hamlets; notes with interest a letter from two Liberal Democrat councillors, Councillor Sally Prentice (Vauxhall) and Councillor Steve Gauge (Southwark), to the Liberal Democrat News in which they deplored the fact that 'as Liberal Democrat Members of Parliament, councillors and party members, we continually call for tough action to tackle injustice and maladministration, yet we are incapable of taking action within our own party'; observes that the two councillors go on to claim that the Party's 'failure to act gave the impression that "party unity" in Tower Hamlets was more important than taking action to root out racism'; welcomes the fact that at least some Liberal Democrats are not prepared to follow their Party's leadership and turn a blind eye to the Liberal Democrats' consistently unacceptable and offensive campaigning tactics; and calls upon the Right honourable Member for Yeovil and his hypocritical Party to clean up their act.

That this House notes that the Liberal Democrat leadership has still not expelled the two Party activists condemned by the Liberal Democrats' own inquiry of 'pandering to racism' in Tower Hamlets; notes with interest a letter from two Liberal Democrat councillors, Councillor Sally Prentice (Vauxhall) and Councillor Steve Gauge (Southwark),...