Political View: LGR - Why it needs to be done right

The LGR has been the main topic in Peterborough City Council for the last two years, writes Conservative Group cllr Kirsty Knight

Local Government Reorganisation will decide what our council looks like, who it serves and how services are delivered for years to come. We have had meetings, briefings, reports, consultations and countless hours of officer and councillor time. And now the Government has pressed the pause button. That should concern all of us.

After two years of work, we are no closer to certainty. The Government has launched a review, Peterborough’s decision is on hold and there is currently no timetable for what happens next. At the same time, Peterborough’s own preferred proposal has changed. When Options A and D were compared last November, the council’s figures were stark:

Option A: £12.1 million annual savings. £34 million to set up. Around six years to pay back.

Option D: £1.4 million annual savings. £41 million to set up. More than 50 years to pay back.

Option D was submitted to Government by the Leader of the Council. It was not voted on; it was just done.

But the Option D now being put forward is different.

The original Greater Peterborough proposal had a population of around 287,000 and included nine Huntingdonshire wards. The amended proposal reduces that to around 242,000 people, with only Yaxley and Stilton, Folksworth & Washingley joining Peterborough. And the letter sent to Government says the original financial modelling for Option D is now out of date.

So, there is an obvious question:

Where are the new figures? If the proposal has changed, councillors and residents should be shown clearly what the new Option D costs, what it saves and how it compares with Option A. No jargon. No spin. Just the numbers. We also hear a great deal about transparency, listening and working collaboratively. Yet I understand the other political group leaders at Peterborough City Council were not consulted before this amended proposal was sent to the Secretary of State. If that is correct, where is the transparency? A change of this importance should not happen behind closed doors and then simply be presented as a refinement. This is not a small administrative adjustment. We are talking about the future shape of local government in Peterborough. Councillors come and go. Council leaders come and go. Administrations change. But the structure we eventually choose could still be here in 20, 30 or 50 years. Long after all of us have left the council chamber, residents will still be living with the decisions made now.

That is why this must be bigger than defending an option simply because it was preferred before. The Government has already pressed pause because it wants to review the wider process. Peterborough should use that moment to demand clarity. Show us the updated figures. Show us exactly what has changed. Let elected members scrutinise it properly and perhaps even have a vote on it. Because after two years of LGR, Peterborough deserves more certainty, not less.

Councillors come and go. This decision stays. We need to get it right.