Arguments have broken out between local political figures at Milton Keynes City Council in a row over fire service cuts.
Earlier this week, the Milton Keynes Conservative group made a claim that budget cuts would see 8 fire engines cut from Buckinghamshire Fire and Rescue, and that some stations were facing outright closure.
This was disputed by the Milton Keynes Labour party, who are the largest party on MK City Council, with MK Labour later saying that the Conservatives admitted to making misleading claims about the cuts.
There then came a further row during and after a meeting at MK City Council last night (22/10), in which Council leader Cllr Pete Marland was made to apologise for swearing, with disputed claims on whether his remark was aimed at a Conservative councillor, at a 15 year old student who had made testimony against the cuts or against any particular individual.
The row began on Tuesday, when the Milton Keynes Conservative group made claims about the potential loss of fire engines from stations in the Milton Keynes area, with the group bringing a motion to a meeting of the Council held yesterday.
The statement read, “The proposals, developed by the Buckinghamshire & Milton Keynes Fire Authority (BMKFA), led by the Liberal Democrat Councillors, Impact Alliance and Labour Councillors, could see the fleet reduced from 30 to 22 engines, with some stations facing partial or full closures. Under the two options being considered, some engines at West Ashland and Broughton would be removed.”
Ahead of the meeting, MK Labour called the claims a fabrication. In their statement, they said, “Labour are also accusing the Conservatives of failing to take responsibility for decades of mismanagement of the service in the county, which led to two independent government inspections judging Bucks Fire “inadequate.””
Following the meeting, MK Labour claimed victory, saying that they said the Conservatives were forced to admit misleading the public regarding the situation.
Their statement read, “Milton Keynes Conservatives have had to admit that they have mislead the public after Milton Keynes City Council members, including Conservatives, voted to condemn the misinformation MK Conservative councillors and their Buckinghamshire MPs have been circulating to the public.
“The Conservatives were humiliated into supporting the motion which read “The Council condemns the misinformation that local Conservative councillors and MPs in MK and Buckinghamshire have been circulating which has unnecessarily concerned the public, and for misleading statements” and therefore admitting that their claims over potential cuts were false.”
As a part of the meeting, MK City Council councillors supported the need to adapt and improve fire cover across Milton Keynes and would make clear to the Fire Authority that any reduction in operational capacity could not be supported.
There has then since been a further row regarding the conduct of Council Leader Marland, after he was heard saying fuck off, but where it was disputed as to who this was aimed at.
A 15-year-old student had just given remarks in support of the motion by Cllr Peter Geary, the Conservative candidate who had sponsored the motion against the fire cuts, at which point Marland made the comment.
In a statement issued after this incident, Cllr Marland said, “At the end of a speech from a member of the public I did make a remark, off microphone, that some people in the chamber did hear.
“I immediately took responsibility for the comment and quickly apologised to the council and to the member of the public as the words were not appropriate for a public meeting, and I am sorry.
“However, I want to make clear that the remark was not directed at anyone and to claim so is untrue.”
This was followed by a response by Leader of the Conservative Group Cllr Shazna Muzammil, who said they found the marks unacceptable.
Cllr Muzammil said, “It is absolutely disgraceful behaviour for anyone, let alone the Leader of our Council, to lose their composure and swear at a young member of our City who was simply seeking to contribute to a vital debate. Cllr Marland is supposed to represent the best of us, not the worst, this behaviour is not who we are as a council or as a city, he should reflect on whether he still has the composure to lead.”
Milton Keynes City Council have announced plans to develop a major new primary school in the Western Expansion Area of the city.
A new primary school in Whitehouse South is intended to cater for up to 630 pupils with a 39-place full-time equivalent (FTE) nursery on-site. The City Council have announced that they will seek a design and build contractor to implement the proposals.
Any winning contractor is expected to start work on site in summer 2027, with the school opening in September 2028. This will be the fifth and final school in this rapidly expanding area of the city, joining three existing primary schools and Watling Academy, a secondary rated Outstanding by Ofsted. The new school will include a Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) unit creating 24 dedicated school spaces.
Earlier this month, the city council considered applications from a dozen organisations looking to run the new school. Four Multi-Academy Trusts (MATs) were shortlisted and will be interviewed early next month. A formal decision will be made in Spring 2026, following a thorough process involving local education leaders and the Department for Education (DfE).
In the past ten years, the City Council has created capacity for 13,409 new school places for local children; building seven new schools and helping 22 existing schools expand.
Councillor Joe Hearnshaw, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, said, “This is a significant new school and will be so important to our growing community in Whitehouse South. We’re excited to begin working with designers, builders and local education leaders to bring this new school to life. As Milton Keynes continues to expand, we will ensure that all families continue to have access to quality local schools.”
Alongside developing new schools, Milton Keynes City Council declared that they are committed to maintaining and improving existing schools. A rolling programme of work includes upgrading roofs, windows, and doors to be more energy efficient, switching to LED light fittings, and replacing gas boilers with greener alternatives.
The city council will make a formal decision on 28 October to set aside £18million to fund the works and to begin the procurement process for contractors to design and build the school.
Milton Keynes-based coffee shop chain Out of Office Coffee has closed its 4 outlets in the city with immediate effect.
Branches in Stony Stratford, Newport Pagnell, Olney and outside Milton Keynes Central railway station were closed, with 22 people losing their jobs.
The firm had been trading since 2017, beginning from its Stony Stratford site before expanding.
The chain revealed the news on social media, thanking the staff they had worked with and blaming the decision to close on a cocktail of economic shocks over the preceding 5 years.
They said, “It is with great sadness that we announce, after almost 9 amazing years, that we will cease trading permanently. We would like to thank our amazing team who have worked so hard, delivering exceptional service and brewing some of the best coffee ever.
“We are extremely grateful to our loyal customers who have supported us throughout our journey. The community vibes created in our coffee houses have been a source of inspiration for many.
“When we started, it was a simple mission – ensure every person leaves slightly happier than when they arrived. I have confidence that the friendly and attentive team with the delicious coffee and relaxed atmosphere helped us get it right more often than not.
“Following the difficulties of the COVID pandemic, the constant challenges of the energy crisis with surging electricity prices, Brexit cost increases, supply chain disruptions, rising inflation, sharp increases in food costs, inflated business rates and increased taxation have finally got the better of us. I’d like to thank our landlords who have supported us throughout.
“We really care about our team, and are working behind the scenes to get the team alternative employment. If you have any vacancies for awesome team members please email [email protected] and we will make the connections.
“Please keep supporting all the other wonderful independent businesses in and around Milton Keynes, it really does make a difference to the businesses and the communities.”
Former Luton Town captain Tom Lockyer has returned to professional football after signing for League 2 side Bristol Rovers.
The 30-year-old has signed a deal until the end of the season with the Pirates, returning to the Memorial Stadium six years after leaving the club.
Lockyer’s signature with the Bristolians marks his return to professional football after a two year absence from the game, with the defender having not played at all since suffering a cardiac arrest on the pitch during a Premier League match between Bournemouth and Luton just before Christmas 2023.
The defender had remained with Luton during his recovery, but left earlier this month in order to return to a professional football career. He had stayed with the Hatters after the end of his Luton contract at the end of last season, making 3 appearances in reserve matches before leaving the club.
After leaving Luton, Lockyer had joined up with the side from Bristol and has now put pen to paper on a full contract.
He told the Bristol Rovers website of his happiness to return to the club and return to playing.
He said, “It feels really, really good to once again be a Bristol Rovers player. Obviously I’ve been training here for a while and I’ve tried not to think too much about it or get too excited about the ifs, buts and maybes. But as soon as I knew that Darrell wanted to get something done, it was easy for me to then make a decision about coming back home.
“It is so hard to explain but it’s everything I’ve worked so hard for over the last two years. Hopefully I can have many, many more good memories in a football shirt. I’m going to celebrate the little wins back on a football pitch and I just want to enjoy it. I wouldn’t be doing this otherwise. I’m doing this because I love playing football and I’ve got that massive desire to play football again, and what better place to do that than back home at Bristol Rovers.”
Lockyer had made 117 appearances for Luton Town after joining the club from Charlton Athletic in 2020, including scoring 7 goals. The defender was appointed Luton club captain and was part of the team that helped Luton win promotion to the Premier League in the 2022/23 season, although their victory in the play-off final over Coventry was marred when Lockyer was taken to hospital after collapsing in the early stages of the game with atrial fibrillation, which ultimately required surgery.
After returning from that, Lockyer returned to playing, scoring his first Premier League goal in a win over Everton in October 2023 and making 14 appearances in the top flight of English football before the medical incident that halted his career for two years.
Northampton Town slipped to defeat as they were beaten 1-0 by Reading in Berkshire.
Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan struck the night’s only goal in Berkshire, with his strike being the only one of the game as Northampton were unable to make it back-to-back victories.
The result saw the Cobblers unable to grab points that would’ve seen then climb their way further up the League One table, with Northampton sat 11th in the League One table.
In a match pushed back due to international call-ups in its originally planned September slot, Northampton arrived chasing back-to-back wins after beating Doncaster in their previous assignment, with Kevin Nolan’s side taking on a Reading team that had failed to win any of their previous four outings.
A home side chasing the victory began the contest brightly, with Paudie O’Connor forcing a stop out of Ross Fitzsimons in the Northampton goal.
Ethan Wheatley saw a strike denied by a fingertip save from home goalkeeper Jack Stevens, before Fitzsimons was again called into action to tip over Lewis Wing’s drive from range.
The first, and as it would turn out, only goal came 20 minutes into the second half, as Paddy Lane picked out Ehibhatiomhan and the latter’s header landed in the back of the net.
Reading briefly looked like they might grab a second goal, with Charlie Savage having a strike deflected wide and a further attempt beaten away by Fitzsimons.
Northampton’s best opportunity came the way of Tyrese Fornah, who blazed over late on, but it wasn’t enough for the Cobblers to prevent the Royals from taking all three points.
