Commissioner intervention could be 'scaled back' at council

'FIXERS' appointed by the Government to oversee Birmingham City Council could be scaled back as soon as October if a 'fragile' recovery continues.

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But the council must meet objectives before then to show it is capable of standing alone to provide financial stability, lead commissioner Max Caller said.

Mr Caller praised the 'hard work and dedication' of council leader John Cotton and his cabinet, managing director Joanne Roney, appointed in September 2024, and her team of senior officers. But he criticised the council's executives in place from 2023 to 2024, claiming the first year of intervention was largely 'wasted.

Mr Caller added: "It is making much more progress now."

He also repeated that there is no quick fix to Birmingham's crisis, saying: "Some members of council need to stop thinking there is some magic solution. There is no such thing as a quick fix. There never was."

Mr Caller spoke after his most recent report to Government, published last month.