Arson attack on councillor’s car highlights growing intimidation crisis in Oldham politics

Councillor Josh Charters had just returned from walking his dog and was getting ready for bed when a balaclava-clad stranger set fire to his Mini Cooper Sport outside his Ripponden Road home. The January 13 incident, which police are treating as a “targeted attack,” brought fire crews, diverted buses, and left the councillor’s beloved car condemned to the scrapyard.

The arson follows a disturbing pattern of violence against Oldham’s public servants. In 2021, council leader Arooj Shah’s car was firebombed in what authorities called a “reckless and abhorrent act” that also damaged a neighbouring property. Most recently, an independent candidate’s vehicle was found ablaze before they stepped down for undisclosed reasons. The borough’s political landscape has been scarred by death threats, racial abuse on voicemails, angry mobs outside private homes, and online harassment including sexualised deepfakes.

As Oldham prepares for May’s local elections, the intimidation campaign is deterring potential candidates. “There are people who have told me directly they won’t stand in Oldham because they’re scared about the abuse they’ll get,” a senior council source revealed. Liberal Democrat councillor Helen Bishop described the situation as “proper gangland stuff,” warning that “it discourages decent people, though not scoundrels. It affects the quality of choices you have on the ballot paper at the election.”

The crisis extends beyond Oldham, with a Local Government Chronicle survey finding over 80% of councillors nationwide struggle to recruit candidates, citing online abuse (85%) and in-person threats (78%). The borough’s new town hall features bullet-proof security doors, reflecting the fear permeating local government. While Charters refuses to be intimidated and continues his duties, the attack has left him wanting to “put this behind me” for his and his partner’s sake.

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