Bexley’s Pothole Dispute Rolls All the Way to Parliament
So, there’s been quite a stir in Bexley lately — and believe it or not, it’s all about potholes. What started as a local issue has now rolled its way right into Parliament. Labour MP Daniel Francis, who represents Bexleyheath and Crayford, says he spent his summer walking and driving through every road in his constituency, documenting potholes and reporting each one. His goal, he explained, was to make sure that Bexley’s Conservative-led council was actually using the public funds meant for road repairs.
Now, this might sound like a regular bit of local council drama, but things quickly escalated. During Prime Minister’s Questions, Labour leader Keir Starmer stepped in and warned that Bexley could lose its £895,000 funding from the Department for Transport if it failed to use it properly. That set off alarm bells within the council. In response, Bexley Council wrote directly to the Prime Minister, accusing Daniel Francis of spreading misinformation and insisting their figures were being misrepresented.
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Francis didn’t back down. Speaking in the House of Commons, he even pointed out that a Conservative council cabinet member had written to a local newspaper, asking him to stop reporting potholes because it was creating too much work for the council. He then challenged the Prime Minister, asking whether he would join him in urging the council to spend the allocated money to make local roads safe again.
Rishi Sunak’s reply was sharp. He said it was “outrageous” that a council would discourage a local MP from reporting potholes, adding that fixing damaged roads is a basic public duty. He reminded everyone that the government had already delivered record investment — £1.6 billion — to tackle road issues across the country. His message to the council was clear: use the money, fix the roads, or risk losing the funding altogether.
Later, Daniel Francis went on BBC Radio 5 Live, where he revealed that, according to his data, Bexley Council had only spent £40,000 of its £895,000 budget in the first quarter of the financial year. He said over a hundred potholes had been reported, but the council claimed many didn’t meet the threshold for repair. Francis even created a 20-centimeter measuring tool to check the size and depth of the potholes himself — and said many that were rejected actually did qualify.
The council, however, strongly disputes his claims. Councillor Richard Diment, the cabinet member for neighbourhoods, said the MP’s comments were “outrageous” and accused him of misleading Parliament. He explained that while only a quarter of the potholes Francis reported qualified for action, the council had already spent £260,000 — not £40,000 — and fully intended to use the entire budget.
What began as a simple push to fill potholes has now become a full-blown political row — with accusations, fact-checks, and funding threats all in the mix. And at the heart of it all? The bumpy roads of Bexley that everyone just wants to be smooth again.
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