Council leaders have stated that Barnet is one of the most “efficient and effective councils in the country” after Labour councillors called for a vote of no confidence against its Tory leader.

Councillor Richard Cornelius’s judgement was called into question after a report into a series of blunders at a council meeting on June 2 showed “nobody” at the authority understands local government law.

The report came after members’ allowances were approved before being cleared by a legal team and an error in the way committee seats were allocated halted decision-making for a month.

Five members of the council's Labour group have supported motions calling for votes of no confidence in Cllr Cornelius and the council's chief executive Andrew Travers.

Mayor of Barnet Cllr Hugh Rayner has seven days to schedule a date for an extraordinary meeting.

According to Labour leader Alison Moore, the “disaster and debacle” of the meeting on June 2 put the council’s legal position into question.

Despite the damning report – which also criticised the way “inexperienced” staff members have been placed in key roles – deputy leader of the council Cllr Daniel Thomas insisted the system is “running well”.

In a statement, he said: “This is a predictable political stunt by Labour, proving they're more focused on navel-gazing than the issues that really matter to residents.

“No-one enjoyed the annual council meeting, but the committee system is up and running well.

“Barnet is one of the most efficient and effective councils in the country at dealing with the issues that matter most to residents and we have saved the taxpayer millions in the process.

“We are currently having serious discussions about the future of services in the borough and the committee system is making this an open and public process.

“The committee system also means Labour are part of the governance system and they ought to be properly engaging with it, rather than looking at every issue through the prism of political advantage.”