Political View: Elections over - time to form an administration to take Peterborough forward
With elections done for another year (any byelections aside), the focus at Peterborough City Council turns to forming an administration for the next year. All parties have experienced losses or gains unrealised.
For the Liberal Democrats, whilst we were able to gain a seat in Hampton Vale ward, which sees a return to the Peterborough Council after a 30-year break (surely that has to be some sort of a record), of Cllr Paul Wiggin joining Cllr Chris Wiggin in that ward, we also lost long-standing Cllr Asif Shaheed from Paston and Walton ward with 16 years service as a councillor. Following the loss of Cllr Nick Sandford two years ago, this was particularly painful for our party.
Before the recent elections, the council administration was a cross-party group comprising the Liberal Democrats, Peterborough First, and Labour. For the last six months, this administration has been working hard to deliver a council that gets on with the job of making decisions, with the primary goal of delivering financial stability. At the annual budget meeting, the administration delivered a budget that not only balanced for the next year but also for the following two years.
What does this mean for the next year? Well, firstly, there is an appetite to continue with the cross-party arrangement and, having achieved a balanced budget, the emphasis can now shift towards how to deliver better services to our residents. Whilst we have seen an increase in council tax locally, we still have the lowest council tax bill across Cambridgeshire. We recognise that residents are looking for better value for money from their council.
With the Local Government Reorganisation set to be announced in the summer with elections to the newly formed authorities set for next May this new administration will have its work cut out to get a good deal for Peterborough in terms of how the new authority covering Peterborough is setup. Having a cross party administration is crucial in making sure that not just one party is in the driving seat with this new setup. With this change being a once in a lifetime change it is crucial that all opinions are considered.
I hope that now the elections behind us we can pull all parties together for a more collegiate approach to getting the best possible outcomes for Peterborough, be it with the continued use of the Financial Stabilty Working Group but also on how to delivery the emerging Local Plan, replacement swimming pool and the new Youth Zone all of which need to be firmly locked down prior to the new authority being installed.
Be assured though that your local Liberal Democrat councillors will continue to advocate for their local communities, regularly reporting back on the action taken. Please get in touch with your local councillors if you have any outstanding issues you feel we can help you with.