Greater support required for devolution and reorganisation

The East of England Local Government Association (EELGA) are calling on Government to give councils the resources, clarity, and support they need to see them through Local Government Reorganisation and Devolution.

Cllr Graham Butland, EELGA Chair said “The current wave of reform in local government is the largest for 50 years. We want to ensure the best outcomes for residents in the East of England and to do that our councils need urgent support”.

Councils in the East of England have submitted their interim local government reorganisation plans, keeping to the government’s tight deadlines. However, to ensure that reorganisation is a success, local authorities have made clear that they urgently need support.

Cllr Butland said “We welcome the announcement made by the Secretary of State for Devolution, Jim McMahon, concerning the allocation of £7.6m across the 21 local government areas currently affected by local government reorganisation. However, this is not enough. We have written to the Secretary of State to make the case for local authorities in the East of England. The key requests we are making include:

• The need for adequate resource for local authorities in the East of England over and above the £7.6m of support announced on 24 March. £7.6m for the whole country is not enough to mitigate costs, with one-off transition costs in Hertfordshire, Suffolk and Norfolk alone forecast to be as much as £118m. More is needed to maintain day-to-day services and to enable reorganisation to take place.
• Timely and clear feedback to the interim plans – this is critical as well as more precise information around the kind of timetable being set out.
• Maintenance of civic and ceremonial roles and titles – this is needed to maintain local support.
• Cross government support from the civil service throughout this process, not just from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
• An holistic approach to local government policy to best take advantage of both reorganisation and devolution.
• Up-to-date guidance around the TUPE process.

Cllr Butland said “We look forward to hearing back from the Secretary of State and are looking to meet with him, or officials within his department, to outline further details”.

A copy of the letter can be found here.