‘Stop the rot’ campaign backs Morgan’s call for October EGM

RICS critic Jeremy Hackett has backed former construction faculty chairman Launce Morgan’s recent attack on the institution.

Schofield Lothian QS Hackett, who has led a campaign called Stop The Rot against the running of the RICS over the past two years, said he would support Morgan’s call for an October EGM unless the RICS answered “long outstanding answers” previously brought up by the campaign.

Hackett said he was looking for “total co-operation and transparency” from the institution on outstanding issues, which include the “flawed” 2003 EGM which ratified an increase in RICS subscriptions.

In his latest Stop the Rot bulletin, issued this week, Hackett claimed that Morgan had raised important issues about the running of the RICS, despite his subsequent resignation and apology to chief executive Louis Armstrong. He wrote: “… if the institution ignores such strong underlying messages of seething senior member discontent, it will do so at its peril.”

Hackett, who is on the RICS governing council, said the structure of the institution needed to be tackled.

The structure of the institution needs to be tackled

Jeremy Hackett, RICS reform campaigner

He said: “…until the mess of having 16 faculties and overlapping forums is tackled, and the parallel reporting structures of faculties, national boards and regional boards is streamlined on a democratic bottom-up reporting structure, there will be no end to the membership discontent.”

In the bulletin Hackett said that he had been well received at last week’s governing council meeting. He said he saw his new position on the council as “offering the institution a great PR opportunity of building a much needed bridge with the ‘grassroots’ membership, provided my right to criticise remained unimpaired.”

An RICS spokesman said that concerns over the 2003 EGM had been “carefully considered, but the facts are that the meeting was properly conducted and the resolutions that were passed are effective”. The spokesman added: “This has been confirmed by the scrutineers who were present on the day; by Electoral Reform Services Limited and by legal advice.”

Morgan’s attack last month also drew backing from a former regional committee member Nigel Tate. Writing in this week’s QS News Tate claimed existing members were looking at leaving the RICS and that the body had become over-bureaucratic.