Labour will 'abolish swathe of district councils' under shake-up

Labour is drawing up plans to abolish swathes of district councils as part of the biggest overhaul of local government in more than 50 years, it has emerged.

Essex, Kent, Surrey, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk could all see a shake-up as ministers look to reform two-tier local government structures.

There are currently 21 county councils across England that have 164 district councils sitting underneath them.

But, according to The Times, ministers believe the two-tier structures are inefficient and are looking to merge district councils into larger unitary authorities.

District councils have been blamed for building up cash reserves rather than spending taxpayers' cash on improving local services, the newspaper reported.

They are also viewed as blockers to economic growth by regularly rejecting local housebuilding.

A 2020 study by the County Councils Network found that merging district and country councils into single authorities could save nearly £3billion over five years.

There is currently a financial crisis within local government, with many town halls feared to be teetering on the brink of bankruptcy.

Labour is believed to have identified 10 areas of the country that are open to reform  and will form the first wave of council reorganisation.

This will reportedly replace two-tier local government structures - introduced in 1974 - with larger unitary authorities with populations of at least 500,000 people.

A white paper on English devolution is expected to be published in the coming weeks.

The move is being led by local government minister Jim McMahon and is said to have the support of Sir Keir Starmer's chief of staff Morgan McSweeney.

Sam Chapman-Allen, chairman of the District Councils' Network, said it was 'hard to see' how 'vast new unitary councils… far from local communities' would be 'genuinely local and rooted in real places'.

He added: 'Local democratic accountability depends on residents retaining a demonstrably close link to the councillors who represent them.

'Attempts at structural change in recent years suggest that creating large councils is no panacea for resolving the many challenges local government faces.'

A spokesman for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said: 'No decisions have been taken on council reorganisation.

'Our priority is to focus on the transfer of power from Westminster and work with councils to create structures that make sense for their local areas and work effectively for local people.

'We will set out further details in the upcoming English devolution white paper.'