Following the announcement of North East Lincolnshire Council's plans to close local youth centres, Martin raised the issue in the House of Commons along with the limitations councils have in determining their budgets, given that most of their tasks are statutory.
The full exchange is below:
Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes, Conservative)
"North East Lincolnshire council is proposing to close the youth centres under its control, which—needless to say—is extremely unpopular. The overwhelming local view is that the council is not using its resources wisely. This highlights the limited scope local authorities have in determining their budgets, because most of the services they have to provide are statutory. Will the Leader of the House find time for a debate either on giving councils more freedom or on reducing the amount of statutory provision?"
Andrew Lansley (The Leader of the House of Commons ; South Cambridgeshire, Conservative)
"My hon. Friend will recall the debate on the local government finance settlement, during which it was illustrated that although every bit of the public sector, including local government, must do its bit to pay off the budget deficit we inherited from the previous Government, there are particular ways in which all administrations can focus on cutting waste and making savings in order to protect front-line services. Of course, we are enabling local authorities to keep council tax down. In particular, our “50 ways to save” document contains practical tips and guidance on making sensible savings and highlights how councillors can challenge officers to deliver savings and how taxpayers can challenge councils. I hope that he, along with his constituents, will be challenging his council to protect the front-line services that are most important to them."
North East Lincolnshire Council has indicated that it wishes to close the following centres: Western Young People's Centre; Nunsthorpe Young People's Centre; Trin Young People's Centre; Clee Young People's Centre; Whitgift Young People's Centre; and Immingham Young People's Centre.
Martin is currently calling for people to sign his petition to the House of Commons to help save the North East Lincolnshire youth centres. To sign, please follow the instructions here: http://www.martinvickers.org.uk/campaigns/parliamentary-petition-save-local-youth-centres