Agenda item

The Council noted the Chairman’s engagements.

The Chair congratulated Lucy Bonshor – Democratic Services, on her 40 years of service with South Kesteven District Council.

Karen Bradford as Head of Paid Service reported that Kirkby Underwood Parish Council had recently received resignations from 4 of its 5 members and was no longer quorate.  A minimum of 3 members was needed for the Council to conduct business and hold meetings. Where a Parish Council is inquorate and unable to operate, the District Council can make temporary appointments to enable the Parish Council to progress urgent business.

Making temporary appointments to Town and Parish Councils is delegated to the Chief Executive and any appointments are required to be reported to the next meeting of Council for information.

The Head of Paid Service advised members that she had used those powers to make two temporary appointments to Kirkby Underwood Parish Council. Councillor Nick Robins and County Councillor Martin Hill had been appointed on a temporary basis until two new Parish Councillors have been elected or co-opted and taken up office.

The Cabinet Member for Leisure and Culture announced that three of Grantham’s parks had been given the Green Flag award.

The Cabinet Member for Property and Public Engagement noted that a contract had been signed to allow a banking hub to operate within the Stamford Arts Centre which was anticipated to open in Autumn 2026.

The Leader of the Council spoke on Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) and thanked the officers for their hard work on the ‘Best for Greater Lincolnshire’ proposal that had been submitted to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). It was explained that this was one of four proposals put forward, the Lincoln City proposal having been accepted by Government. This ‘horseshoe’ arrangement was the least favourable option of the four proposals and had only the support of one of the seven districts and Cabinet would, as a collective, be looking to challenge the outcome whether through lobbying or through legal means and will be looking to the other Lincolnshire Leaders about a joint approach to challenge the decision.

The Chair of the Council informed the meeting that convention at the Authority does not to permit debate on communications. However, as Chairman of the Authority one of the roles under Article 5, Para. 5.2(b)(iii) was 'to ensure that the Full Council meeting is a forum for the debate of matters of concern to the Local Community in accordance with the Council Procedure Rules.' It was evident to all that the Government announcement on LGR was an extraordinary event and a matter of genuine concern to the Local Community.

Whilst there was no Council Procedure Rule which expressly forbade debate on announcements, discretion was exercised by Chairman permitting Members to debate the communication by the Leader on LGR in the normal manner subject to a 90 second time limit for each Member.

Councillor Ben Green stated that no one wanted the Lincoln ‘doughnut’ and was, he considered to be, gerrymandering. He requested everyone unite to ensure the identity of Kesteven was not erased.

Councillor Phil Dilks commented that he supported the comments of the leader and thanked the Chief Executive. LGR was supposed to bring decision making closer to the people represented in the area, but this would not be the outcome of the selected proposal.

Councillor Sarah Trotter echoed her thanks to Officers, specifically the Chief Executive and her team. The model was pushed by a Labour MP rather than listening to needs of residents in Lincolnshire with concerns being raised about neglect of the rural areas expressing a need to stand up for local residents.

Councillor Peter Stephens commented that he agreed with the Leaders’ comments and explained that the reorganisation had been ordained by the Labour Government.

Councillor Paul Wood reported that he believed the selected proposal was the worst of the proposals put forward. He suggested that the concerns of the residents had been ignored and the proposal would not save money as suggested by the government minister.

Councillor Richard Cleaver commented that it was unacceptable proposal, and the County had been neglected for too long by Whitehall; the decision was wrong and should be reversed.

Councillor Rhys Baker explained that the proposal would not fulfil the obligations of the English Devolution Bill; the creation of a new Unitary, the second largest in the Country, would further exacerbate the concept of the ‘Whitehall knows best’ approach and ignoring the wishes of the local people.

Councillor Elvis Stooke considered that the proposal and Lincolnshire as a rural council had been let down by the Government and the unique needs of the County were being ignored.

Councillor Mark Whittington echoed the comments said across the chamber and that this was a decision was favourable to cities and not addressing issues faced in rural areas. It was suggested that rather than save money, this would increase costs across the County with the integration of services due in part to reorganisation.

Councillor Philip Knowles expressed his disappointment with the anti-democratic nature of the proposal that would take local politics further away from residents. 

Councillor Tim Harrison reported that residents were originally informed that Local Government Reorganisation would simplify Councils, strengthen local identity and improve services. South Kesteven would be swallowed up by an Authority stretching 100 miles north with fewer accountable representatives. He requested that the Chief Executive and Monitoring Officer be tasked with immediately obtaining independent legal advice demanding the Governments full reasoning and evidence and to challenge the decision.

Councillor Charmaine Morgan stated that the proposal was an autocratic, direct attack on local democracy by the Government and the elected representation would be significantly reduced across the regions. She stated that Lincolnshire did not have the infrastructure or the funding to mitigate against the change and the effects it would have on residents.

Councillor Lee Steptoe commented that he did not oppose the abolition of two-tier local government and the move to unitary authorities in principle. However, he had concerns about the time scales and as a result he was opposed to LGR and suggested that Councillors lobby the new Prime Minister and the new Secretary of State.

Councillor Ian Selby stated that the consultation had been meaningless and noted that there had been no public vote on this. He seconded the motion of Councillor Tim Harrison to obtain legal advice on the decision- making process.

Councillor Rhea Rayside reported that she agreed with the sentiments of her colleagues across the Chamber and was very disappointed with the proposal. She expressed her concerns for the staff and residents affected by the decision and questioned why, having been asked repeatedly to avoid boundary changes, the Government had approved a proposal that would require multiple boundary changes.

Councillor Matt Bailey commented that he was not prepared to accept the decision as final and would support a Judicial Review of the Government’s decision and asked for the leadership to discuss with other district councils and the county council whether a joint challenge should be mounted.

Councillor Rob Shorrock suggested that the information that had been received from Government should be considered and digested prior to seeking a Judicial Review. Firstly, he suggested that Officers of the Council explore the realities of implementation of the proposal and secondly discuss any relevant findings from Officers at a future meeting of the Council.

Councillor David Bellamy observed that the decision was convenient to the Labour Government, as local protest groups would be under a Labour-controlled authority.

Councillor Paul Stokes commented that there was a need to have a sensible and measured reaction to the proposal and suggested that residents had not been listened to and the decision process had been put together by someone with little understanding of Lincolnshire as a whole.

Councillor Pam Byrd commented that from a practical point of view, she had some concerns about the budgets specifically about the east side of Lincolnshire with regards to who would be responsible for managing repairs to the road networks and the flood defences.

The Chair of the Council thanked everyone for their contributions and stated that she was assured that matter, being of such importance, would be discussed at a future meeting of the Council.