Replacing Birmingham City Council’s chief executive won’t solve the city’s problems, an MP has warned.

Andrew Mitchell, Conservative MP for Sutton Coldfield, said radical reforms to the city council were needed, following the announcement that Birmingham City Council chief executive Mark Rogers is to leave after three years in the role.

Mr Rogers is rumoured to have been pushed out by the council’s Labour leader John Clancy, who is said to blame him for the council's failure to deliver a balanced budget last year.

It has also been reported that the Government encouraged the departure.

Sutton Coldfield MP Andrew Mitchell
Sutton Coldfield MP Andrew Mitchell

Mr Mitchell said: “If anyone believes that Birmingham City Council’s problems are going to be addressed by changing the chief executive, they are not across the problems Birmingham faces.

“Nothing short of full-throated root and branch reform of the city council is required.

“And we might as well face facts and get on with it.”

Mr Mitchell previously set out radical plans to break up Birmingham City Council and create ten borough councils, saying it was the best way to end decades of failure.

Areas such as Edgbaston, Hall Green or Erdington would have their own local authorities collecting council tax and providing key services, under his proposals.

News broke just two days before the cabinet holds an emergency meeting to finalise details of the council’s 2017/18 budget and little more than a week before the final budget is presented to the full council on February 28.

City leader Coun John Clancy
City leader Coun John Clancy

Mr Rogers was also leading on a major overhaul of the city’s workforce as it looks to makes thousands of staff redundant over the next two years.

It follows just weeks after the council’s social services and education director Peter Hay announced his retirement and leaves Britain’s largest local authority with two major vacancies at the very top.

The pair had been overseeing the recovery of the council’s persistently failing child protection services and there were indications that a corner was being turned in the last Ofsted report.

Two other senior directors, Jacqui Kenneday and Waheed Nazir, are also only in acting positions.

In a statement issued by the council, Mr Rogers said: “Birmingham City Council has been on a challenging journey of improvement and reform over the past three years and I am hugely proud of the team I have worked with to deliver much needed changes in culture, practice and performance.

“I leave the council in a much stronger position than when I joined it and, with the proposed budget and transformation plans set out for the next two years, now is a good time to pass on the baton. I look forward to my colleagues future successes as I know that they can build on firm foundations and continue the modernisation journey we have started together.”

Council leader John Clancy said: “I’d like to thank Mark for his hard work and commitment over the past three years during what has been the most difficult and challenging of times for Birmingham City Council. I wish Mark all the very best for the future.”

But it has been reported that that Coun Clancy blames Mr Rogers for a £49 million black hole in this year’s budget.

Birmingham has been through a lengthy attempt to force through improvements, which began when the Government commissioned an inquiry by former senior civil servant Lord Kerslake.

Ministers were concerned about the city’s failing children’s services, Birmingham’s massive financial liabilities and the Trojan Horse affair, when there were claims that religious hardliners had attempted to take over some city schools.

Lord Kerslake published a damning review in December 2014 which gave the authority a year to improve or risk being broken up.