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Court dismisses legal challenge to Birmingham sprinklers spending

Birmingham City Council has defeated a court challenge to its decision to spend £19m to fit water sprinklers to a housing block in the city.

The claimant, Robin Clarke said that the sprinklers were a waste of money and the council had not investigated in detail whether they were necessary.

However, a High Court judge ruled that the council had not broken the law in making the decision and dismissed an application for judicial review.

Until recently, the FRC had little involvement in local government affairs. But with investigations into council officers becoming more frequent, where is the political accountability?

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