Barnet Council has voted to open talks over a possible twinning relationship with Haifa, while Hackney’s review of its existing agreement still awaits a final decision. The two processes are at different stages: Barnet has authorised discussions and an assessment, whereas Hackney has agreed only in principle to terminate its arrangement.
The Barnet motion passed by 29 votes to one, with Labour councillors abstaining. That result approves a proposal to explore a relationship; it does not establish that a twinning agreement has been completed.
Barnet approves discussions and assessment
Barnet’s official motion document, headed “Council 20 October 2026”, proposed inviting the Mayor of Haifa and the Haifa Municipality into discussions “with a view to establishing a twinning relationship”. The wording sets out an intention to discuss a possible agreement, rather than confirming one.
The resolution also asked officers to assess the benefits, costs, governance and practical requirements of a potential relationship. That assessment was to be brought to a later council meeting, giving councillors a further opportunity to consider the proposal.
These are distinct parts of the motion: an invitation to begin discussions, and a request for work on what a relationship would involve. The vote should therefore be understood as approval of those steps, not as confirmation that the two municipalities are already twinned.
The financial and administrative questions remain matters for the requested assessment. The motion identifies costs and governance among the issues officers should examine, but does not itself provide the findings of that work or settle the practical requirements.
The vote was audible on the meeting webcast. The result was reported before the official minutes had been published, a distinction between the reported voting outcome and the availability of the formal written record.
Hackney’s decision remains conditional
Hackney’s position concerns an existing agreement dating from 1968. Its formal decision on 28 July agreed in principle to terminate that Haifa agreement, but expressly made the proposal subject to engagement with interested parties and a full equality impact assessment.
Those conditions are central to the status of the decision. The council did not give unconditional approval to end the agreement: it set out further work to be undertaken before final decisions on the borough’s twinning agreements.
The July decision required a later report to Full Council. That report is the specified stage for final decisions, rather than the in-principle resolution being treated as the conclusion of the process in its own right.
Hackney’s official update and consultation page describe the review and its cross-party working group as ongoing. The council said responses would inform recommendations to Full Council, placing engagement within the process leading towards a final decision.
The consultation therefore informs recommendations; it is not itself a final decision on the agreement. The requirement for a full equality impact assessment also remains part of the conditions attached to the July resolution.
Hackney’s stated position consequently remains a conditional proposal to terminate, with a review continuing and final decisions reserved for Full Council. It should not be described as a completed termination of the 1968 arrangement.
The distinction between the boroughs is both substantive and procedural. Barnet’s approved motion seeks discussions about establishing a relationship and an assessment for a later meeting. Hackney’s decision concerns whether to end an existing relationship, subject to engagement, assessment and a further report.
Neither vote, on its own, settles the respective outcome. Barnet has approved the opening of talks, not a completed twinning agreement; Hackney has taken an in-principle position, not made the final decision required by its own process.
