Nine Council Mergers Withdrawn as Reorganisation Stalls
The government has withdrawn decisions on nine of 14 planned council mergers, including Kent, Devon and Lancashire, while it seeks “legal clarity”. Only East Sussex, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Warwickshire and Worcestershire will go ahead, after three more weeks of consultation. Shadow local government secretary Katie Lam called it “a farce”.
Angela Rayner paused the programme last month over concerns about legal challenges. Local Government Minister Jim McMahon told MPs that a review had found the government’s decision-making “robust”. Even so, he withdrew the decisions announced in July for Derbyshire, Devon, Hertfordshire, Kent, Lancashire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and Staffordshire. “This is not a reflection of the work underpinning those proposals,” he said. Essex, Hampshire, Norfolk and Suffolk were already under review after plans there were withdrawn in September. The delays leave councils and voters uncertain over who will run local services, and when.