Labour the 'only party with a genuine plan for Peterborough' insists council leader as opposition groups come close to voting down city's budget
The Council Leader has insisted that opposition councillors did not take the opportunity to propose amendments to the budget.
The Leader of Peterborough City Council, Dennis Jones, has said that the Labour Party is the only party with a genuine plan for the city.
The statement comes after the council narrowly passed the city’s budget for the 2025/26 financial year on Wednesday night (February 19). The budget was only passed with a majority of three votes (21-18) with a number of councillors, from across all oppositions political groups, choosing to either vote against the proposals or to abstain (there were 11 abstentions).
Cllr Jones made an impassioned imploring councillors to support the budget and received support from former Council Leader and Conservative Group Leader Cllr Wayne Fitzgerald, who voted in support of the budget and made a speech on the importance of passing the budget even if individual councillors didn’t agree with every single part of it.
The budget included a number of controversial cuts as well as a rise in council tax in order to close a budget deficit of close to £23m.
The Labour group has now said that its budget will deliver “a much fairer financial settlement for councils including Peterborough, but cannot reverse over a decade of damage in just one year.”
Key highlights of the budget, according to Labour
- £110 million of capital investment, delivering long-term improvements to our city’s infrastructure and services. - Proposals to raise standards for private renters through a new licensing scheme for houses in multiple occupation, which will be paid for by landlords and provide some additional funds for the council to tackle homelessness. - Continued investment in The Lido, with improvements such as new food and drink offerings. - Commitments to increase opportunities to help young people move into paid employment. - A variety of changes to the way services are structured and managed by the council to save taxpayers’ money while preserving service levels. - Proposals and funding to introduce some children’s homes for vulnerable children in Peterborough, improving outcomes for this group while keeping them close to their family.
Following the meeting, Cllr Jones has stressed that all councillors had the opportunity to put forward amendments in the months prior to the final vote but none took the opportunity.
Cllr Jones said: “This is a Labour-led budget, but we have had open dialogue across all political parties and worked together on the details.
"There have always been opportunities for other parties to put forward amendments, but none did – and the fact that Peterborough First, Lib Dems, Greens and some Conservatives decided not to vote for this budget tonight despite not having put forward any other ideas shows that only Labour has a genuine plan for our city.
"This budget shows the difference a Labour council makes. We are protecting the services our council delivers to residents, and making the right decisions to put the council back onto a sustainable financial footing after many years of a Conservative administration asleep at the wheel – both locally and nationally.
"Thanks to additional funding from the Labour government, we have been able to avoid some of the most difficult decisions that could otherwise have been needed.”
Councillor Mohammed Jamil, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance and Corporate Governance, added: “This year’s budget setting process has been one of the most challenging on record, so I am delighted that we have now set a balanced budget for 2025/26. The hard work does not stop here; we now must deliver these savings in full and we are committed to doing so.
“Once again, I would like to praise council staff for their role in developing proposals and considering new ways of working to make the savings that we needed to. I would also like to recognise those cross-party members who have worked collaboratively as part of our Financial Sustainability Working Group to get to where we are now.
“We will continue to put all our efforts into managing our very difficult financial situation and that includes working with Government on a fairer funding model. The Government is clearly listening and understands the significant challenges facing local government, with more money coming our way in 2025/26 than we expected.
“Difficult decisions remain, as we look to continue delivering the services that our residents rely upon, but we are focussed on our priorities which are to help and support those who need our help the most and to deliver opportunities for all.”