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Merger row ignited

Wednesday, 27 November 2024 10:25

By Paul Faulkner

Cllr Michael Vincent - Conservative, Leader, Fylde Council

Wyre Council should not be forced to take on the debt and social problems of neighbouring Blackpool, its leader has said.

Michael Vincent was speaking after the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) revealed a group of Lancashire Labour MPs has called on the government to abolish the county’s 15 main councils and replace them with just three or four new authorities covering much wider areas.

The politicians did not specify how they thought the local authority map should be redrawn, but such a move could lead to the creation of a new standalone ‘unitary’ authority encompassing the whole of the Fylde coast – and possibly also Lancaster.

Cllr Vincent, a Conservative, told the LDRS he would not want to see Wyre residents become responsible for “baling out” their seaside neighbours.  However, Blackpool Council ‘s Labour leader Lynn Williams defended the stability of her authority’s finances and an investment strategy she says is designed to improve the lives of locals.

At the time it set its annual budget in February, Blackpool’s long-term borrowings stood at £187m – made up of a mix of fixed and variable rate debt which it said was intended to “maximise the financial benefit, and minimise the financial risk, to the council”.

But Cllr Vincent saw it as one of several red flags cautioning against the radical council shake-up being proposed.

“For Wyre, I wouldn’t favour us being lumped into a unitary with Blackpool, because [they] have a huge amount of debt,” he said.

“Our residents shouldn’t have to take that debt on…[nor] the social issues that Blackpool has.

“Forming one unitary authority would suggest that Blackpool is [superior to] Lancashire County Council and Wyre Council for providing services to the residents of Wyre – and I don’t think that’s true.

“Unless [the proponents of the idea] can make a strong case for what the actual benefits of this are, then they’re going to get some very loud voices against it.

“Moving control of Wyre to Blackpool Town Hall is not in the best interests of the people of Wyre,” said Cllr Vincent, who last week said any such changes should be put to all Lancashire residents in a referendum.

Blackpool is already a so-called ‘unitary’ council, responsible for delivering all local authority services in the town, whereas neighbouring Wyre and Fylde are ‘second tier’ authorities which look after issues such as planning and waste collection, while Lancashire County Council takes care of the likes of roads and social services.

Responding to Cllr Vincent’s comments, Cllr Williams said: “First and foremost Blackpool Council’s financial position is solvent and secure. In fact, we have £25m in reserves which I’m sure most people can agree is a solid financial position to be in.

“Like the majority of unitary councils up and down the country we spend a large part of our budget on vulnerable adults and children through our social care services. Those services are managed extremely well, we are proud to protect the most vulnerable in our society and will continue to do so in the most effective and cost efficient way possible.

“Blackpool Council has suffered the most severe cuts in government funding during the last 14 years. Despite these cuts, we have continued to invest in Blackpool – to create jobs, provide quality affordable housing and a better future for our community.

“The debt we do have is secured against assets, which are twice the value of the debt.  Our single biggest investment is in creating our Civil Service Hub, with the Department for Work and Pensions as the tenant, bringing 3,000 people into the town centre.

“We are an agile, self-reliant, proactive and innovative council that does all we can to invest in our town and the lives of our residents. I cannot think of a better investment and payback than that,” Cllr Williams added.

The LDRS understands the majority of Lancashire’s 12 Labour MPs signed the letter pushing for local authority reorganisation in Lancashire as part of a corresponding call for a strengthened devolution deal, which would bring greater powers and cash to the county than the agreement struck with the last Conservative government – which was approved by the new Labour administration after the general election.

Cllr Williams and the fellow signatories of that deal – the leaders of Lancashire County Council and Blackburn with Darwen Council – said last week they believed it was “in the best interests of Lancashire” to implement it.

However, they also committed to “working closely with local councils and other important stakeholders, ensuring that we remain in a strong position to receive further powers and funding in the future.”

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, said in the wake of the MPs’ letter, sent to local government minister Jim McMahon:   “As part of the biggest transfer of power from Westminster, we want to better support councils that want to move to simpler structures that make sense for their areas and where that better meets the needs of local people.

 “We are working with local leaders across England to deliver the most ambitious programme of devolution this country has ever seen, and will set out further details in the upcoming English Devolution White Paper.”

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