Leeds City Council is contemplating the sale of a the U1 number plate, used on the Lord Mayor’s civic car, to help bridge its £58.4m budget shortfall.
The number plate U1 was the first number plate bought in the city, having been acquired in 1903 by Rowland Winn, a motoring pioneer and founding member of the AA.
When his friend Arthur Currer Briggs was elected Lord Mayor of Leeds that same year, Mr Winn gave the U1 plate to him to use on his civic vehicle, and it has been used by Lord Mayors of Leeds ever since.
Mr Winn, one of the city’s first car dealers, was himself later elected Lord Mayor of Leeds in 1938-39. He retired from public life in the 1950s and was awarded the Freedom of the City in 1956, in recognition of his contribution to the city’s life and prosperity.
Council officials have ben told the U1 plate could fetch a substantial amount, with all proceeds from any sale going back into the council budget and helping to protect front line services.
Debra Coupar, Leeds City Council’s executive member for resources, said: “The sale of any assets is never something we take lightly and, in an ideal world, would not be something we’d wish to do. However, the financial pressures we are facing are simply so acute, we are being forced to look at all manner of options which we have never explored before.
“After consulting with experts, it’s clear that the sale of this number plate gives us a one-of-a-kind opportunity to secure a significant amount of funding, helping us protect vital services where we can whilst having no tangible impact on the people of Leeds.
“In the current circumstances, it’s an opportunity we can’t afford not to examine in more detail and our priority has to be to do whatever we can to balance our budget, meet the needs of residents and not risk being driven to the point of financial distress.”
