A statement from Leader of the Council, Councillor Neghat Khan:
Recent claims that Nottingham City Council blocked other councils from having their say on the city’s Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) proposal are simply not true. The facts are important, and so is public confidence in a process that for us has been open, transparent and fair.
Misinformation has a habit of taking hold when major decisions are being made, but the documented timeline tells a very different story. Far from preventing discussion of the city’s proposal, Nottingham City Council actively sought to ensure its option was included alongside the other proposals being considered across Nottinghamshire.
People are entitled to their own views – of course – but they are not entitled to their own facts.
I have consistently argued that public debate on LGR must be grounded in facts, not political point-scoring, and the suggestion that Nottingham City Council blocked discussion of its proposal amongst residents is completely at odds with what actually happened.
We shared our proposal, provided the necessary information, included it in draft engagement materials and made every effort to ensure residents could understand and comment on all of the options available.
Nottingham City Council did not prevent others from having a say, their own councils did. We sought inclusion from the offset.
Residents deserve an honest conversation about the future of local government in Nottinghamshire. Repeating claims that are demonstrably untrue does nothing to help that debate and risks undermining public confidence in a process that should be open, transparent and based on evidence.
As Nottingham and Nottinghamshire move into the next phase of local government reorganisation, it is important that discussions are informed by the facts. I will not be playing the political games that others are. But I will absolutely correct the misinformation being spread and protect the reputation of this city.
The facts:
Discussions on the engagement exercise began at a meeting of all councils on 23 July 2025. At that meeting, it was agreed that Nottingham’s proposal would be shared with partners as soon as a map was available and, in the interests of maintaining a collective approach, that the city option would be included alongside the other proposals in the planned engagement exercise.
A map of the city proposal was circulated to all councils on 25 July 2025 – well within the time needed to include in the engagement exercise, and over the following days, survey questions were developed, and all options were presented with the same level of detail.
On 28 July 2025, draft survey questions were shared with all councils, including a question on the Nottingham City proposal. However, a majority decision was taken not to include the city’s proposal in the shared engagement exercise. Residents deserve confidence that decisions about the future shape of local government are taken on the basis of facts and evidence. I welcome the assurances I have received from the Council’s Chief Executive, Sajeeda Rose, regarding how the process unfolded and the efforts made by council officers to secure inclusion of Nottingham’s proposal.
Following that decision, Nottingham City Council informed all councils that it would include an additional question for Nottingham residents on its proposal. This approach was consistent with previously agreed arrangements allowing supplementary engagement by individual councils.
The future of local government is too important to be distracted by misinformation. Residents deserve an honest debate, grounded in facts, and that is exactly what I will continue to champion.