Seven leaders’ concern over ‘mega-council’

TALKS ABOUT REORGANISATION BID

LEADERS of all seven district and borough councils in Nottinghamshire are to meet to discuss plans which could see them scrapped.

Councillor Kay Cutts, the Conservative leader of the county council, said she wants to “get on with” a plan to abolish all seven councils.

It is understood that she has not been invited to the meeting but has been made aware of it.

The meeting is set to take place behind closed doors at Bassetlaw District Council on Monday, July 9.

No public agenda has yet been released for the meeting, but a spokesman for Bassetlaw Council said items to be discussed are likely to include “devolution and the local enterprise partnership, the metro strategy and recent announcements from the leader of the County Council on local government reorganisation in Nottinghamshire”.

There has been criticism from several district council leaders about the lack of debate, and the fact they were not informed of the proposals before they were made public.

Councillor Simon Greaves, the leader of Bassetlaw District Council, said: “What we’ve got now is the leader of the county council trying to create a mega-council for Notts in order to bail out the county’s finances.

“This would undermine local democracy, with decisions on growth, planning and housing taken remotely from the communities that we serve.

“Councillor Cutts is out on her own on this and she’s pursuing a long held personal agenda that has nothing to do with the best interests of residents.

“If she really cares about what is best for the people of Nottinghamshire then her time and energy would be better spent helping to create a D2N2 LEP that works for the whole area. What we need is a focus on jobs and investment instead of wasting time agonising over structures and boundaries.”

Councillor Cutts declined to comment on the meeting but previously said she thinks there could be a host of benefits from abolishing some of the councils, including cost savings.

The leaders of Ashfield, Mansfield, and Gedling councils have all criticised the plan, while the leader of Rushcliffe council said more debate was needed before a decision was made.