Nottingham City Council bankruptcy: People blast 'incompetent' authority and demand someone is held accountable

A Section 114 notice was issued on Wednesday, November 29 after the council confirmed it would not be able to deliver a balanced budget

People in Nottingham city centre have blasted the council as 'incompetent" and demanded someone is held accountable after the authority effectively declared bankruptcy. Nottingham City Council issued a Section 114 notice on Wednesday, November 29, meaning all non-essential spending will stop.

The notice was issued after they concluded that they were unable to deliver a balanced budget - with council leader David Mellen blaming 'chronic underfunding' from the Conservative problems as well as 'problems of the past' such as Robin Hood Energy.

The Section 114 notice triggers a period in which entering into any new spending is effectively banned unless the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) gives permission. The law says that a CFO may give permission if they think the spending would prevent the situation from getting worse, improve the situation or stop it happening again.

Heidi Rayment, 44, who works for a taxi company, fears that normal, working people will suffer most due to what has happened. She said: “I worry that council tax will go up and that people on benefits will struggle.

“Who’s going to hold their hands up? I’m not sure what it means for Nottingham now.” NTU student Jess Spence, 23, said: “If they stopped putting money in their own pockets maybe this wouldn’t happen. Where is it going?

“The government needs to sort out their spending because it’s happening in other cities too. This shouldn’t happen in 2023.”

Chris Reid from Nuthall thinks something needs to be done as a result, saying: “I think someone should be sacked.”

Some residents said they feel as though ‘there isn’t enough awareness’ about how the council is spending its money and wished there could be more scrutiny from the taxpayer.

One anonymous resident said: “They’ve got to hold their hands up and say what has happened. But they’ve got to balance the books each year so there’s no point in grumbling about it.” Another resident simply called the council ‘incompetent’.