The government is being urged to publish its devolution white paper as speculation mounts about widespread reorganisation in local government on the cards.
In the meantime, here at good old Waverley, the Tories have launched a petition to stop the collaboration between Waverley and Guildford councils!
So, will local decision-making soon move further away from the grassroots?
Following last month’s budget documents, Lords minister for Housing and Local Government, Baroness Sharon Taylor, said she hoped the paper would be published before the end of November or early December. It will include the Government working with local councils to move to simpler structures to prompt efficiency savings and enable them to meet local needs.
Q So, does Waverley & Guildford need to gather another local council under its wing?
This week, The Times reported that ten areas would be in the first wave of reorganisation. Guess who tops the list? SURREY! The county’s 11 borough and district councils could be replaced with a larger unitary authority with populations of at least 500,000 people,
SCC’s CEO and the County Councils Network chair, Tim Oliver, has been lusting after this move for years for Surrey. He wants a behemoth Unitary Authority of 1.2 million people.
He recently told the network that the lesser figure should be the minimum population limit to ensure unitary authorities are of the necessary scale, and devolution plans should space whole county geographies to support better public service delivery across the area.
Well, he would, wouldn’t he?
However, the District Councils Network chair, Sam Chapman-Allen, commented.
that it was hard to see that these proposed vast new unitary councils would ensure that local government remains genuinely local and rooted in real places. Local council accountabiluty depends on residents retaining a demonstable close link to the councillors who represent them.
Bye Bye ‘Your Waverley’ Hello ‘Surrey?’
The fight to stop Surrey County Council’s power grab has begun.
Other authorities on the government’s hit list include Essex, Kent, Norfolk, Suffolk, and Hertfordshire.
SCC Unitary Authority better known as The Empire of Tim is precisely what any Govt wants when it wants to offload responsibility and thus allows it to say “nowt to do with us”.
Problem. Tim’s empire is broke. Very. Injecting money is effectively pouring it down a drain and they don’t work either.
Ask any Boktonian what they think of being part of Greater Manchester. It will broaden your language no end.
Guildford Waverley Unity.
The Conservatives are doing everyone a favour. Because Waverley will collapse if the deal goes West. There is no plan B. The people dont like the idea of dealing with Guildford to get something fixed in Elstead or Tilford. Godalming is closer, especially if you want face to face contact. Sharing equals reducing. Cost cutting means no service at all. Paying more for less.
What do we do instead?
It’s right there. Town Councils.
Re invigorate. Give them power.Local control. Local budgets. Actual rather than tick box democracy.Rid yourselves of an additional and useless layer of incompetence.
Power to the plebians Not the tin pot Emperors.
MeaninglessMud
One more Borough Council wouldn’t meet the half million population threshold. There are three Borough Council with geographical boundaries with GBC/WBC: Surrey Heath, Woking and Mole Valley.
So forgetting about bankrupt Woking, you’re left with Surrey Heath and Mole Valley.
However, given the snails pace of the GBC/WBC collaboration (people shuffling exercise only so far) I suspect they will be overtaken by events outside their control. I wonder if the County elections (scheduled for 1 May 25) in these ten areas you mention will be cancelled?
The merger that Mr Follows has always insisted was not a merger.
Well I have never had a need to talk to WBC about anything but SCC are always responsive when I report fallen trees etc . I lived in Cornwall for a few years and the unitary council worked there so I like the idea of doing the same in Surrey. Intuitively it must lower costs as less bureaucracy!
Cornwall County Council merged with the County’s 6 borough councils in 2009 to form Cornwall Unitary Council. It has 87 local Councillors representing the 550,000 residents of Cornwall.