Reform UK Doncaster have published an “alternative budget” today Worth noting: To my knowledge, this was shared publicly as the party presented it to council finance officials. Finance officials have not yet had the chance to confirm the budget is workable

I’m on annual leave this week - not missing anything though Back from Feb 23

PSA for the people I regularly see asking for this To my understanding, Doncaster Council cannot have another 'motion of no confidence' in Mayor Jones, because they have already had one

NEW: Reform UK will restore the whip to suspended councillor Paul Cutts next week Cutts lost the whip, pending an investigation, following LDRS reporting of his social media activity During his suspension, Cutts accepted an invite to a local mosque - the only 2025 cllr to accept such an offer

Mayor Jones has defended proposals to introduce a fee to use a currently free pitch and putt in Cantley Park Local councillor Nick Allen told the Mayor he was against the change in a question submitted to cabinet

NEW: Reform UK's leader in Doncaster has said his party will not propose a maximum council tax hike in its "alternative budget" I understand the council's finance officers have not yet given it the green-light

Don’t you just hate it when you wildcard in #FPL and have an absolutely stinker 😬 Need some huge scores from my Arsenal triple-up to redeem this…

NEW: 90% write-off of SEND spending is "welcome news", Mayor Jones says In cabinet, Mayor also announces an additional £10m in grant funding over the next 3 years which will be used to cover the vast majority of the 10% deficit the council will need to cover

Doncaster's Labour cabinet have approved Mayor Ros Jones' 2026/27 budget - including 4.99% council tax hike, £250m capital spending plan and full pay restoration for staff Sign-off now rests with Reform UK at full council on February 26

REPORT: Plans for an 'elite' football facility in Doncaster have been refused planning permission

NEW: Mayor Ros Jones’ cabinet approves her 2026/26 budget as expected It goes to full council for final approvals on February 26, 2026.

NEW: A Doncaster city councillor suspended by Reform UK over 'islamophobic' social media posts - following reporting from the LDRS - has visited a local mosque Cllr Paul Cutts said the educational visit was "informative", "enlightening" and said his posts had been "thoughtless"

Sheffield Coffee diaries returns!!! ☕️ Been wanting to try 2323 Coffee on Norfolk Row for AGES They give you a rotating menu of espresso options I had cappuccino with a Kenyan coffee by Dak coffee roasters in Amsterdam 10/10. Elite stuff. Right up there with the city’s best

Starmer: leadership in crisis, No10 in crisis, Labour MPs say he needs a “miracle” to stay as PM Ed Miliband:

The Mayor of Doncaster's budget proposes a 4.8% rent hike for council tenants from April 2026

REPORT: Mayor Ros Jones' budget proposals include a 4.99% hike in council tax - the maximum she can impose Also included: - £248m capital investment in 2026/27 - £87m in capital borrowing in 2026/27 - £60m in road maintainance through 2029/30 *Subject to Reform approval at full council on Feb 26

NEW: Rents for tenants of St Leger Homes (Doncaster Council's social housing provider) proposed to increase 4.8% Council expects their rents to remain the lowest in South Yorkshire, despite increase

£60m investment in road maintenance announced earlier in January 2026 remains in the budget Will be £15m per year for the next four years

£250m capital budget for 2026/27 (doing things money - building, buying, regenerating etc) £550m over the next four years

Bullet skim through of council tax and savings (cuts) proposals done (a more in-depth look to come over the course of the week) Now we move to the capital spending plan

Budget proposes charges for previously free services: The Cantley Pitch and Putt course could have a charge for use Private businesses could be charged for graffiti removal (previously free)

Budget includes proposal to increase weekend and evening rates at Markets car park from £1 to £1.20

NEW 🚨: Mayor Jones’ budget proposals includes four FTE jobs being cut To be achieved through “deletion of vacant posts, redeployment and then voluntary redundancies” The “savings” appendix (cuts) details reductions in FTE roles at libraries and increasing “volunteering-levels”

Equal to a £1.10 increase per week in a Band A property (which is most in Doncaster) Equal to £1.65pw in Band D. Or £57.07 per year in Band A £85.60 per year in Band D

Working through the budget proposals now. Will bring you news lines as I get them

NEW 🚨: Mayor Ros Jones has proposed a maximum increase in council tax in her 2026/27 budget The proposals, published in the last few minutes, suggest an increase of 4.99% (the maximum allowed without a referendum)

Mayor Ros Jones' budget proposals are to be published today Still no sign of them yet, but I'm told it will be released this afternoon Watch this space...

Reform UK Doncaster have ended the employment arrangement of their political assistant, Catherine Mullen, five months after hiring her Mullen provided policy and political advice to the group Political assistants are political hires decided by parties

Reform UK Doncaster have issue another statement following the revelation the DSA lease included a cap on electricity use. The group claim infrastructure upgrades to the site (mentioned by SYMCA in September 2025) could require additional public spending

A local councillor has called for a 'noise insulation scheme', similar to projects at Manchester and Heathrow airports, to be made available to people within 500 metres of the Doncaster Sheffield Airport runway

Doncaster Council's 2030 & 2040 climate targets "threatened" by lack of funds, skills and support, report reveals Doncaster Sheffield Airport, a site which this authority is committing hundreds of millions of public funds to reopening in the near future, is not mentioned once in the report

More great work from @chrisburn.bsky.social The lease for DSA (which the council stress to me is being renegotiated) capped power on site at 1MVA With Gateway East, plans for rail and other DSA dreams. It’s seems unlikely 1MVA will be enough long term

Doncaster Council's 2030 & 2040 climate targets "threatened" by lack of funds, skills and support, report reveals Doncaster Sheffield Airport, a site which this authority is committing hundreds of millions of public funds to reopening in the near future, is not mentioned once in the report

Mayor Ros Jones accused her political opponents of driving a "political narrative" surrounding Doncaster Sheffield Airport in full council last week She and Cllr Jane Cox clashed over timelines with the Civil Aviation Authority published by the LDRS

'Scandal' - Councillors slam Doncaster Sheffield Airport lease ‘gag order’ My story in the @yorkshirepost.co.uk

Putting this question in written form wouldn't have done it justice

NEW: 'Tenant' Doncaster Council agreed not to object to housing planning applications in the Doncaster Sheffield Airport lease, the LDRS can reveal The previously unnoticed clause is further to 'approve housing or lose lease' revelations published last week

REPORT: Mayor Ros Jones rejected accusations of "systemic racism" within Doncaster Council during full council last week

NEW: Mayor Ros Jones will include a £60m investment in road maintenance over the next four years in her budget proposals next month The £60m would be a record in Doncaster, but requires full council approval

Pubs are "vital community assets", the Doncaster Mayor said in full council last week It followed a question from Cllr Nick Allen on whether she supported the government U-turn on business rate hikes for pubs

REPORT: Reform UK Doncaster elect Cllr Craig Ward as its new group leader Ward says there will be no more deals with Labour

BREAKING ‼️: Reform UK have elected Councillor Craig Ward as its new group leader on the City of Doncaster Council, I'm told Elected in May 2025, Cllr Ward represents Roman Ridge for Reform UK and is chair of licensing committee and vice-chair of planning

NEW: A spokesperson for Mayor Ros Jones has refused to rule out a maximum increase in council tax in next month's budget Doncaster has not seen a maximum council tax increase for a number of years and boasts lowest council tax in Yorkshire.

NEW: The South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) have issued a statement following the leak of Doncaster Council's lease with Peel Land for the DSA site

NEW: Councillors put Mayor Ros Jones under immense pressure yesterday following the leaking of the DSA lease with Peel My report on the Doncaster Free Press today www.doncasterfreepress.co.uk/news/politic...

NEW: Mayor Jones is responding to today's revelations re) DSA lease. She says: "Peel had the ability to terminate the lease if they failed to obtain planning permission. BUT, let me be perfectly clear, that clause did not guarantee that they would receive planning permission and...

Full council getting underway. Sporadic updates in this thread if interesting things happen

REPORT: Reform UK may suspend support for reopening DSA, the local chairman has said following the leak of the council's lease with landowners Peel

NEW: I have the DSA lease Can confirm the clauses referred to by the YP are in there NOTE - the planning applications were passed on their merit (I was in the meeting) Voting members of planning committee were not to know if clauses in the lease

NEW: In an exclusive line sent to me, Reform UK Doncaster have threatened to suspend "all financial dealings" relating to DSA, if the Mayor and council "continue to withhold information" over the project I'm told Mayor Ros Jones will respond to this story in full council today