Harrogate MP brings call for return of Harrogate Spring Water money to the town in Parliament
Harrogate's MP has told Parliament it is time Harrogate Spring Water money was returned to the town from North Yorkshire Council which he labelled a “not so super super council”.
Every year, the bottled water company pays Harrogate 0.5% of its revenue for the use of the town’s name, which usually amounts to approximately £170,000.
In the past, this went to Harrogate Borough Council but, since that body was abolished in 2023 as part of local government organisation, it has gone to North Yorkshire Council.
Since last July’s General Election, the Labour government have announced plans to abolish the two-tier system of district and county councils across England and replace them with large unitary councils.
In ministerial questions in the House of Commons last week, Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Tom Gordon highlighted the dangers of this through Harrogate’s experience under North Yorkshire, as, he claimed, it had become clear that the town was being denied what would be an extra batch of funding by the “not so super” “super council” at North Yorkshire.
After asking the Minister to grant time for a debate on local government reorganisation, the town’s Lib Dem MP told the Commons: “Our super council at North Yorkshire is depriving Harrogate of much-needed funds to help the town thrive.
"We were promised a local council but North Yorkshire is clearly anything but.
"Towns as far apart as Skipton, Harrogate and Scarborough, to name a few, were never realistically going to be ‘local’ to each other.
"North Yorkshire Council have, I am sure, managed this money ably for three years.
"But no one believes it should continue to pocket this money.
"Reclaiming the money was a key plank of the Lib Dem campaign and we won an overwhelming majority.
"The time has come to return Harrogate Spring Water money to the town."
The Harrogate and Knaresborough MP also asked the Minister to join him in congratulating all of the newly-elected Harrogate Town Councillors.
Mr Gordon said: “I look forward to working with new councillors as they restore a local voice for our town and stand up to Northallerton.”