A council leader has this week slammed new proposals to absorb parts of Gedling borough into Nottingham City.
Leader of Nottinghamshire County Council, Cllr Kay Cutts said plans outlined in a new report would have a serious effect on the quality of local services.
The Economic Case for the Derby-Nottingham Metro, has been prepared on behalf of Nottingham City and Derby City Councils and proposes a huge expansion of the current city boundaries to engulf seven additional district and borough areas, including Gedling, Rushcliffe, Broxtowe and Ashfield in Nottinghamshire.
Now leader of the council, Cllr Kay Cutts, has slammed the proposals and thinks they won’t be beneficial to people living in Gedling borough
She wrote this week: “If you’re employed at a Nottingham business, you’re taxed nearly £400 a year by the City Council to park your car at work under the Workplace Parking Levy – to the detriment of working families or the businesses they work for.
“If you go shopping, it will cost you £1 for every 30 minutes for on-street parking in the city centre.
“When your children go to a city school, there is a greater chance they will be attending one which is rated below the national average for standards and results.
“And, for day-to-day county council services we take for granted in Gedling, such as good libraries, day centres and children’s centres, you will have poorer access in the city.”
“Being more ‘city-like’ is not my vision of the future for Nottinghamshire and I doubt it would be for the large majority of the residents and businesses in the county.
“It came as a huge shock to me yesterday therefore to receive a document, the Economic Case for the Derby-Nottingham Metro, prepared on behalf of Nottingham City and Derby City Councils, just a few days ahead of its launch. Proposed in it was a huge expansion of the current city boundaries to engulf seven additional district and borough areas, including Gedling, Rushcliffe, Broxtowe and Ashfield in Nottinghamshire.
Cllr Cutts believes the report has cost £100,000 around £100,000 to produce and “uses statistics which are not based on Nottingham and Derby in an attempt to justify a flawed argument about the potential of their made-up metro area”.
“The document has clearly been worked upon for months, without the knowledge of, or input from anyone at Nottinghamshire County Council, Derbyshire County Council, your local MP or borough councillors – the very people you elect to represent your views.
Cllr Cutts wrote that the report also gives an insight into how the city views Gedling, Rushcliffe and Broxtowe – describing them as ‘hinterlands’, which means ‘the land behind’.
She wrote: “I am sure, like many fellow residents of these areas, I find this deeply insulting, inaccurate and most worryingly of all, a disturbing glimpse into how we would be treated under any future metro regime.
“It’s all the more disappointing because we normally have a good working relationship with the City Council. We try to work with all our neighbouring authorities in a constructive manner and on a wide range of initiatives which are mutually beneficial for both city and county. To deal with an issue with such huge implications for county residents in this manner is extremely disappointing and does nothing for the spirit of co-operation which we all want to see.
“We know what a great place Gedling is to live and the huge potential it has, without the city trying to ride on its coattails. We also know that the last thing residents want is to live in some form of ‘outer city limits’ of Nottingham.
