A motion to preserve the ‘Kesteven’ name has been thrown out, with officials saying now isn’t the right time to debate the issue.
South Kesteven District Councillor Ben Green (Reform UK ) had put forward a motion to preserve the name ‘Kesteven’ following concerns that it could be lost in the major shake-up to local councils across Lincolnshire.
At an SKDC full council meeting on Thursday, July 16, Cllr Green said he wanted ‘Kesteven’ to be preserved in the development of a larger unitary council.
He added: “This is why we are being asked to trade for the bland anonymity of ‘Rural Lincolnshire Council’ – the absurd Lincoln doughnut.
“Names matter. They tell people where they belong. Some of our residents even carry Kesteven as a middle name.
“That is how deeply this identity lives – not merely in council records, but in people.
“The name survived the division between North and South Kesteven. To erase it altogether would be something graver: it would break the visible link between the place we inherited and the place we pass on.”
The Government has announced that the City of Lincoln Council’s boundary will be extended into parts of West Lindsey and North Kesteven – to form a larger unitary authority.
Meanwhile the rest of the county will be merged into a larger unitary authority, known as Rural Lincolnshire Council.
North and North East Lincolnshire councils will remain as separate councils, but the Government has left the door open for them to be potentially combined in the future.
But despite Coun Green’s plea for the district’s name to be recognised and preserved, this motion was overwhelmingly rejected by members – with members saying the council should be focused on challenging the Government’s decision.
Coun Richard Cleaver (Independent – Stamford St Johns) said he didn’t feel that now was the right time to be debating the matter.
He added: “Frankly I’ve never ever received any correspondence from any of my constituents – either as a county councillor or a district councillor – calling for the Kesteven name to be retained – and indeed I don’t think it’s an issue on that basis.
“I certainly don’t want to detract away from any campaigning we have to do to stop the ridiculous that we now have to fight.
“I think the name is not the most important thing for us at this stage.”
Coun Phil Dilks (Independent – Deeping St James) agreed and said the council must remain focused on addressing the changes of local government reorganisation.
He said: “It is a difficult one, I’ve got to say. And the name isn’t really the most important thing in the whole of this.”
By Oliver Castle, Local Democracy Reporter