MP Steve Barclay has branded consultation on changes to local government in our area as "deeply flawed" during a debate in the House of Commons.
The North East Cambridgeshire MP has also described the Government's plans to reform local government as "botched" amid concerns that there is basic information missing on how the proposed changes will impact residents in our area.
There are three options being consulted on for Fenland, all of which will see it merged with Peterborough City Council.
Other options will see it still join with the city council, but also with East Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire.
Proposal A (North-West, South-East): Fenland merges with Peterborough and Huntingdonshire, while Cambridge, East Cambridgeshire, and South Cambridgeshire form another unitary.
Proposal B (North-South): Fenland joins Peterborough, East Cambridgeshire, and Huntingdonshire, with Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire separate.
Proposal C (East-West): Fenland merges with Peterborough and East Cambridgeshire, while Cambridge, Huntingdonshire, and South Cambridgeshire form another unitary.
At this month's Chatteris Town Council meeting, members raised their concerns about seeing Fenland merge with Peterborough, with them unanimously agreeing it was not what they want to see happen.
RECOMMENDED READING: Man lands criminal record after 'associate' fly-tipped rubbish in Wisbech
However, they accepted there was little they could do as all the options ended in two authorities being joined.
Cllr Sue Unwin said: "It is not what we want at all. We really want to be with South Cambridgeshire.
"Peterborough is in debt, and Fenland is not. Why should our residents' money be lost to them?"
March Town Council at their meeting on Monday were also uneasy with the proposals to see Fenland and Peterborough joined, but also accepted it was likely inevitable.
During a debate in the House of Commons on Wednesday (9), Conservative Mr Barclay questioned how the Labour Government can expect to have a meaningful consultation on changing local councils if basic information is missing on how the changes will impact residents.
He said: "I attended a debate in Westminster Hall today where it seemed impossible to get even basic information on what the scrapping of Fenland District Council will mean for key services.
"Will merging with Peterborough, where parking is charged, mean we risk losing our free car parking, which Fenland councillors have protected?
"Will the council tax be hiked up? Local Fenland Conservatives have frozen their element of council tax for the last seven years, when others, such as Peterborough City Council, have repeatedly increased their council tax.
"Changing the geographic area covered could also impact more widely, such as on school catchments.
"Or impact on special educational needs provision. How can this consultation be shaped by local people, as the Minister claimed, if they don’t know whether funding will be provided to ease the merger of councils with differing financial assets and liabilities?
"The three options proposed don’t even align with other services, such as healthcare, where another Government department, Health, is proposing different boundaries."
He added: "This lack of detail makes this consultation deeply flawed.
"The consultation seems little more than a paper exercise. It closes on July 20, 2025, yet there is little awareness of the consultation and even less information in it."
Share