All main parties in Nottingham have published their manifestos and key pledges ahead of the local elections on May 4.
Voters will head to the polls next month to select which candidates they want to sit in 20 wards which return a total of 55 seats on Nottingham City Council.
The authority dictates how Nottingham taxpayers’ money is spent on roads, bin collections, parks and leisure, libraries and other services including adult and children’s social care.
Currently, the Labour Group has 50 of 55 seats on the council, the Nottingham Independents have three, and the Conservative Group has two.
The Nottingham Labour Group is the only party to have put forward a candidate for all 55 seats.
Meanwhile, the Conservatives have put forward 41, the Nottingham Independents 28, the Liberal Democrats 20, the Green Party 17 and UKIP which has put forward two.
Three candidates will be standing independently and one will stand for the Trade Union and Socialist Coalition.
While 28 seats are required for a majority, the Conservative Group says it is only seeking to create a “strong opposition”.
In 2019 it put up 55 candidates in an attempt to gain control of the council.
Similarly, the Liberal Democrats said the group hopes to create an “effective opposition”.
The manifesto and pledges are as follows:
Nottingham Conservative Group
The Nottingham Conservative Group, which has put up 41 candidates for the upcoming election, has released a two-page manifesto ahead of May 4.
In 2019 it had put forward a candidate for all 55 seats, when it sought to take control of the council.
Two former members of the group, Andrew Rule and Roger Steel, left to stand as independents on May 4.
On May 4 the group says it will only be seeking to create a strong opposition, with eight pledges published ahead of the election.
It’s pledges are as follows;
1. A strong opposition to Nottingham Labour:
“Nottingham Conservatives will bring a strong and much-needed opposition to the financially incompetent, secretive and dogmatic Labour controlled City Council.
“Only the Conservatives can provide the necessary opposition to Labour and we were the first to warn of the financial disaster of Robin Hood Energy.
“Labour have run up our city’s debt to £1.175billion through their incompetence, and we are now paying interest and charges of over £1million per week on that debt.”
2. Stopping rises in our Council Tax:
“Labour councils charge more than Conservative councils. Nottingham Conservatives will vote to limit further council tax increases and will pressure the council to focus on delivering our core public services, not throwing millions of our money on their wasteful pet projects.”
3. Fixing our roads:
“The Conservative Government has recently allocated an additional £2million to Nottingham to fix potholes and deliver road improvements.
“Nottingham Conservatives will ensure that this is spent wisely, and we will make the council repair potholes before they become a danger to cars, cyclists and pedestrians.”
4. Opposing charges for Parking Permits:
“On top of our already high council tax, we should not have to pay to park outside of our own homes.
“We will fight to keep residents’ parking permits free.”
5. Keeping Nottingham open for business:
“Nottingham Conservatives will keep Nottingham open for business by developing a proper plan and taking action to get business and opportunities for jobs and leisure back in our city.
“The mess of Broadmarsh, the closed Castle and the new Central Library with no books are all testament to Labour’s failure.”
6. Cleaning up Nottingham:
“We are proud of our city, and we will ensure that the City Council works harder to clean up graffiti and repair the vandalism that spoils our community spaces.”
7. Preventing anti-social behaviour:
“We will work closely with our local police officers and the Nottinghamshire Police and Crime Commissioner to deal with nuisance anti-social behaviour across every community in our city.”
8. Championing Community Groups:
“Nottingham Conservatives will champion and support local community groups and invite them to take a much more proactive role in shaping the future of our city so that we can build a Nottingham that works for everyone.”
Local Elections 2023 on The Wire
Nottingham Labour Manifesto pledges for Local Elections 2023
Nottingham Green Party Manifesto pledges for Local Elections 2023
Nottingham Independents Manifesto pledges for Local Elections 2023
Nottingham Liberal Democrats Manifesto pledges for Local Elections 2023