“We are deeply disappointed by the government’s imposition of commissioners on Nottingham City Council – a decision which significantly undermines local democracy.

“The government has already prevented elected councillors from setting next year’s budget – a budget that proposes drastic and devastating cuts unsupported by the council leadership.

“We are extremely concerned at the impact of these cuts on a city which already faces amongst the highest levels of deprivation and destitution of any district in the country.

“Nottingham has suffered disproportionately from reductions in grant funding from Conservative governments, with a reduction in spending power of 28% since 2010 compared to an average of 19% amongst councils.

“Instead of giving further decision-making powers to those who are unaccountable to our constituents, we believe that Nottingham City Council should be provided with new, additional, emergency funding from central government to protect the essential services our constituents rely on.”

– Lilian Greenwood MP, Nadia Whittome MP, and Alex Norris MP