MP Anna Soubry: "Stop sale of Nottinghamshire care homes"

Ms Soubry said she had written to the council's leader over the plans

An MP has called for councillors to abandon plans to sell off six residential care homes.

Conservative-run Nottinghamshire County Council wants to raise £2m by selling the homes to a private firm which would continue to run them as care homes.

However, Broxtowe Tory MP Anna Soubry said the deal should be halted as the price fetched was far below what the six houses were worth.

The county council said the firm would be investing £500,000 in the homes.

Ms Soubry said she had written to council leader Kay Cutts to voice her opposition to the plan that would see the homes sold to private firm the Runwood Group.

"These are important assets which belong to the people of this county," the MP said.

"The council has an absolute duty to make sure they raise the right price and get as much as they can. Now is not the time to sell."

Ms Soubry said the council had the best intentions in trying to sell off the six homes, which include Bramwell Care Home in her Broxtowe constituency.

However, she said the fragile state of the property market, twinned with problems in the care home market, meant the deal should not go ahead.

The Nottinghamshire branch of Unison also criticised the sell-off, describing it as "a scandal".

Ms Cutts said she was "delighted" with the deal and said it was a good thing for Nottinghamshire.

'Plain posturing'

"These homes went to the market place," she said.

"We had a price we weren't going to sell them for less than and we got more than that price.

"I'm very satisfied with the deal - £500,000 worth of investments in these homes is a good thing.

"To pretend they're angry when it's been so well debated is just plain posturing quite frankly.

"I'm glad we're going to be able to continue providing this fantastic care to people, albeit by a private company."

The homes being sold are Bramwell Care Home, Bramcote; Braywood Gardens Care Home, Carlton; Jubilee Court Care Home, Sutton-in-Ashfield; Leawood Manor Residential Home, West Bridgford; Maun View, Mansfield; and Westwood, Worksop.