Northumberland Reform councillor in clash with lawyer over council tax arrears

Reform UK councillor Barry Elliott rowed with Northumberland County Council monitoring officer Stephen Gerrard over the former’s arrears at a public meeting this week.

It comes after Coun Elliott was told to pay almost £40,000 worth of debts to the county council following a court appearance in November. The dispute relates to business rates and council tax arrears to Northumberland County Council, dating between 2020 and 2025 – although Coun Elliott has insisted that some of the council’s figures were “totally wrong”.

A total of £28,539 of the debts relate to business rates, with the remainder of around £10,000 being unpaid council tax. Under the Local Government Finance Act, councillors are prevented from voting on matters around council tax if they have council tax arrears unpaid for two months or more.

This Wednesday’s full council meeting saw a debate on the council’s new council tax support scheme and the setting of the council tax base for the coming year, sparking the latest clash between Coun Elliott and County Hall officials.

At the start of the meeting, council chairman Coun John Beynon reminded councillors that Mr Gerrard had sent an email to all councillors reminding them that if they were in arrears, they would need to declare an interest at that point and that they would not be allowed to vote on the support scheme or the council tax base.

Coun Beynon added: “I wouldn’t want any member to get it wrong. It is still an offence to do so.”

No members declared an interest at this point. When the meeting arrived at the council tax items, Coun Elliott requested clarity from the monitoring officer.

He said: “I believe a matter has arisen at this point of the meeting and I would like to get some clarity. The chair pointed out the monitoring officer sent an email around to all councillors – I question the timing of such.

“The council know that despite me personally never not paying my council tax, despite me as a councillor never not paying my council tax, never being two months in arrears in paying council tax, I have been in a dispute with the council in my business.

“I am a property developer with businesses. The point I am trying to make is I am questioning why the monitoring officer brought this to this meeting.”

At this point, Mr Gerrard interrupted and said: “Coun Elliott, I have to say the legal position is quite clear. You are in substantial arrears of council tax.

“You have liability orders against you of a substantial sum. If you speak and do not declare that fact, you commit an offence – if you vote, you commit an offence, and if you vote your vote will be disregarded.

“You are, in law, in substantial arrears. You can argue to the contrary, but that is the position in law. You are in substantial arrears. That point has been made to you in writing on so many occasions.”

Coun Elliott then requested to finish his question. He continued : “If that was the policy, you were aware I was in dispute with my rental properties…” Mr Gerrard again interrupted at this point.

He said: “The fact you do not agree with the council and you call it a dispute is not the position. You are in arrears, I’m sorry.”

Coun Elliott added: “There is a grey area in the law. Why was this not brought up at the last meetings in May, July and September? Why did you not raise this?”

Mr Gerrard denied there was a “grey area”. At this point, Coun Elliott said he would declare an interest and agreed to leave the room.

Coun Beynon said: “I did say you had to declare an interest then.”

Coun Elliott replied: “I will face the consequence if it happens.”

The Newsham ward councillor had taken the council to court last year in an effort to have a statutory demand served against set aside, arguing that he had “never run away from the liability” and claiming that the authority’s alleged targeting of him was “political”. His appeal was dismissed by a judge at Newcastle’s Civil & Family Courts.