Common Councillor Shravan Joshi is facing calls to resign from a City of London Corporation sub-committee that oversees e-bike agreements, after he began working with operator Lime in September, the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) has learned.
Cllr Joshi, a former Chair of Planning and Transportation and a member of the Streets and Walkways Sub-Committee, started the role two months after that committee approved a revised deal with e-bike operators. The position, which he began in September, is described as helping Lime set up an Advisory Board for its London operation and has no relation to Lime's Company Board, the LDRS understands.
Revised e-bike agreement approved in July
In late July, committee members approved an updated Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with operators, introducing measures including a new penalty regime and financial contributions set at £80 per parking space per quarter. The revised MoU also increased the number of operators from two to three, adding Voi to Forest and Lime.
The first MoU was signed last summer with Lime and Forest to formalise existing practices, including a requirement for operators to respond to reports of poorly parked bikes within 90 minutes. The revised version, which came before the Streets and Walkways Sub-Committee on July 21, proposed increasing financial contributions, introducing a penalty regime for poor parking compliance, and adding requirements around affordability and data sharing.
Cllr Joshi left the meeting before the decision but contributed to the discussion, saying he believed the MoU to be “fine” though that a response from the police should be obtained. After he left, Deputy Tom Sleigh, Planning and Transportation Chair, relayed that Cllr Joshi was not in favour of Voi being added to Forest and Lime. The revised MoU was agreed, including the increase to three operators.
Concerns over £80 per space fee
Some concern was raised about the deal, particularly the £80 per parking space per quarter fee. Deputy Deborah Oliver said she did not feel confident there was enough information about the level proposed, noting there were no comparisons with other boroughs presented. “We don't know whether we're charging way too little [or] too much,” she said.
Bruce McVean, Assistant Director, Policy and Projects, said every local authority has its own arrangements with providers but that he believed the Corporation's to be “proportionate”.
Role disclosed in register of interests
On October 13, Cllr Joshi updated his register of interests to disclose he had started a new role as a Board Advisor to Lime. The LDRS understands this description is incorrect, and that he has instead been engaged to help Lime set up an Advisory Board in London. The advisory board will not have authority to make decisions or financial commitments on Lime's behalf, and has no relation to the Company Board.
Cllr Joshi accepting the role does not constitute a breach of the Corporation's Code of Conduct, as long as he declares his interests and removes himself from decisions where conflicts of interest may arise. At a Streets and Walkways Sub-Committee meeting last week, Cllr Joshi raised a declaration regarding an item detailing where income from the MoU will be directed, though he did not appear to specifically name the role with Lime.
A source told the LDRS: “He should vacate his position on Planning and Transportation and Streets and Walkways. Regardless of whether he's just taken up his position, I think to the public they would rightly have concerns that his position was in discussion up to and during the MoU discussions, and he was at the meeting that took the decision voting in favour.”
A spokesperson for Second Derivative, a City of London based research consultancy firm specialised in Lime and its parent company Neutron Holdings, said: “It is deeply troubling that a City of London Corporation committee member joined Lime just two months after the committee approved commercial arrangements benefiting the company, at below market rates which significantly undervalue taxpayer-funded public space. As a publicly listed, SEC-regulated company, how does Lime address this serious conflict of interest and demonstrate that this appointment complies with its corporate governance and anti-bribery obligations?”
The LDRS asked Lime to confirm when discussions regarding Cllr Joshi's role began and whether he is being remunerated, though did not receive a response. The company did not provide a comment on the record. Cllr Joshi has been approached for comment.
