West Lindsey councillors warns abolishing Greater Lincolnshire council would be an ‘absolute disaster’
Getting rid of a Lincolnshire council would cause “months of huge problems” for residents, its members have predicted.
The nine authorities in Greater Lincolnshire are set to be abolished and replaced with two or three larger councils that handle all services.
However, West Lindsey District Councillors believe the process will be costly and chaotic, leaving residents worse off than before.
There are now six competing Lincolnshire options for the new system, although West Lindsey has refused to submit any proposals.
Coun Matt Boles (Lib Dem) told a council meeting he was “completely opposed” to the whole idea, and “the abolition of this council will be a disaster for the area.”
Coun Jackie Brockway (Con), the newly-elected leader of the authority, said: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Services could be taken out of our hands by people who don’t know West Lindsey at all.”
The government claims the system shake-up would save £20million each year, although other reports have questioned this.
Coun Tom Smith (Con) said: “Whatever form this takes, it will be a mess – it just depends how big of a mess.
“There will be huge problems for the first 12 to 18 months if we’re put in with North and North East Lincolnshire residents, as they use totally different systems.
“Even if we are put with the rest of Lincolnshire, it will still cause problems – the quoted savings aren’t there.”
Lincolnshire Indepedent Coun Paul Key described the process as a “travesty”, and predicted there would eventually be a U-turn by government.
Jim McMahon, the Minister for Local Government, wrote to councils earlier this year to promote the benefits of the shake-up.
He said: “This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to work together to put local government in your area on a more sustainable footing, creating simpler structures for your area that will deliver the services that local people and businesses need and deserve.”
Councils need to submit their proposals by November, with a decision expected on the new shape of Greater Lincolnshire next year.
A public consultation event is being held on September 19, at Gainsborough Library on Cobden Street, Gainsborough, from 2pm to 5pm, where residents will be able to speak directly with the team developing the proposal, ask questions, and share their thoughts.