Lincolnshire County Council leader defends £469 million debt

In response to claims made by Reform UK candidates ahead of the upcoming county elections on Thursday, May 1, Coun Martin Hill confirmed the debt figure is accurate but emphasised that most councils borrow to fund significant building projects.

A campaign leaflet from Gareth Shields, Reform candidate for St Giles in Lincoln, also criticised the state of the county’s roads, stating they are “blighted by craters” and filled with dangerous potholes.

In response, Coun Hill stated: “Like most councils, we borrow from the Public Loans Board at cheap rates to pay for major building projects like bypasses, new schools, fire stations, IT etc. Typically for a 30 year period similar to a mortgage.

“We are not allowed or would wish to borrow to pay for day-to-day services.

“If we didn’t borrow, major new builds wouldn’t happen which Reform seem content to accept.”

Earlier this year, Lincolnshire County Council revealed it had repaired more than 100,000 potholes in 2024.

At the time, Coun Hill praised the “huge amount of effort” the council had put into keeping Lincolnshire moving.

He said: “Spending on road maintenance last year reached record levels, and we repaired more than 100,000 potholes and rebuilt many miles of roads and footpaths over the past year.

“This year we’re investing a further £106.6m into maintaining our 5,500-mile network. The disparity between pothole reports and births highlights the unique challenge rural authorities face – our communities are spread out and our road network is large.

“To help manage the network most effectively across our vast rural area, we encourage residents to report potholes, as well as carrying out our own inspections, so that we can repair defects as quickly as possible.

“Whilst we know we still have more to do, it is encouraging that our maintenance strategy is working; Lincolnshire’s principal road network is in a better condition than the average rural authority, and the condition of our unclassified roads has significantly improved.”