Rutland and Stamford MP says she’s delivering on promises as National Highways commits to closing 11 crossings on A1
I have long campaigned to improve the safety of the A1, so I am relieved that as the safety upgrades I secured between South Witham and Little Ponton conclude, National Highways has confirmed the closure of the first 11 central reservation crossings will take place on that same stretch, writes Rutland and Stamford MP Alicia Kearns (Con).
We all want the biggest and most dangerous crossings closed, but this is an important first step to reduce accidents, and I am pleased to be delivering on my promises to you.
Our communities should be as accessible and inclusive as possible, so it was lovely to bring members of our communities living with disabilities and local organisations together for the first Rutland and Stamford Disability Forum. I will be working on how we improve services and support those living with a disability.
Turning to local government reorganisation, I will hold two public meetings, one in Stamford and one in Oakham next week to update you in detail. But in brief, I have been calling for multiple options to go forward to government and crucially to you as residents to give your views on. I therefore welcome that we now have South Kesteven District Council’s proposal for three unitary councils in Lincolnshire, including one unitary authority covering North Kesteven, South Kesteven, South Holland and Rutland. Separately we have proposals for one giant Lincolnshire authority, and a North-South split - which would see Stamford and SKDC go with Lincoln city in a southern authority. For Rutland, in addition to SKDC’s proposal, we have the Rutland County Council proposal to merge with the North of Leicestershire into a new council.
I was deeply disappointed Rutland County Council denied councillors a vote and failed to hold any public engagement events before submitting proposals to Government on March 21, despite a council motion passed in February requiring them to do so. This means proposals will to Government without the endorsement of Rutland councillors, let alone Rutlanders. In my view this is a blatant disregard for democratic accountability.
Meanwhile our campaign to protect Rutland’s ceremonial county status continues, so it was good to recently meet the student council at Catmose College to answer their questions - remember you have until April 1 to sign the petition (anyone can!)
Our £23.7 million in Levelling Up Funding continues to realise, and I recently visited the site for Oakham’s new mobi-hub to look at designs for the new on demand bus service which will cover the whole of Rutland. I promised to improve local bus services, and that’s what we did by securing the funding from Government. I also visited Rutland County Museum where £2 million will be invested to transform our museum and tourism offer.
Sadly, the last few weeks have seen even more devastating announcements for farming: from SFI being cut, to flooding grants being withheld, and compulsory purchase powers which diminish the value of agricultural land, so I was grateful to local farmers for meeting with me in Uffington to discuss how I can support them.
In Stamford, it was an honour to unveil a plaque to mark the civic society’s new welcome arch, this is a great addition for Stamford’s many visitors.
Meanwhile out and about in our communities, I held surgeries with residents from Toft, Lound, Manthorpe and Witham-on-the-Hill and at Oakham Castle I had a wonderful time chatting to Tim and Justin on their ‘Pub Natter’ podcast about saving Rutland with Leigh from Castle Cottage Café.
Finally, in more good news Rutland County Council has backtracked on its plans to move black bin collections to every three weeks. Our petition with over 2,200 signatures demonstrated the community’s opposition to the proposals, so it is an enormous relief residents have prevailed, even if public debate of the petition was refused by the Council in breach of its own constitution.
