Broxtowe Council leader calls for reimbursement costs after LGR paused
The leader of Broxtowe Council has called for answers on how much his authority will be reimbursed after the Government paused major council re-shaping plans.
The council’s cabinet met on September 8 to discuss an update on Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) for the area.
LGR was abruptly halted on September 7 when Housing, Communities and Local Government Secretary Angela Rayner MP (Lab), announced to Parliament it will now be ‘paused’ following new legal advice and that next May’s local elections with existing boundaries will go ahead.
Broxtowe councillors are now calling for more information on how their authority will be reimbursed for the work staff and members have already completed before the halt.
Coun Greg Marshall (Brox All), council deputy leader, said he ‘felt sorry’ for the officers and members who had invested a ‘significant amount of time’ into LGR work and the ‘anxiety’ the Government’s update had caused for job stability.
Cllr Philip Owen (Con) said: “I would suggest that the leader,on behalf of the council, write to the minister asking for a reimbursement of those costs, because it’s their failure.
“And why have they taken the decision to pause?
"The reason that came out was there was new legal advice – wouldn’t you have thought they might have taken the legal advice on what they were wanting to do before they entered into all of this?”
Coun Milan Radulovic (Brox All), council leader, said council leaders and chief executives across England were involved in an official local government meeting on September 8 where reimbursement was mentioned but there was ‘no amount yet set’.
He said: “We are concerned they weren’t able to give a figure or a timetable on anything and consequently we will be submitting a request to Government to reimburse Broxtowe Council for all its costs, including officer time in participating in a local government review which has turned from a farce into a fiasco.”
The authority keeps logs on all meetings attended by officers, working groups, members, chief executives and staff, where he expects it to be estimated in accordance with salaries.
He added: “In my estimation it would probably run to around £100,000.
“The impact on staff morale has been devastating.
"Great concern has been expressed about losing the jobs, community identity, about them being moved from pillar to post, the uncertainty.
"The Government doesn’t understand the impact this has on ordinary people’s lives.
“We’re trying to bring back some stability into the workforce.
“Our officer time has been taken away from the day job and concentrated into fruitless and endless meetings regarding the transfer of services and looking at figures, council tax figures, income figures.
"Consequently it’s been a detriment, I think, to local service provision.”
Coun Radulovic added that the total reimbursement costs for all of Nottinghamshire’s councils combined could be ‘astronomical’.
An Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government spokesperson said: “We recognise and appreciate the significant work that councils and partners have undertaken to date.
“As part of the pause, we will consider council costs and how to support areas through the next stage of the process.”