Rutland County Council and leaders of district and borough councils in Leicestershire say residents deserve better as Leicestershire pushes ahead with local government reorganisation plan

A county council leader in Rutland and the leaders of the neighbouring district councils say they are ‘disappointed’ at a decision by Leicestershire to continue with its local government reorganisation plans.

Leaders of the seven district and borough councils in Leicestershire and Rutland County Council have issued a joint statement following the announcement by Leicestershire County Council that it is unilaterally continuing with its proposal to create a single unitary authority for Leicestershire, albeit changed from what it had previously suggested, and now without any inclusion of Rutland.

The statement was signed by Gale Waller (Lib Dem), leader of Rutland County Council; Terry Richardson (Con), leader of Blaby District Council; Jewel Miah (Lab), leader of Charnwood Borough Council; Phil Knowles (Lib Dem), leader of Harborough District Council; Stuart Bray (Con), leader of Hinckley and Bosworth District Council; Pip Allnatt (Lab), leader of Melton Borough Council; Richard Blunt (Con), leader of North West Leicestershire District Council and Samia Haq (Lib Dem), leader of Oadby and Wigston Borough Council.

The statement said: “We are extremely disappointed that the county council is continuing with its proposal to create one single unitary council for the whole of Leicestershire with no discussion or engagement with other councils. Our residents deserve better.

“This goes against the expectations of Ministers and the intent of the government’s white paper on how it wishes to see local government reorganisation developed.

“We don’t believe the current system is broken, but if it is to change then we believe one single county unitary serving 800,000 residents, one of the largest in the country, would be too remote, too cumbersome, too inaccessible and ultimately inefficient and unsustainable.

“It is pleasing to see that the county council have at least listened to Rutland who have made it clear that they do not want to be part of a large, unwieldy single unitary for Leicestershire. This rehashed proposal doesn’t address the expectation that change should be coterminous with health, fire and police or that the government expect local government reorganisation proposals that include Rutland.

“Instead, the district councils in Leicestershire and Rutland County Council are working together and engaging with stakeholders to develop proposals which will deliver localised, high-quality, efficient and sustainable public services for Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.

“Our proposals, which we will submit before the deadline of March 21, will set out how many new councils would strike the right balance between size and maintaining a strong local connection to communities. We must, and we will, keep the local in local government.

“Any new unitary councils should reflect the way people live their lives in that area and be aligned to where people live, work, shop and play.

“We are therefore exploring options for smaller unitary authorities which will serve our local communities’ needs better, but also enhance their future prosperity

“Our proposals will be evidence led and backed by engagement with local communities, businesses and organisations. We will ensure they all have a meaningful voice in the process.

“Local democratic accountability in any new structures is also important, elected members are representatives for communities they serve.

“As the first initial deadline is very tight, we are carrying out some initial engagement with stakeholders who represent a wide range of people, communities and sectors to help shape our interim plans.

“A more comprehensive package of public engagement will follow this summer, and Government will also carry out a consultation on any final proposal so there will be ample opportunity for people to get involved.

“We want what is best for our residents of Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland and our door remains open to the county council to work together on achieving this.”