The only Nottingham City councillor to vote against budget cuts has been suspended from the Labour Party.
Shuguftah Quddoos said she could not ‘in good conscience’ vote for the authority's 2024-25 budget, which set out £20m in cuts, including to libraries, the number of community protection officers, care homes and grants to the voluntary sector.
Cllr Quddoos said: ‘When I looked at this budget all I could see was harm to the people I represent.’
She added: ‘I went in with my eyes open. When you make a difficult decision there is always a price to pay. I knew there was a risk.’
She will continue to serve in the civic role of Sheriff of Nottingham until her term ends in May and now sits as an independent councillor.
After refusing to back the budget cuts at an executive meeting, Nottingham’s Labour administration said it approved the budget this week ‘under duress’, since it had ‘no other option’.
Officers at the council, which issued a section 114 notice in November and faced a projected £60m budget gap for 2024-25, were directed by a government-appointed improvement board to bring forward all savings they considered possible in the budget.
