Rothwell Tories rebel over council's controversial traveller site plan for green space

A plan to turn a Rothwell green space into a traveller stopping site was declared an act of ‘environmental vandalism’ by a Conservative rebel.

Cllr Cedwien Brown hit out at North Northamptonshire Council’s (NNC) bid to convert land just off junction 3 of the A14 and supported an amendment to have it removed from the Conservative-run council’s capital programme budget.

She was backed up by fellow Rothwell and Mawsley ward Tory Cllr Joseph Smyth in speeches met with a round of applause at a fiery budget meeting on Thursday (February 22).

Cllr Brown said: “I cannot agree to borrow the money that we don't have, to fund something that we can't afford, on a frivolous project that Rothwell Town Council keep being told probably won't get used.

"What a waste of council taxpayers’ hard-earned money.

"Rothwell Town Council has been trying for very many years to gain permission to create a pocket park here, and for NNC to want to develop any part of this precious green space is quite frankly nothing short of an act of environmental vandalism.”

More than 80 people joined a protest over the ‘horrifying’ plans earlier this month which, if successful, would see the site turned into a temporary stopping site where travellers can remain for up to 28 days.

NNC is ploughing ahead with the proposal despite calls to have their decision to include it in their budget reversed.

They’re planning to stump up £1.3m – although the 10-year sum with interest and running costs will be more than £2m – after the project failed to be awarded Government funding.

Currently there are no stopping places for travellers passing through the NNC area and last year there was at least 19 unauthorised encampments. Police have powers to direct traveller groups to go to the temporary stopping place.

Bur Cllr Smyth said: “How can this be value for money when even the portfolio holder, Cllr David Howes, stated in a meeting with Rothwell town councillors that this site would hardly if ever be used? So why are we continuing to push this forward?

"The site will destroy green space that will probably stand there and be derelict in a very short space of time. This is most definitely not value for money.

"We’ve not done any proper or formal consultation with stakeholders on this project. When NNC councillors for Rothwell were told about the proposal last year we were told to keep the proposal strictly private and confidential. This all sounds like a very underhanded approach for the council.”

Cllr Jim Hakewill (Ind, Rothwell and Mawsley), put forward the amendment to remove the budget for the Rothwell site from the council’s capital programme. He questioned why a field in Desborough, which was granted planning permission for ten traveller pitches more than 10 years ago and was compulsory purchased, hasn’t been developed.

He said spending £164,000 on a planning application for the Rothwell site will be a waste of money.

Cllr Hakewill said: “Stop this expenditure now on developing a planning application which will be massively opposed on material planning grounds, at a time when we are hard pressed to even approve or take through planning applications from residents and businesses and other people in north Northamptonshire.”

Tempers flared in the chamber between Cllr Hakewill, a former Conservative, and Cllr Lora Lawman (Con), who told him: “I really give up on you.”

Cllr Hakewill replied: “Don’t worry, that happened for me a long time ago.”

Cllr Lloyd Bunday (Con), the council’s finance portfolio holder, told the meeting that the capital budget doesn’t even say where the site is – just saying they are allocating £1.3m for the provision of a traveller site – although the council has widely publicised its intentions to spend exactly that on developing the Rothwell plot.

Cllr Zoe McGhee (Lab) told him: “Even your own lot don’t believe you.”

Cllr Leanne Buckingham (Lab) said: “It doesn’t make sense and here we go with party politics again.

"Of course we need some form of site, in the right place, in the right form, at the right price. This isn’t it and I can’t support it.”

Police have powers to direct traveller groups to go to the temporary stopping place and Cllr Andy Mercer (Con) said the cost saving to the council by having a temporary stopping site would be significant. He said the council would spend less money on clearing up sites and going to court over unlawful encampments.

Cllr David Howes (Con) said the merits of the development would be properly considered as the planning process followed.

He said: “This is about putting in place the budget and allocating it so we are ready to solve the problem that we've had for decades, that we will resolve for decades in the future, with a stopping site.”

Cllr Hakewill’s amendment to remove the £1.3m budget from the council’s capital programme failed with 16 councillors voting for it and 32 voting against.