A shake-up of local government in Cumbria is highly unlikely to lead to Keswick’s lucrative pay-and-display car parks returning to the control of the local town council.
That is the cast iron view of Tony Lywood, Keswick’s sole member of Cumbria County Council, which tops the current three-level town hall structure above Allerdale Borough Council and then Keswick Town Council.
Keswick’s main car parks are run by Allerdale and generate nearly £2 million a year for the Workington-based authority, but it is in danger of disappearing in the Government’s local government review, which favours a switch to a single or unitary top-level council.
The car parks, which are usually packed with visitors’ vehicles when not in lockdown, used to be run by the town council before the last big local government change in the 1970s.
Keswick mayor Paul Titley speculated at last week’s town council meeting: “There is an opportunity for various assets to come back into our orbit — council buildings, Derwentwater foreshore, the museum, cafe and car parks?”
However, Mr Lywood was swift to rule out any chance of the car parks coming back to local rule.
“I will wear a top hat for the next entire town council meeting if we get our car parks back,” he said in jest before adding: “We are always going to be at the beck and call of a larger authority. I don’t think it is going to change.”
Allan Daniels, who is a member of both Keswick and Allerdale councils, said Allerdale’s preference was for two top tier authorities, with it being grouped with Carlisle, Copeland and Eden, while South Lakes would go with Barrow and Lancaster, with elected mayors for the two new areas.
Markus Campbell-Savours, a fellow member of both councils, was less impressed, saying the Government was “making it up as it goes along”.
“There is a real risk we (Keswick) won’t get anything at all,” he said.
Meanwhile, Allerdale is seeking views from local councils and individuals on potential changes under local government reorganisation proposals ahead of the 9th December deadline.
In Cumbria, below the county council there are six borough councils, including Allerdale, each with its own responsibilities and services.
Mike Johnson, Allerdale’s deputy leader, said: “The Government is very much driving the devolution agenda and this is our chance to influence how our councils are run for years to come. It is therefore vital we get this right.
“If we succeed, we’ll all benefit from the efficiencies in service delivery, our councils will become more financially sustainable and we’ll unlock potential investment currently not available to us. We believe our proposals would do all these things, as well as maintain a close relationship with the communities we serve.
“I urge everyone who’d like to contribute to go online and complete the survey before the deadline date.”
The Government will consider proposals received by Cumbrian authorities and will go out to public consultation on its preferred model in spring 2021.
