8 minute read
INVESTING IN THE FUTURE
As we head into 2023 Ribble Valley Borough Council leader Stephen Atkinson vows to fight proposed constituency boundary changes and unveils his vision for the coming year
Parliamentary constituency boundary changes that will see numerous Ribble Valley wards, including those in Clitheroe and Whalley, move into Pendle, are set to be implemented by the Boundary Commission for England.
The purpose of the boundary review is to distribute Parliamentary constituencies and the number of electors, more evenly across the UK.
But the proposals have sparked fierce debate and met with strong criticism, not least from Ribble Valley Borough Council (RVBC) leader Stephen Atkinson, who revealed that Ribble Valley Council has submitted alternative proposals.
“All through this we have fought to keep the Ribble Valley together,” he said. “The Chief Executive, with input from myself and the leader of the opposition have written to the Boundary Commission to express our concerns. We are losing half the Ribble Valley to a new Parliamentary seat, so we are asking the Boundary Commission to bring wards in some of the towns and villages back.”
The current proposals would see wards such as Whalley and Painter Wood, Wiswell and Barrow, Salthill, St Mary’s, Sabden, Primrose, Littlemoor, Chatburn, East Whalley, Read and Simonstone and Edisford and Low Moor move into a new ‘Pendle and Clitheroe’ constituency while Preston Rural East and North, Samlesbury and Walton, Walton-le-Dale East and West and Bamber Bridge East and West would move into the Ribble Valley constituency.
Speaking about the loss of Clitheroe to a newly created Pendle and Clitheroe parliamentary seat, the council leader said: “Clitheroe has over 14,000 electors so if it was to come back into the Ribble Valley seat it would be too large for the Boundary Commission’s criteria, but we could make an argument to bring back Whalley and Painter Wood and Chatburn. In order to do this, we would need to give Bamber Bridge
East back to South Ribble. We are confident that they will consider this, although we are now at the second and final stage.
“Having said that, the Boundary Commission’s original proposal kept Clitheroe with Barrow and Wiswell in the Ribble Valley and we have asked them to reconsider this option.”
Cllr Atkinson said it was important for people to remember that the Parliamentary constituency boundaries were not associated with Ribble Valley Borough Council boundaries, and that the council offices would remain in Clitheroe and day to day services would remain unaffected.
The final boundary recommendations will be announced in July 2023. If the current proposal goes ahead, Ribble Valley and Pendle and Clitheroe constituencies will be represented by two MPs: “Clitheroe will be in the new Pendle and Clitheroe constituency – but the irony is there is almost a mountain (Pendle Hill) in between. It’s ridiculous!”
“Traditionally the Ribble Valley within the current system has been too small for two MPs – having just one really helps. Voting turnout tends to be much higher because voters feel much more connected with their representative so it’s much better – that’s how democracy works.”
He said the Boundary Commission proposals had created a certain amount of nervousness within the borough as it appeared the Government was keen to adopt a one-tier local government system to create large unitary councils encompassing up to half a million people – something that has already been seen in North Yorkshire: “The area spans from Scarborough to Skipton – there’s no local democracy.
“We know that unitary councils work in cities but when you get into rural areas –and 80 per cent of Lancashire is rural –there’s no one to fight for the local community as unitary councils represent huge areas.
“While the proposal is not on the cards at the moment it’s our job to keep it off the table. Indeed, the last time it was proposed over 10,000 people signed a petition to keep the Ribble Valley independent and I made our position clear to Rishi Sunak who, at the time, was Local Government Minister.
“In the Ribble Valley we have shown that the two-tier model most definitely works in small rural communities. During the pandemic RVBC established community hubs and helped with the vaccination programme.
We distributed over £30m to help local businesses and households and we continue to help with Household Support Grants.”
As leader of RVBC, he said there was much optimism going into 2023: “I am extremely positive and I think we have done a great job in Ribble Valley.
“We have the lowest Council Tax in the north of England, we don’t charge for green bins – so the average Band D household in the Ribble Valley is £800 better off over the last four years. With the cost-of-living crisis households are finding it really hard, so we are conscious that that money must go to them not the council.
“At the same time, we deliver the best refuse service in Lancashire, we are the only council delivering weekly collections and we have a vibrant economy where in other boroughs, we see serious deprivation.”
He revealed that RVBC had recently paid off all debts and also had significant reserves: “From an economic point of view, we are the most prosperous area in Lancashire and we are now talking about a major programme of investment.”
He said RVBC should receive £1.97m from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) over a period of three years. The UKSPF distributes monies to areas that identify needs at local level. Another £400,000 has also been allocated for rural areas within the borough.
“Improving our public spaces improves the experience of our visitors and residents so we are looking at a number of schemes.
“We have had local consultations with businesses and community organisations within the Ribble Valley and many have put ideas forward. The council will then have to decide what will happen, but we are not at that stage yet.”
He said among the suggestions were the improvement of Clitheroe Market and the creation of an outdoor event space in Longridge. He also added that the council was mindful that Clitheroe’s swimming pool at Roefield faced challenges, having been built in 1974 and would eventually need to be replaced at a cost of many millions.
“It will come to the end of its life and at that stage we will look at alternative options as to whether to repair or build on the current location or otherwise.”
Speaking about the need to improve some of the footpaths in and around Clitheroe, he said he understood residents’ concerns: “They want investment, but they generally don’t care where the money comes from. The County Council may spend some money on improving footpaths – it is their asset and responsibility. But we will help where we can.”
Having come under criticism about the number of new homes built in the Ribble Valley, he said the Government had given councils a five-year housing target with an ultimatum that if the target wasn’t achieved, the council could lose control over its Local Housing Plan: “The reason so many houses have been built is to get some level of control. I can understand some people being upset but there is an upside and downside to this.
“The upside is that house building has been one of the main drivers of the local economy. Alongside the expensive, four and five-bedroom properties built we have also seen the number of affordable properties increase by 500 in the last four years, which is incredible.
“People want to live in the Ribble Valley and they bring their disposable income here which is good, but it is also to the detriment of other towns, which is the downside. The Government really needs to think where this development needs to happen.”
Reflecting on 2022 and moving into the new year he concluded: “We are not perfect and we may not get everything right. We are a traditional Conservative council and we have done our best and the private sector has also delivered – for example Holmes Mill in Clitheroe, which is wonderful.
“The Ribble Valley is a great place to be and people know that, they are proud to live here.”
For more information about the Boundary Commission’s proposed constituency boundary changes go to: boundarycommissionforengland.independent.gov.uk
