Delay to council shake-up is shocking, says MP

A pause on plans to shake-up the organisation of local government in Warwickshire has been called a "shocking decision" by a Stratford-upon-Avon MP.

Secretary of state for local government Angela Rayner announced the delay - for multiple areas of England - on Monday, to allow for further legal consideration.

Currently in Warwickshire there are two levels of local government – county council for services such as education and social care, and lower tier district and borough councils for things like planning and bin collections.

The government earlier this year green lit plans to essentially split the county into two along a north and south axis, with a pair of brand new councils created, one to run each half. Putting that on hold was creating "further uncertainty", said MP Manuela Perteghella.

Rayner told the Commons on Monday that the delay came "in light of legal advice" to ensure the correct process had been followed and that she wanted to test whether the reorganisation matched the priorities of the new government and prime minister.

Perteghella, Liberal Democrat, told BBC CWR that she was "asking to see the legal advice" that brought Rayner to announce the "U-turn".

That situation, the MP continued, had made for instability, which she described as "quite upsetting because so many resources and taxpayers' money was taken up for government reorganisation".

"It is really disappointing and demoralising for everyone," Perteghella added.

The government wants all remaining two-tier council areas to move to the single unitary authority model, with services delivered from one organisation.

In the original pans, one unitary authority would cover the residents currently under Rugby, North Warwickshire and Nuneaton & Bedworth councils, and, to the south, another would replace Stratford-on-Avon and Warwick councils.

Rayner said that the affected councils working towards launching new authorities had been told to pause preparations.

The original timetable would have seen elections held in May 2027 for the two new councils.

Rayner said the vote would now go ahead on existing council boundaries unless the new authorities were ready to be established by then.

That means four of Warwickshire's five district and borough councils are set to hold elections next spring.

North Warwickshire Borough Council, Stratford-on-Avon District Council and Warwick District Council are all due for all-out elections, while Rugby Borough Council is scheduled to elect one-third of its councillors. Nuneaton & Bedworth Borough Council is not due to hold elections next year.

If plans for the new councils are pushed back, the 57 councillors elected to Warwickshire County Council in 2025 would remain in their roles until the county council is officially replaced.

A spokesperson at Warwick District Council said all six councils would "continue to work together and engage with the government as further information becomes available".

"We will provide updates for residents, staff and councillors when we have greater clarity," the spokesperson added.

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