Neil Wilby Media

It never rains, but it pours.

Just two days before what is likely to be one of the stormiest Full Council meetings in the history of Oldham Metropolitan Borough (read more here), a reliable Civic Centre source reports that a controversial independent councillor – there are several, of course, in this ill-famed local authority – is facing a serious, potentially criminal, complaint over deliberately misleading fellow elected Members.

Cllr Marc Hince, after years of failure, was elected in May, 2023 to represent the Shaw ward in the Borough, displacing the highly respected Liberal Democrat, Cllr Chis Gloster, a former long-serving inspector with Greater Manchester Police.

Few would argue that Cllr Hince, a noted huffing, puffing blusterer not slow to criticise fellow councillors, owes his seat on the Council to an unholy alliance with a notorious, Tameside-based conspiracy theorist, Raja Miah.

‘The Beggar’, as Miah is widely known in Oldham, as a nod to extracting tens of thousands of pounds from his support group over the past several years, whom self-style as The Rabble (or ‘Raja’s Rabble), runs several social media channels under the Recusant Nine banner which have, at their core, a relentless anti-Labour Party theme.

Often in unpleasant terms, that have led to numerous suspensions by such as Facebook and High Court action being taken against Raja Miah by at least two Labour councillors (read more here).

It is true to say that The Beggar and The Rabble, the latter mostly comprising of a collection of elderly, deluded, gullible, cultish, political malcontents and axe-grinders, have been largely responsible for the defeats of three successive Council Leaders in Oldham following grotesque, highly personalised smear campaigns run both on-line and by way of leaflet distribution (read more here).

In the 2023 local elections in Oldham, attention was turned onto wards where there was a notion that independent candidates, backed by Recusant Nine smear campaigns against their political opponents, could succeed. The quid pro quo being that those independents, if elected, remained in thrall to Raja Miah and, he asserts, increased their monthly subscription or donation payments to him.

Marc Hince, a long-term and vociferous member of The Rabble, was one such beneficiary of the Recusant Nine ‘deal’. Indeed, Raja Miah was introduced as the ‘star guest’ at his election campaign launch.

Independent councillor, Maggie Hurley (Royton South) was alleged to be another to make a devil’s pact. But their alliance with The Beggar ended soon after they were elected over what is described on the Recusant Nine pages, repeatedly and in the most strident terms, as broken promises over large sums of money that were promised to keep the social media channels running. 

As a result, those two councillors, along with a third former Rabble member, Cllr Sandra Ball (Failsworth West), whom between them form The Independent Group (TIGs) on the Council, are mocked and derided on Recusant Nine on an almost daily basis and reminded of the alleged betrayal and absent funds.

For their part, Cllrs Hince and Hurley have remained silent in the face of this relentless barrage of abuse, presumably as there may be ramifications with the Electoral Commission if admissions were made over the deals alleged to have been struck with Miah.

Another to have remained silent is the Council’s Monitoring Officer (and Borough Solicitor), Paul Entwistle, who has shown absolutely no interest in getting to the truth of the matter. The soon to depart lawyer’s well-rehearsed laziness and ineptitude has featured regularly elsewhere on this Neil Wilby Media website (read more here). The present debacle is entirely in keeping with his lengthening catalogue of past, and deplorable, conduct.

After that long-winded, but necessary, introduction, attention is turned to a more recent matter involving Cllr Hince: It is alleged, with compelling evidence, by an anonymous whistleblower, that he failed to declare a pecuniary interest at the outset of a Full Council meeting in September, 2023 during which a Conservative Party motion was debated concerning the provision of a state of the art medical centre for Saddleworth. 

The motion, and a Labour Party amendment to it, also embraced the provision of medical services in the villages of Uppermill and Delph which, of course, lie in the Parish of Saddleworth.

Information accessible in the public domain – via the Care Quality Commission – shows that Saddleworth Medical Practice is the main health service provider in Uppermill and Delph with the Saddleworth Medical Practice owning the Delph practice outright. Uppermill Centre is noted as the main base of the Saddleworth Medical Practice, 

It has been established that Cllr Hince has a pecuniary interest in both the Uppermill and Delph practices by virtue of the fact that his wife, Sarah Hince is a partner in practice as well as the practice Matron. This is further compounded by the fact that, according to Companies House records, Marc and Sarah Hince are co-officers of a company categorised as providing ‘other human health services’. Marc Hince is Company Secretary and Sarah Hince the sole Director of ANP Community Services Limited which the complainant reasonably believed was linked with Saddleworth Medical Practice by way of Sarah Hince’s declaration on her Shaw and Crompton Parish Council Member’s Register. To the effect that she is co-owner of that practice. 

Mrs Hince does not declare ANP as an interest, but Marc Hince (also a parish councillor) does. Albeit, deliberately or otherwise, with a mis-spelt name (AWP not ANP). Rendering it invalid and, it would appear, disclosing further breaches of the Localism Act.

Cllr Hince not only failed to declare these labyrinthine, but fundamental, pecuniary interests, he actually spoke in the debate and voted on the Labour amendment.

It is alleged by the whistleblower that Cllr Hince has committed an offence under section 31 of the Localism Act 2011. In short, having a disclosable pecuniary interest in a matter considered at a local authority meeting. 

Whilst, technically, this is an allegation of a criminal offence it is considered unlikely that a meaningful police investigation or prosecution will follow. Such matters more usually being dealt with by way of a Council Standards complaint. 

There may also be a further Localism Act offence, or Standards breach, whichever way it falls, insofar as Cllr Hince has not, by way of his Member’s Register of Interests (read in full here), declared his position as Company Secretary of ANP Community Services Ltd, although he has declared his wife’s interest in the company as a Director. The section where a Member would declare sponsorship (for example, the alleged arrangement with Raja Miah) is left blank

Notwithstanding, whatever form the investigation into these allegations ultimately takes, The Rabble, of course, will be suitably roused by these exclusive Neil Wilby Media revelations. Which, if proven, leave Marc Hince’s credibility as a councillor representing ward constituents in Shaw in small shreds – and there will doubtless be repeated calls for him to do the decent thing and resign.

Cllr Hince and Sarah Hince were both offered the standard courtesy of right of reply. Marc Hince took up the offer (see below FURTHER UPDATE), Mrs Hince has not, so far.

UPDATE: Since this article was first published, it has been confirmed that a complaint was passed to GMP in Oldham for a decision on whether to investigate.

FURTHER UPDATE: Marc Hince has exercised his right of reply (accompanied by similar abuse with which he indulged himself on a previous occasion) via a hotmail account, not his oldham.gov councillor account. He asserts that he has no pecuniary interest in Saddleworth Medical Practice, ANP Community Services Ltd is not connected to it and robustly denies wrongdoing.

All the rest of the allegations made against him, particularly related to his Register of Interests and his association with Raja Miah and The Rabble, remain unaddressed.

Page last updated: Tuesday 12th March 2024 at 0745 hours

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