Candidate wants to see city council replaced

A candidate standing for election to Peterborough City Council wants to see the council replaced by a new authority, which he claims will save taxpayers tens of millions of pounds a year.

UKIP Fletton and Stanground candidate Peter Reeve wants to see a single Cambridgeshire and Peterborough-wide authority, or if there is not support for that two unitary authorities with one covering the north of the county and one covering the south. Currently, there are multiple councils across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough including district, city and town councils.

Mr Reeve, who is also seeking re-election to Huntingdonshire District Council next month, said: “So much money is being wasted. We could potentially get rid of several management teams in the north of Cambridgeshire.

“If elected I would be in a unique position to push that agenda and save taxpayers tens of millions of pounds every year.” An independent review is due to be published in the autumn on the future of local councils in the county which will be looked at by the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority. Mr Reeve is constituency manager for East of England UKIP MEP Patrick O’Flynn and the deputy leader of the Independent Group of the Local Government Association. He stood in the 2015 general election in North West Cambridgeshire where he came second to Conservative Shailesh Vara.