The MP for Spen Valley, Kim Leadbeater, has called on Kirklees Council to look again at the proposed closure of the Nab Lane waste and recycling centre in Birstall.
In a letter to the council, Kim Leadbeater said, “I feel strongly that the closure of this site would have a detrimental impact on my constituents and their access to a waste disposal and recycling facility.”
Explaining her reasons, she said, “In order to make the trip to the alternative site at Weaving Lane in Dewsbury, residents in Oakenshaw, Birkenshaw and East Bierley would be facing a 20 mile round trip. We already have a significant problem with fly-tipping in Spen Valley and the wider area, and I am worried about the impact of the closure of the Birstall site on this. Similarly, I feel strongly that we should be making it easier for residents to recycle, not more difficult, which this closure would undoubtedly do.”
Announcing the decision, which was made before the change of leadership in July this year, Kirklees Council said the waste and recycling centre in Birstall would close in the late autumn with a precise date yet to be confirmed.
Kim said she and her family had used the tip themselves for over 40 years and criticised the lack of consultation about the proposal earlier in the year. She said, “I am also very disappointed by the lack of communication with members of the public and elected members, including myself and my office, about this matter. There does not appear to have been any sort of public consultation which I feel is totally unacceptable.”
Local councils have been forced to make cuts to services amidst a crisis in local government funding. Successive Tory governments cut central funding to local councils with Kirklees Council losing a billion pounds since 2010.
“Whilst I fully understand the extremely challenging financial position Kirklees Council are in due to chronic underfunding from central government, which I have spoken about repeatedly at a local and national level, I am deeply concerned about decisions being taken without sufficient consultation and full consideration of the impact on my constituents – in the short and long term,” Kim said.
She said she was hopeful and optimistic that the new leadership under Councillor Carole Pattison would provide a period of stability for the council to the benefit of the people of Spen Valley and across Kirklees. She added: “I am fully supportive of the new administration and am looking forward to working together. I hope we can improve communication and work collaboratively and closely together in the interests of all our residents and constituents.”
