The leader of Tameside Council Ged Cooney has resigned
The resignation comes after a week of chaos for the council which saw its Chief Executive step and other councillors refuse to serve
Yesterday the National Labour Party said that it would step in over the running of the underfire council
In a statement it said
“Due to the unacceptable working practices at Tameside Labour Group, Labour have taken the decision to implement a campaign improvement board to bring about the culture change the group requires with immediate effect.”
Last month a report by the children’s commissioner into the running of the council’s children’s services which revealed an atmosphere of toxic bullying in the local authority from management.
In a statement Councillor Cooney said
Following the report of Children’s Services by the Commissioner, in order for Children’s Services to turn around, it can only be done with the full support of all Council Members working together to achieve excellence.
“Clearly due to the events of the last few weeks following the issuing of the report, it is clear I do not have that support, therefore in order for Children’s Services to achieve excellence it has to be done with a new Leader that has the support of all Tameside Members. I wish them well in achieving excellence.”
Deputy leader Bill Fairfoull has also reportedly resigned
In a statement issued this afternoon, local MP’s Angela Rayner,Andrew Gwynne and Jonathan Reynolds said
We would like to thank councillor Ged Cooney for his service. We welcome the intervention of the Labour Party to bring stability and focus at this difficult time. Our number one priority is to ensure the council delivers for all residents of Tameside, and particularly for vulnerable children.”
More follows
