County leader tells Mansfield councillors ‘I’m living in your head rent free’ as council tax rise confirmed

Mansfield Council met on February 3 to set its 2026-27 budget and faced a decision to confirm a 2.99 per cent rise in council tax for residents from April onwards.

As well as his job at the county council, Coun Barton (Ref), also sits on Mansfield Council for the Maun Valley Forest Town ward.

Before joining Reform he was affiliated with the Mansfield Independents, whom he led at Mansfield Council between 2015 and 2019.

During their tenure, they froze council tax on a number of occasions.

And at this meeting, Conservative councillor Andre Camilleri accused those freezes of being the reason that the now-ruling Labour party had to raise council tax.

He said: “Over many years this council, going back to the days of the Independents, kept council tax low – artificially low.

"That wasn’t because it was sustainable, it was because it helped to win votes.

“It looked good in the short term but it stored up the real problems we are facing now.

“Costs didn’t stop rising, demand for services didn’t stop growing, yet income was deliberately held back.

"That kind of short-termism weakens finances, drains reserves and leads to today’s residents paying the price.

“If the ex-Independents, who saw the consequences first-hand, choose to repeat the same approach at the county they now run, they can’t claim surprise when the finances start to unravel, which they will.

"We’ve been there before and we shouldn’t make the same mistake again.”

But Coun Barton replied: “I wasn’t going to comment, but I’ll tell you what, I seem to be living in everybody’s heads rent-free.

"Coun Camilleri’s party (when in) Government pillaged this country for 14 years.

“This council had to cut its cloth accordingly and we did.

"I’m very proud of what we did.

"And you’ve got a very short memory, you were part of the Independents for four years.

"I think you need help, Andre.

“I’ve done more in eight months than you lot did in the last 10 years.

"That’s why you’re picking on me and that’s why I’m living in your head rent-free – so move on.”

Taking issue with his comments, Coun Liz Langrick (Con) hit back, saying: “You did the absolute opposite of cutting your coat with the cloth because you did not consider the long-term impact of those freezes.

"Did you really think that losing the council £8m ten years later was a good strategy?

“No responsible council would have taken those decisions, in fact very few did.

"That’s why, despite the fact that so many councils in this country have suffered due to austerity, this council is particularly badly affected.

"And I think you should take responsibility for that.”

As well as a 2.99 per cent rise in council tax, Mansfield will also see a 4.8 per cent rise in rent for council house tenants.

Defending the budget, Coun Craig Whitby (Lab), cabinet member for finance, said: “This council is rebuilding and regenerating Mansfield, steadily, deliberately and visibly.

"This is what this project is about.

"For the majority of households in Mansfield, our rise amounts to just under £5 for the entire year.

“This increase, which is below inflation, helps mitigate the impact of rising costs whilst protecting the services residents rely on.

“It’s not ideal that we’re doing it but we are doing things to make Mansfield a better place to live in.

"Things are going to start changing.

"Hopefully we can spread a little bit of optimism about the future.”

He also took a pop at Coun Barton, saying: “Local leaders have a responsibility to be honest about decisions they take and how they explain them to residents.

“We heard recently the leader of the county council argue that a rise in council tax by 3.99 per cent rather than the maximum 4.99 per cent amounts to a cut.

"It’s a staggering play on words.

“Here in Mansfield we prefer plain English.

"If something’s going up, we say it is.

Council leader Andy Abrahams, executive mayor of Mansfield, defended the rise in rent, arguing that the average rent for a council house remained ‘way below’ private sector figures, and that the money was for repairing and upgrading properties.

And while disagreeing with the decision to raise council rents, Coun Nigel Moxon, Conservative group leader, said: “Coun Whitby, the constraints you’ve got have left you very little wiggle room.

"I’m sure this is not the type of budget that any of us would’ve wanted to present this evening.

“But the decision-making of the past has led us to where we are today.

"I suppose at least you didn’t go into the last election promising to cut taxes.

"I do think it’s disappointing that rent for council houses is going up by 4.8 per cent but I get the reasons why and I get that it’s in line with government guidelines.

“The Mansfield Independents made hay while the sun shone but forgot to fix the roof.

"So when the rain came, and council tax wasn’t put up for several years in a row, we were left with the aftermath which is the squeeze on our finances we are now feeling.

"So my group tonight will be reluctantly voting in favour of this budget.”

Coun June Stendall (Ind) also said she would ‘really reluctantly’ vote in favour of the budget, and did so with the other two independent councillors.

The three Reform councillors on the council voted against.