Chesterfield Borough Council’s leader has revealed how she and other district council leaders in Derbyshire are calling for a meeting with a Government Minister to seek clarity on proposals that could see some councils scrapped or merged under one super council with the postponement of the May county elections.
The Deputy Prime Minister and Local Government Secretary, Angela Rayner, recently unveiled the Labour Government’s devolution plans including a major redevelopment of local councils by potentially setting up unitary councils with elected mayors with plans to potentially merge councils in two-tier local authority areas like Derbyshire that operate county, and then district and borough councils.
Conservative-led Derbyshire County Council’s Leader, Cllr Barry Lewis, has welcomed the prospect of the reforms if they deliver savings but he has caused alarm after revealing his intention to write to the Government requesting any decision about postponing the May 2025 county election should also lie with the Government.
Cllr Tricia Gilby, of Labour-led Chesterfield Borough Council, said: “Chesterfield Borough Council is strongly committed to growing an inclusive economy, reforming public services where it makes sense to do so, and working with our partners to secure better outcomes for our communities.
“One of these partners is Derbyshire County Council. I’m therefore disappointed that Cllr Barry Lewis didn’t feel the need to speak with myself or indeed any of the district council leaders in Derbyshire before publicising Derbyshire County Council’s position on Local Government Reorganisation through his X account. That is not the way to seek to build consensus with his Local Government colleagues.
“Whilst I recognise the Government’s resolve to progress Local Government Reorganisation, and to a relatively tight timeframe, I do not believe that Derbyshire needs to be or should be in the first wave of areas to be considered for reform.
“My understanding of the Government’s position is that the first wave will comprise those areas of England that do not have mayoral combined authorities. That is not the case here in Derbyshire. We already have the East Midlands Mayoral Combined County Authority.
“I therefore believe Cllr Lewis’s position to be premature as is his decision to promote just a single option for the reorganisation of Local Government in Derbyshire. I also find it hard to comprehend that he would be willing to agree to the suspension of the May 2025 county council elections.
“Instead, I have today put my name to a letter alongside the leaders of the other district councils in Derbyshire requesting an urgent meeting with the Minister [for Local Government and Devolution] to seek clarity on various aspects of the government’s proposals for local government reorganisation.
“Having done so, I and my colleagues will be in a better position to speak with Cllr Lewis and also the Leader of Derby City Council about all the options that might be available for Local Government Reorganisation in Derbyshire. Surely, this is a better way forward than the hasty approach taken by the Leader of Derbyshire County Council.”
The Government has announced the prospect of postponing the May 2025 local elections for up to a year which perhaps may include Derbyshire County Council.
Plans include targeting areas prioritised for devolution to potentially have mayoral elections as soon as 2026 and the first changed councils could be running by 2027.
The Government has argued the plans will mean elected mayors will have more powers on planning and transport, and that the changes will create savings, create greater efficiency, improve public services, and support economic growth.
But critics have said the plans could mean: the loss of district and borough councils; a risk of greater Government control over local area decision-making and the removal of local decision-making; feared tax rises; powers being taken away from communities with reduced local representation; and that there is little evidence such plans can create savings.
Cllr Lewis has stated the county council is ready to work with Derby City Council and the county’s district and borough councils to shape the proposals if the Government’s plans are sufficiently directive and they align with what is best for Derbyshire.
Derbyshire County Council Deputy Leader, Cllr Simon Spencer, also told the LDRS that Cllr Lewis’s letter to the Government will express the county council’s wish to keep Derbyshire’s geographical boundaries and its preferred option would also include retaining the city boundaries with one unitary council to cover the county which would leave Derby City Council unaffected.
He added the county council recognises there is an opportunity to save up to £3bn with Local Government reform and there is willingness to work with the Government on reform proposals but that may well mean a delay of the elections by up to 12 months and he feels that is a decision for Government and not a decision for the county council.
Labour-controlled NE Derbyshire District Council Leader, Cllr Nigel Barker, said the district council’s view aligns with seven other district and borough councils in Derbyshire, and it too has requested a meeting with the Minister for Local Government and Devolution – Jim McMahon – to seek clarity on the Government’s proposals.
Cllr Barker added: “We are strongly committed to the Government’s mission to increase growth and our economy and have already fully embraced devolution with the creation of the East Midlands Combined County Authority.
“We don’t believe Derbyshire should be part of the devolution priority programme or a priority area for Local Government Reorganisation.
“We do however recognise the Government’s resolve to progress Local Government Reorganisation and are already actively engaged in conversations with each other and with our public sector and business partners to develop what we believe would be the best LGR option for Derbyshire”
County Council Leader, Cllr Lewis, was scheduled to meet with district council leaders on January 9 to discuss the next steps for the region’s councils.
The Chesterfield Borough Council Leader, Cllr Gilby, added: “My priority as the leader of Chesterfield Borough Council will always be to put Chesterfield’s communities first. To change how Local Government is organised in Derbyshire after 50 years is a big decision.
“I therefore believe it important that we gather all the facts and information and draw on the experience of others that have gone before us in seeking to develop the very best Local Government Reorganisation option for the residents and businesses of Chesterfield and Derbyshire.”
Bolsover District Council Leader, Cllr Steve Fritchley, has said he has never been and will never be a fan of removing local authorities as he believes they epitomise what Local Government represents and moving to larger unitary authorities will undermine how local decisions are made.
But he feels some areas of Local Government are ‘over-governed’ with parish, district and county councils and the recent introduction of East Midlands Combined County Authority was inevitable and something needs to be done and it is a debate everyone needs to take very seriously.
High Peak Borough Council Leader, Cllr Anthony McKeown, of the Labour-controlled local authority, has said time is needed to study the proposals and consider what is best for the High Peak.
County Council Labour Group leader, Cllr Joan Dixon, has said it is vital to get the right deal for Derbyshire and more time is needed to understand the complexities.
Liberal Democrat Group Leader at the county council, Cllr Ed Fordham, has said he is ‘angry and disappointed’ at Cllr Lewis’s actions and he will be submitting a letter to the Secretary of State urging that the May elections should go ahead.
Cllr Nigel Gourlay, an independent councillor who was elected a Conservative, has said local democracy relies on regular elections which cannot be postponed when ‘opinion polls are unfavourable’.
Green Party County Councillor, Gez Kinsella, has said there has been no prior consultation, or information shared with the public and he claims district and borough councillors have not been properly consulted.
Deputy Prime Minister Ms Rayner has argued the Local Government Reorganisation plans are needed and she claims Whitehall will not interfere in local decision-making and the changes will transfer more powers to regional mayors around planning and transport.
The Government also says the plans will drive growth and help to deliver services more efficiently with accountability and control.
But the Conservative Party has argued the plans will impose reorganisation from Westminster and strip councils of their powers and local consent and it fears homes will not be built in the right places with more house building in the countryside.
The District Councils Network has warned against the risk of removing localised decision-making and claims there is little evidence of potential savings and that some are concerned plans could lead to ‘mega councils’ taking away local power and representation with greater Government control.
