The leaders of an incoming Conservative unitary authority have dismissed the suggestion of a fellow Tory councillor that they should feel ashamed of supporting local government reorganisation in North Yorkshire, dubbing his comments “bitter”.
Councillors Carl Les and Gareth Dadd, who will take the reins of North Yorkshire Council from April 1, have hit back at their long-time colleague at Hambleton District Council, Councillor Mark Robson, ahead of the two-tier council system being scrapped on March 31.
The meeting heard suggestions that the debate surrounding creating a unitary authority in North Yorkshire had been fuelled partly by “vested interests” while the county council had acted in the best interests of the county’s residents.
The authority’s deputy leader Coun Gareth Dadd said the county council’s leadership had been “selfless, not selfish”.
He added the two-tier system was no longer fit for purpose and that the country would see more and more unitary councils created to achieve savings and put powers, such as over housing, back in the hands of local decision-makers.
He said: “It gives us the levers to make life better for the residents we serve.
“There’s been a lot of vested interests in the unitary debate from some quarters and I like to think I had no vested interest.”
Speaking at the district authority’s final full meeting last week before North Yorkhire’s seven district and borough councils and county council are merged to create what has been described as a “super-council”, Coun Robson said he remained convinced the two-tier system was the best way to deliver local services .
Coun Robson, who lost in his attempt to get elected to the unitary authority last May, added: “I strongly believe that the residents of Hambleton will suffer as a result of reorganisation and I hope that those individuals who pushed for this to happen are proud of themselves.
“We can only hope that the new authority keep and maintain the legacy that we will be leaving. Signs, unfortunately of change are already happening, whether it be reduced customer service desk opening times or council tax increase.”
At the final meeting of the county council’s executive Coun Les and Dadd both stated that they were pleased as achieving devolution for the county and York draws nearer.
Describing the comments of Coun Robson as a “throwaway remark said rather bitterly”, county council leader Coun Les said: “I am proud about what we have achieved. We have got a devolution deal that was as good if not better than others around the country.”
He said the county council had risen to a challenge set by the government to come up with a solution for local government reorganisation.
Coun Les said the government had made no alterations to the county council’s suggestion which managed to remove two tiers, which he said was “inefficient” and “more costly than it needs to be”.
He said while the new unitary authority could still achieve savings, there would have to be a political will for the savings to be realised.
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