Fury as Labour axes 800 councillors and shuts 43 councils | UK | News
Eight hundred elected councilors will lose their positions and 43 councils face closure as Labor moves towards the most radical reshaping of English local government in memory; It’s a move that opposition politicians have branded a naked power grab.
The deadline for completion is 2028 and existing structures in Hampshire, Essex, Norfolk and Suffolk will be axed. The borders of many cities, including Ipswich, Norwich, Portsmouth and Southampton, are being redrawn simultaneously. Ministers say it is an effort to pave the way for housebuilding, but critics describe it as a deliberate attempt to silence Nimby-leaning district councils.
Few in Westminster doubt who will win. The expanded urban authorities the reforms would create are far more likely to be dominated by the working class, The Express understands.
‘Direct gerrymandering’
Shadow Local Government Secretary Sir James Wisely reached for the sharpest language available.
He reportedly declared “blatant gerrymandering” – apparently accusing the government of trying to “bolster its collapsing support” by “designing council sizes to suit its own partisan political interests, evading due process, and evading accountability.”
Nigel Farage, whose seat of Clacton puts him at the center of the Essex turmoil, told reporters the changes were spreading to communities that never wanted them.
The Reform UK leader told the BBC: “The idea of taking the county of Essex and breaking it up into a series of units and then imposing a mayor; nobody here wanted a major local government change.”
“No one here wanted Essex to have a mayor.
“I think the danger is that you get rid of the county council… and start to lose track of what Essex is as a county.”
How will the districts be divided?
The most sweeping changes have come in Essex, where a county council and a dozen district councils will be merged into five new unitary bodies, GB News reported. Three unitary councils each in Norfolk and Suffolk will replace the current arrangements, while four new authorities will take over in Hampshire.
Currently, the two-tier system divides responsibilities at district and regional levels; district councils manage transport and social care, and district councils manage litter collection and local planning.
They will all be converted into single-tier structures under the new arrangements, with The Times presenting details of how each district will be reorganised.
What the government says it will save
Labour’s position is partly based on efficiency. By eliminating duplicate leadership positions – senior figures such as managing directors and finance directors – the restructuring is expected to cut costs and predict savings of around £6 million a year across the four boroughs, the report said.
Local Government Minister Steve Reed gave the overhaul an assertive review, reportedly describing it as “a once-in-a-generation chance to make sure our councils are fit for the modern realities of our places and that outdated boundaries do not restrict growth, particularly in our towns and cities.”
“In many places, council boundaries are out of sync with the needs of local communities and how they live their lives.” he added.
