Row over Brighton and East Sussex councils shake-up

Brighton & Hove City Council will be allowed to expand into parts of East Sussex as part of local government reorganisation - but some of the county's council leaders say they will consider legal action against the decision.

Local Government Secretary Steve Reed said on Thursday that Brighton and Hove's boundary would expand to include East Saltdean, Peacehaven and Telscombe from April 2028.

But Zoe Nicholson, Green leader of Lewes District Council, and Andy Woolley, Reform leader of East Sussex County Council, both say they will consider a legal challenge against the plans.

Bella Sankey, Labour leader of Brighton and Hove, called the plans an "important decision for residents".

Nicholson said: "I'm furious, frustrated and disappointed on behalf of residents.

"People here really don't want to be part of Brighton and Hove."

Nicholson added the council was "exploring whether we can take legal action" over the plans.

Under government plans to reshape local authorities, "two-tier" authority areas where district, borough and county councils overlap will be replaced by single tier, unitary authorities.

The government has previously consulted on how this should take place, though no results have been publicly released in East Sussex.

A Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government spokesperson said plans to move the boundaries aimed to "tackle housing unaffordability and support growth across connected communities".

In response, Nicholson said more housebuilding would lead to greater population density and taller buildings, which was "simply not acceptable" in East Sussex's coastal towns.

Brighton and Hove has argued that including the coastal towns in its boundary more closely reflects the lives of residents who live there.

Woolley called the plans "one of the worst outcomes we could have expected in East Sussex".

He added: "I'm angry about the decision. We are planning our next steps and that doesn't preclude us taking legal action."

Plans had also been considered to incorporate Falmer into the new Brighton and Hove authority, but these have been shelved.

Lib Dem MP for Lewes, James MacCleary, whose constituency includes Falmer, said the decision would "prevent Brighton and Hove sprawling into our rural communities".

Under local government reorganisation plans, new authorities in Brighton and Hove and East Sussex will take power from 1 April 2028, and will be elected in May 2027 as a "shadow council" in order to set up the councils.

In West Sussex, decisions on local government reorganisation have been delayed to "allow ministers more time to consider options", according to a government spokesperson.

The county is now one of three areas, including Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, which are yet to hear how councils will be reshaped.

West Sussex will eventually be divided into two unitary authorities, but the decision on how this will be achieved is yet to be confirmed.

Jeremy Gardner, Labour leader of Adur District Council, said the council was "keen to ensure that we get the right decision for our communities", while Labour leader of Worthing Borough Council, Caroline Baxter, said local councillors wanted the "best possible outcome".

Conservative MP for Arundel and South Downs, Andrew Griffith, said he welcomed the delay as it "postponed the breakup of West Sussex", and he called for the plans to be abandoned.

Lib Dem leader of Mid Sussex District Council, Robert Eggleston, said the delay "means uncertainty remains for local communities, staff and councils".

Elections for shadow authorities in West Sussex are also currently due to take place in May 2027.

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