The government has announced today (22 February) that it is appointing commissioners in Nottingham.
This is disappointing given the large number of representations made to government by local Nottingham people and organisations, objecting to the imposition of Commissioners.
The decision ultimately shows the national challenge of Local Government with Government intervention happening in every corner of England at local authorities of all political make-ups. Nottingham is 1 of 8 local authorities to have issued a S114 Notice over the last few years and 1 of 12 authorities seeking Exceptional Financial Support and the Local Government Association expecting more to follow over the next year.
Years of underfunding, soaring costs care for vulnerable adults and children’s and rising numbers of homelessness are stretching council budgets across the country to breaking point.
We will ultimately work alongside the commissioners, as we did with the Improvement and Assurance board, to ensure that Commissioners are removed as soon as possible, to allow full democratic control to resume in Nottingham.
Despite the challenges, our vision and ambition for Nottingham remains unchanged. Together we can continue to help people cope with the cost of living crisis, build more affordable homes for local people, keep our streets and neighbourhoods clean, support people into work and safeguard our city for future generations by working towards Carbon Neutral 2028
Those are the priorities we were elected on last May and we owe it to the people of Nottingham to continue to work towards these aims.