COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL
GOVERNMENT News Release (141) issued by The Government News Network
on 25 July 2007
Local Government
Minister John Healey has today announced that nine proposals for
unitary status will now go ahead towards implementation with the
intention that all new authorities are fully up and running in 2009.
Councils currently estimate that the nine new unitary authorities
could save over £150 million per year which can be used to
directly improve front line services or to reduce council tax bills.
The proposals open the door to creating flagship councils that
will lead the way on promoting prosperity, empowering citizens and
communities, and improving public services for the 3.5 million
people in the areas going forward. The number of councils in these
areas will be reduced from forty-six to eleven.
The full list of successful authorities that will proceed,
subject to the enactment of the Local Government and Public
Involvement in Health (LGPIH) Bill, is as follows:
Councils Submitting Proposals Proposed unitary structure
Bedford Borough Council Bedford Unitary
Chester City Council 2 Unitary Cheshire
Cornwall County Council County Unitary
Durham County Council County Unitary
Exeter City Council Exeter Unitary
Ipswich Borough Council Ipswich Unitary
Northumberland County Council County Unitary
Shropshire County Council County Unitary
Wiltshire County Council County Unitary
Since the end of the 12 week stakeholder consultation, all nine
proposals proceeding to implementation have been rigorously
assessed against the published criteria of affordability, stronger
leadership, improved local services, empowered communities and a
broad cross section of support.
Local Government Minister John Healey said:
"We have rigorously assessed bids from councils against
published criteria. They have to prove their proposals can improve
services for local people and bring potential savings for council
tax payers. All of the nine councils have shown they want to build
on the improvements we have seen in local government services over
the past 10 years - further improving the services they offer to
their communities by making them more responsive, effective and efficient.
"I have been impressed with the plans laid out in their
proposals, which show potential for better value for money and
improved services.
"It will now be for these new unitary authorities to ensure
they deliver these plans - empowering local people and
communities, further improving local services, realising greater
efficiencies and delivering improved economic prosperity for their areas."
Based on the detailed assessment the Government has asked four
councils
- Bedford Borough Council, Chester City Council,
Exeter City Council, and Ipswich Borough Council - to undertake
further work and submit additional information to demonstrate
conclusively the financial viability of their proposals. Final
decisions on all proposals will be taken, once the LGPIH Bill is enacted.
In addition, although Norwich City Council's proposal based
on the city's current boundaries did not meet the strict
criteria there is a strong case for a unitary authority. We have
decided to ask the Boundary Committee to advise, when they are
able to use their new powers in the LGPIH Bill once enacted,
whether an alternative unitary proposal for Norwich based on
revised council boundaries could deliver the required improvements.
To ensure smooth implementation the Department has established a
group of experts, including the LGA, local government trade unions
and employers, and other professional bodies to advise on the
practical arrangements, and the Government will work closely with
the authorities going forward.
John Healey also announced that Government will also continue to
work with the five two-tier pathfinder proposals and councils not
moving to unitary status to work together on promoting prosperity,
empowering citizens and communities, and improving service delivery.
John Healey added:
"The five pathfinder areas will pioneer new ways of working
and demonstrate for all councils in remaining two-tier areas how
deliver better services and greater efficiency gains can be achieved."
Notes to Editors:
1. There proposals that will not proceed are:
Councils Submitting Proposals Proposed unitary structure
Bedfordshire County Council County Unitary
Cheshire County Council County Unitary
Cumbria Council County Unitary
Northumberland Districts 2 unitary Northumberland
North Yorkshire County Council County Unitary
Somerset County Council County Unitary
2. The detailed decision letters sent to each authority can be
viewed at http://www.communities.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1509144
3. If Bedford Borough Council's proposals are implemented
other authorities in Bedfordshire including Bedfordshire County
Council will be invited to propose a unitary solution that meets
the five criteria for the remaining area of Bedfordshire.
4. Plans for some areas to move to unitary status were announced
as part of the devolutionary local government white paper, Strong
and Prosperous Communities and October 2006.
5. The nine proposals are subject to enactment of the necessary
legislative provisions in the Local Government and Public
Involvement in Health Bill, which passed in the House of Commons
on 22 May and is currently being considered in the House of Lords.
They must also take account of the community empowerment measures
set out in the Constitutional Green Paper.
6. Last month the Government consulted on proposals to prioritise
the proposals in the event that more met the criteria than could
be afforded under sound fiscal rules. Now that the detailed
assessment has been carried out the Government has concluded that
no prioritisation will be necessary.
7. The five pathfinder proposals are from councils in
Buckinghamshire, Dorset, Hertfordshire, Lincolnshire, and Suffolk.
8. The group of experts includes representatives from the:
* Local Government Association (LGA)
* Association of County
Chief Executives (ACCE)
* Society of Local Authority Chief
Executives (SOLACE)
* Trade Union Congress (TUC)
*
Transport and General Workers Union (TGWU)
* UNISON
*
GMB
* UCATT
* AMICUS
* Association of Local Authority
Chief Executives (ALACE)
* Public Sector People Managers'
Association (PPMA)
* Audit Commission
* Chartered
Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA)
* The
Society of County Treasurers
* The Society of District Council
Treasurers
* Association of Council Secretaries and Solicitors
(ACSeS)
* Local Government Employers
* National
Association of Regional Employers (NARE)
The next group meeting will be held on Friday 27 July.
Its terms of reference are to consider practical arrangements for
implementing structural change, including arrangements for
finance, staffing, continuity of functions and assets and
liabilities, having regard to
* the need
- to minimise any risk of disruption to the
exercise of an authority's functions;
- to reflect local
flexibility wherever possible;
- not to create barriers to
transformational change and service re-engineering; and
- to
secure value for money for the local and national taxpayer;
and
* the implications of change for staff, service users, and
other partners and stakeholders.
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News Releases: http://www.communities.gov.uk