Plans for a new Spalding parish or town council could now not happen, partly because of apathy, the leader of South Holland District Council has said.
The town is unusual in that it doesn’t have such an authority.
Instead the district council oversees many roles a town or parish council usually has responsibility for.
With central government initially proposing to close South Holland District Council and Lincolnshire County Council to create one new Lincolnshire Council, leaders felt a new authority was needed to give the town more of a voice.
However, they have recently been told that proposal is on hold.
Initially the district council said there were no plans to stop the process of the Spalding authority being formed, but at a meeting last week council leader Nick Worth, said it was unlikely to be continued after just 35 responses were received to a recent consultation.
That consultation has now been ‘paused’, he said.
Responding to a question by Coun Rob Gibson, Coun Worth said: “I think the population of Spalding is in the region of 31,000 and so far we’ve had 35 responses.
“I’m afraid to say if it (the setting up of a Spalding parish or town council) comes forwards to Cabinet we would have no choice but to turn it down.
“It needs more people to respond, and I think, more people to be aware of what the implications of the town council are.
“If we had a unitary authority that’s based a long way from Spalding, it was probably important for the town to have a local representation. I still hold that view.
“In between now and when we finally hear about LGR, and I suspect it’s going to be quite a while before we hear anything definitive, I think it’s time to try and encourage people when it’s unpaused to respond.
“If you brought it on now you would have a precept for the new council but still have the Spalding Special Expenses (the percentage of council tax people in Spalding pay that goes towards the town itself) and I don’t think too many people would be too impressed at having two precepts to pay.
“Never say never, but let’s get more people from Spalding to respond as at the moment it’s very tiny.”
It’s the second consultation on the creation of a Spalding parish and town council.
One earlier this year received 173 responses, 146 of which were in favour of creating the new tier of local authority.
