Oldham Council are set to meet for the third time since the local election on Wednesday, where they are hoping to finally break the stalemate and form an administration.
The first attempt at an Annual Meeting failed to make it past the first hurdle as councillors struggled to elect a mayor.
As a result, the meeting was adjourned for four hours, only for the chamber to decide to reconvene at a later date
A new mayor, Cllr Pam Byrne, was appointed in the second attempt, but the rest of the agenda was once again abandoned.
The next Annual Meeting attempt is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, July 1.
Here’s an overview of what to expect from the next meeting.
Which party could form an administration?
Reform UK, the party with the second highest number of councillors at 16, was the only party to submit a proposal for forming an administration during the second meeting on May 15.
The group’s local leader, Cllr Lewis Quigg, told the chamber that the party’s “broad mandate” in Oldham is “nothing to be trifled with”, but they ultimately failed to secure the majority vote needed.
The party with the highest number of councillors, albeit by a small margin, is still Labour, who have 18.
In the aftermath of what was a devastating local election for Labour, the party said they would not be looking to form a coalition with Reform or The Oldham Group, now the borough's third biggest party.
However, in a letter to the borough’s party leaders, which was published on social media on Thursday, Labour have announced a bid to try and form an administration at the next council meeting.
The Labour leader, Cllr Arooj Shah, who resigned as council leader after the local election, wrote: “Our offer to form an administration is not about deflecting from the election results this year. It is about the reality that the Labour Group, with its experience and track record of delivery for the people of Oldham, is best placed to lead at this time.”
She added: “This proposal allows the largest single group to lead an administration, but we also accept up front that it does not resolve the basic issue of a working viable majority of votes before council and that we will need other groups to offer support on important matters of appointments and budget.
“It is our belief that the smaller groups hold an important balancing position in whatever administration could form.”
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Elsewhere on the council, the Oldham Group have 10 councillors, Liberal Democrat have six and the Conservative have four.
Even if they were to come together in a coalition, they would not have the majority 31 votes needed to form an administration.
Similarly with Labour and Reform UK, with 18 and 16 councillors respectively, neither have a majority vote along.
As Cllr Shah wrote in her statement, the smaller groups and independent councillors will have an important role to play in deciding what the next administration looks like.
What is happening with the council in the meantime?
Without an administration and key leadership positions in place, the council’s day-to-day running of services continues, but no decision on budget or policy can be made.
Under council rules, while there’s no political leadership, the chief executive has decision-making powers.
The independent Local Government Association and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government are understood to have been informed of the situation at Oldham Council.
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