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Large trade union calls for changes to estate regeneration ballots
Loopholes are allowing estate ballots to be exploited, the GMB trade union has said at its annual conference.
At GMB Congress in Brighton, the union called for a number of loopholes to be closed and for “fair and clear” rules to “stop ballot sponsors from exploiting” them.
It called on the Electoral Reform Society and its balloting arm Civica to “use its expertise and reputation” to ensure that ballots of residents on council estates whose homes are facing demolition are “fair, independent and free of abuses”.
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In 2018, London mayor Sadiq Khan implemented a policy which means that if they want access to City Hall funding, social landlords’ regeneration schemes must have the backing of current residents through a ballot.
GMB said that although it welcomed their introduction, Congress was told of recent demolition ballots where “fair rules have been lacking, and second ballots have been used to overturn overwhelming votes by residents to reject demolition”.
It also said there is “unfairness” by way of exclusion of some residents, of a “lack of concise information from promoters” of estate demolitions, “plus incentives for residents which may have helped to encourage a ‘yes’ vote”.
GMB said Civica, which is used by councils and housing associations to carry out ballots, was involved in one such case in Camden.
It said “fair” rules must be “laid down clearly in writing, agreed upon and adopted by all stakeholders and also made mandatory”.
Peter Roberts, London region political officer at GMB, said: “On Tuesday 6 June, Congress called on the Electoral Reform Society’s Civica to use its vast expertise and reputation to ensure that all stakeholders must agree on a fair ballot process, with mutually agreed and adopted rules, without prejudice or misinformation, enabling a ballot to conclude with a majority decision that must be final, whatever the outcome.
“Congress called for Civica to boycott ballots where ballot promoters do not follow the rules.
“They must also refuse to get involved in second ballots to overturn the first ballot outcome against demolition.
“They should have done so in the autumn 2022 when an estate in Camden was threatened with demolition for a second time after an overwhelming first vote against.
“Congress called on the Electoral Reform Society and Civica to recognise that their good reputation for expertise and professionalism is being jeopardised due to problems with the estate demolition ballot process. Instead they should seek to be part of the solution.”
He said the union is calling on councils, housing associations and Civica to “recognise that these are people’s homes, not investment opportunities that deny local and longstanding residents affordable and secure accommodation” in London.
“Residents’ wishes must be respected whichever way the ballot goes,” Mr Roberts added.
The Electoral Reform Society has been contacted for comment.
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