Labour councillors will, on Wednesday, attempt to block the Councils proposals to close Harvey Nursery, the only Council run nursery in Bolton.

A full meeting of the Council will debate a motion by Martin Donaghy, Labours Children’s Services spokesman, that asks that the Tory run council not proceed with its plans to close the nursery in March, this year. This follows  a successful challenge to the plans at a recent Scrutiny Committee, when, even though Lib Dem, Horwich First, Kearsley Independent, and UKIP councillors supported the Tories, Labour was still able to get the item ‘upped’ to a meeting of the full Council.

Cllr Donaghy stated “No one should miss the irony of the situation, when the Government is insisting that nursery provision remain in place during the lockdown, this is the very moment that the Tory Coalition Council choses to close this important nursery. You really couldn’t make it up!”

“We are not happy at the timing of this move, and we simply say to the Tories – hold back, don’t be so eager to strip valuable services away from the people of Bolton, when you don’t know what’s round the corner, because the way that this Government is handling the pandemic, things are going to get much worse before they get better.”

Leader of Bolton Labour Group, Cllr Nick Peel, added, “The Tories argue that the nursery is surplus to requirements, but this nursery is a stone’s throw away from the University, the town hall, and many other essential town centre employers and it clearly has a key role to play in ensuring that key workers can continue to attend their workplace if required. To close this nursery in March, when we will still be in the thick of this crisis is ideological madness. We ask the Tories and their allies to please think again.”