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Telegraph
15-03-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
The West Country experiment that proves Rayner's ‘mega councils' plan is doomed to fail
When a new unitary authority in Somerset was formed in 2023, it was hailed as the answer to the town hall's ever-increasing financial black hole. Yet only two years later, Somerset council is on course to hit a £190m budget shortfall by 2029 – forcing officials to impose an inflation-busting 7.49pc tax rise on citizens. At the same time, funding for public services from toilets to CCTV is being axed – meaning residents will never have paid so much for so little. The troubled financial state of Somerset is a stark warning to Angela Rayner whose 'mega councils' master plan – announced in the Devolution White Paper in December – is facing mounting scrutiny. Two-tier county and district councils across the country face being merged into one unitary authority, a local government body which is responsible for all services, in a bid to make much-needed savings. But, councillors have warned Ms Rayner that the alleged benefits from the scheme 'lack a serious and robust evidential base'. It is something Somerset residents can attest to. Since its 'unitarisation', services for public toilets, local theatres, CCTV and tourism visitor centres have been cut. The Liberal Democrats-run council has also been forced to introduce a new parking policy, which will impose Sunday charges at all car parks and scrap free parking. The cost of garden waste collection is rising too, from £68 to £73.50 next month. Meanwhile, the council tax rise will generate an extra £9m income and add an extra £129 a year on to the average household's bill. Desperate, the authority has been forced to start selling off its assets to make ends meet. These include a Marks &Spencer building in Yeovil, offices in Bristol and an NCP car park in Bournemouth. For the second year in a row, the council is using Exceptional Financial Support, which is funding granted by the Government. It has been given permission to sell assets or borrow money to a value of £43m. The authority has also cut 555 jobs to save £34m a year. Despite this, spending is still set to outstrip income by £101m for 2026-27, rocketing to £190m by 2029-2030. Martin Dimery, a Green councillor, said: ' Somerset county council was already in a financial crisis when it effectively absorbed the districts. This was due to the burgeoning costs of adults and children's social care against a backdrop of failing to keep council tax in line with costs. 'Far from saving money, Somerset county council has brought all the former districts down with the sinking ship.' The town hall plans to find savings of £47m this year and Bill Revans, the leader of the council, has admitted there will be further impacts on services. Somerset is far from the only cash-strapped unitary authority. Nottingham city and Birmingham city councils have both declared effective bankruptcy. Meanwhile Thurrock, which issued a Section 114 notice to declare effective bankruptcy in 2022, has debt of about £1.5bn. 'Crippling financial problems' Cllr Jeremy Newmark, of the District Councils' Network (DCN), said: 'Many new large unitary councils have experienced crippling financial problems. 'Claimed savings promised by the proponents of mega councils lack a serious and robust evidential base. Given that reorganisation will incur substantial upfront costs, we must be clear that any savings may not emerge for many years.' A Conservative Party spokesman said: 'Last year, we set out five key tests that any restructuring should meet – and Labour have failed at every hurdle. In addition to the extra costs, the mass postponement of elections is unprecedented and entirely wrong.' Somerset council has previously pointed to the fact that it has one of the highest rates of pensioners in the UK, with roughly 25pc over the age of 65. This means the town hall has particularly suffered with the rise in adult social care costs. Somerset's rural location makes matters worse, as it can be a round-trip of 90 minutes for a carer to see one customer in their home. Elliot Keck, of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said that reorganisation risked 'simply papering over the cracks,' rather than dealing with the root of issues such as social care costs. Jonathan Carr-West, of the Local Government Information Unit, said: 'The scale of financial challenges faced by councils is so great that even the maximum potential savings from reorganisation will not by themselves be enough to put local government on a sound financial footing.' Almost half of councils in England risk falling into bankruptcy without action, according to the National Audit Office. But a report says local government reorganisation risks simply reinforcing the status quo. The report, conducted by Inner Circle Consulting for the DCN, found it would be 'a hugely costly and disruptive process that will simply create larger versions of semi-functional or dysfunctional arrangements that aren't delivering for those that need it the most or for the nation as a whole.' 'It's like running up a down escalator' Mr Revans this week told a Government committee that unitarisation had produced significant savings, but rising costs negated these: 'The cost pressures of social care are rising at a rate faster than our ability to make savings. It's like running up a down escalator. We are making these savings, but cannot do it fast enough to meet the demands.' A spokesman for the County Councils Network highlighted that there are 'very specific reasons' for why certain unitary authorities are struggling, but that in cases such as Buckinghamshire, Cornwall and Wiltshire, unitarisation has been a success. A Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government spokesman said: 'This Government inherited a crumbling local government sector and existing, long-standing financial pressures are seriously impacting councils like Somerset. 'That's why we're giving them additional support to help manage these pressures.'
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
District councils unite against one unitary authority
District council leaders have said they are "united" against the idea of having one unitary local council for Suffolk. Suffolk County Council has officially published its interim plans for local government reorganisation and has proposed a single unitary authority to replace the current county and district two-tier system. Richard Rout, from the Conservative-run county council said: "Independent analysis shows that the financial benefits of having just one council would be more than nine times greater than a two-council [unitary] model." The five Green and Labour district council leaders say one authority "would be too large to work effectively and too remote for local residents to be heard". The government announced in its Devolution White Paper in December it was shaking up local councils and devolving power to new mayors across the country. Councils would be scrapped and replaced by one, two or three authorities, which would provide all services, including social services and education. The current system in Suffolk where the county council provides the bulk of services including social services, education, roads and waste disposal. The county's five district councils (Babergh, East Suffolk, Ipswich, Mid Suffolk and West Suffolk) provide waste collection, planning and building services, and leisure facilities. Suffolk and Norfolk have been fast tracked for devolution, which means they are having to reorganise quickly. The government wants to see interim plans - on how to reorganise and bring devolution to the county - by 21 March. The government has said any unitary authority must, at a minimum, cover a population of 500,000. For Suffolk, with a population of about 800,000, this would mean it could not have more than one new unitary authority. A combined authority would also be formed across Norfolk and Suffolk which would be led by a directly elected mayor and manage services like transport and employment skills. A report by the report published by the County Council Network (CCN) last week said "replacing the two-tier system with a new wave of councils... could save at least £1.8bn over five years". It added those savings would reduce "dramatically if county and district authorities are replaced with multiple smaller councils – potentially costing local taxpayers hundreds of millions". Devolution for Suffolk - what is it? Rout, the county council's cabinet member for devolution, local government reform said: "This latest analysis shows splitting Suffolk into three will actually cost money, not save it. "It's clear that having a single council for Suffolk will free up more money to reinvest in frontline public services that benefit residents. "If truly sustainable and effective councils are to be created, then one council for Suffolk is the only viable option." The District Council Network (DCN) has said it was "sceptical" about the levels of savings claimed in the CCN report. The DCN's chairman Sam Chapman-Allen said: "There is no way that £1.8bn can be found by merging councils without ravaging the services local people most value to find savings." The leaders of Suffolk's five district councils argue that one unitary would be too big, and cite new DCN research which showed "there's absolutely no correlation between population size and the performance or financial stability of unitary councils". The Green leader of Babergh District Council Deborah Saw said: "The key to local government is in the word 'local'. "This is why we strongly believe two or three unitary councils will deliver the best for Suffolk's communities. "There is simply no evidence that bigger councils give you better services." Each council will be deciding on their interim plans and submitting them by the government's deadline of 21 March. The plans will be reviewed and negotiations amongst all councils will continue until final plans will be put forward in September. Follow Suffolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. Council calls for one-authority devolution deal Single unitary authority for Suffolk unpopular Devolution for Suffolk, What is it? Consultation opens on joint mayor for two counties Leaders united against single authority Suffolk County Council Devolution White Paper
BBC News
11-03-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Suffolk's district council leaders oppose one unitary authority
District council leaders have said they are "united" against the idea of having one unitary local council for Suffolk. Suffolk County Council has officially published its interim plans for local government reorganisation and has proposed a single unitary authority to replace the current county and district two-tier Rout, from the Conservative-run county council said: "Independent analysis shows that the financial benefits of having just one council would be more than nine times greater than a two-council [unitary] model." The five Green and Labour district council leaders say one authority "would be too large to work effectively and too remote for local residents to be heard". What is the local government reorganisation and devolution? The government announced in its Devolution White Paper in December it was shaking up local councils and devolving power to new mayors across the country. Councils would be scrapped and replaced by one, two or three authorities, which would provide all services, including social services and current system in Suffolk where the county council provides the bulk of services including social services, education, roads and waste county's five district councils (Babergh, East Suffolk, Ipswich, Mid Suffolk and West Suffolk) provide waste collection, planning and building services, and leisure and Norfolk have been fast tracked for devolution, which means they are having to reorganise quickly. The government wants to see interim plans - on how to reorganise and bring devolution to the county - by 21 March. The government has said any unitary authority must, at a minimum, cover a population of 500,000. For Suffolk, with a population of about 800,000, this would mean it could not have more than one new unitary authority. A combined authority would also be formed across Norfolk and Suffolk which would be led by a directly elected mayor and manage services like transport and employment skills. More unitary councils 'could cost taxpayers hundreds of millions' A report by the report published by the County Council Network (CCN) last week said "replacing the two-tier system with a new wave of councils... could save at least £1.8bn over five years". It added those savings would reduce "dramatically if county and district authorities are replaced with multiple smaller councils – potentially costing local taxpayers hundreds of millions". Rout, the county council's cabinet member for devolution, local government reform said: "This latest analysis shows splitting Suffolk into three will actually cost money, not save it. "It's clear that having a single council for Suffolk will free up more money to reinvest in frontline public services that benefit residents."If truly sustainable and effective councils are to be created, then one council for Suffolk is the only viable option."The District Council Network (DCN) has said it was "sceptical" about the levels of savings claimed in the CCN report. The DCN's chairman Sam Chapman-Allen said: "There is no way that £1.8bn can be found by merging councils without ravaging the services local people most value to find savings." The leaders of Suffolk's five district councils argue that one unitary would be too big, and cite new DCN research which showed "there's absolutely no correlation between population size and the performance or financial stability of unitary councils".The Green leader of Babergh District Council Deborah Saw said: "The key to local government is in the word 'local'."This is why we strongly believe two or three unitary councils will deliver the best for Suffolk's communities. "There is simply no evidence that bigger councils give you better services."Each council will be deciding on their interim plans and submitting them by the government's deadline of 21 March. The plans will be reviewed and negotiations amongst all councils will continue until final plans will be put forward in September. Follow Suffolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Yahoo
02-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Sadiq Khan welcomes proposals for Slough to join London
Sir Sadiq Khan has said he would be happy to consider plans for Slough to join London. The mayor he was 'not surprised' the Berkshire region was considering becoming a part of the city. The proposal comes as a result of the Government's Devolution White Paper, which encourages local governments being reorganised into larger unitary authorities to grant more powers to local leaders instead of Westminster. Slough Borough Council noted at a meeting on February 17 that it would consider merging with West London boroughs or being absorbed by the Greater London Authority. Sir Sadiq told MyLondon: "I'm always happy to speak to those who want to join the people's republic of London. It's really important for us to recognise Greater London has actually grown from London over a period of decades." READ MORE: CCTV shows the chilling moments before West London drug 'turf' rivalry ends in tragic murder READ MORE: Deaf West London mum in dangerous mice-infested flat is rehomed after we told her story He added: "You look at this great city of ours then go back a thousand years and it was even smaller. That's the story of Greater London. Growth per se is not a problem in terms of population and geography is planning for that growth. I've not spoken to the team at Slough but I'm not surprised they want to join the party." The comments came as the Mayor and London Councils launched the London Growth Plan at Imperial College London on February 27. The plan has issued a joint call from the bodies on the UK Government for more investment and devolution in an effort to boost local and national growth. Lambeth Council leader Claire Holland, Chair of London Councils, told MyLondon: "We're always looking to work in partnership. We work with core cities, we work with key cities, we work with the shires at the Local Government Association. We all come together and work together." She added: "London Councils plays a critical role in that because we represent 9 million people, 32 boroughs and the City of London. We work within London in partnerships. We work at every level of government, regional, national, and we also work with our colleagues across the country." Have a story you want to share? Email Looking for more from MyLondon? Subscribe to our daily newsletters here for the latest and greatest updates from across London.
