Local leaders express concerns about single unitary council proposal for Leicestershire

Leicestershire County Council has requested the Government to postpone the elections planned for May this year until May 2026.

Today (10/01) leaders from Rutland County Council and the seven district and borough councils in Leicestershire have formulated a joint statement outlining their concerns about proposals to create a single unitary council for the county.

In December 2024, the Government published a White Paper stating that it would 'facilitate a programme of local government reorganisation for two-tier areas and for unitary councils where there is evidence of failure or where their size or boundaries may be hindering their ability to deliver sustainable and high-quality public services'.

The local Leaders' joint statement says: "As local leaders we are closest to our communities, and have a responsibility to ensure local voices are heard and properly considered in any reorganisation of local government. A single unitary council over a wide and diverse geographic area, which is being proposed without proper consultation, has the potential to be too remote, and inaccessible, from the communities we serve. We must keep the local in local government.
 
"As Leaders we acknowledge the government’s white paper sets a clear direction of travel, but it must be properly considered, evidence-led and ensure that residents and businesses are fully engaged in shaping the future local government of Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland. We are open to exploring all options, but have not agreed any boundary changes, and are clear that any changes must be based on evidence which gets the right balance between scale and physical geography. Any boundary changes would also have to be limited and balanced. Councils perform best when boundaries reflect the way people live their lives.
 
"We believe there are credible alternatives to a large single unitary, which will facilitate a better sense of place, deliver savings, boost regional growth and provide better outcomes for our residents and businesses.
 
"We want to work collaboratively with all our local authority partners to agree how best to reshape local government within our area. We have written to government to confirm that we are keen to work with them and that we expect our propositions to be taken seriously. There is simply too much at stake to have a change railroaded through."

Yesterday (09/01), Leicestershire County Council announced that they had requested the Government postpone the elections planned for May this year until May 2026.

When the White Paper was published last December the Government said there were two scenarios in which they were willing to postpone elections: one is related to a priority programme for devolution and the second is related to areas where reorganisation of local government is needed to unlock or enable devolution.  The County Council’s request has been made in respect of the second scenario.

In a press release issued by Leicestershire County Counil they said: "The County Council, the City Council, the District Councils and Rutland Council are all in agreement that an extension of Leicester City’s boundaries is required in order for the City Council to be economically sustainable and to meet the Government’s requirements of housing growth.  A request to the Government to delay the County Council elections does not require any proposals at this time in regard to reorganisation of local government but those proposals would have to be made by May 2025."

The County Council’s preferred proposal is for a unitary City Council with extended boundaries and a unitary council for the surrounding Leicestershire.

Councillor Deborah Taylor, acting leader of Leicestershire County Council, said:"This is about reorganising local government. It offers an opportunity to save money, simplify a confusing system and protect front-line services and has been a goal for a number of years.

"I want to be clear that this is a fresh bid in response to Government proposals and not a county council takeover. We are in regular contact with the City Council, Rutland Council, district councils, partners and staff to ensure they are aware of, and involved in, shaping plans and wait to hear from Government on next steps."