Local Government Reorganisation

Written by Cllrs Tessa Ward and Chris Wise and published in Local Parish newsletter on Wed 17th Jan 2007

Things are hotting up on the local government reorganisation front, with 25 January the deadline for bids for changes from two tier (three-tier in areas like ours with parish councils as well) to unitary status. Oxfordshire County Council has agreed not to support the proposal from Oxford City Council for a unitary City Council. It is a firm requirement of the White Paper that proposals must not cross current boundaries, so it has to be stressed that there are no plans for a 'greater City' in the proposals going forward. It is also a requirement that bids should indicate possible arrangements for other areas affected and the City is suggesting that a solution for the rest of Oxfordshire might be two further unitaries consisting of the Vale of White Horse District Council with South Oxfordshire District Council and Cherwell District Council with West Oxfordshire District Council.

The set-up costs for such a reorganisation are estimated at £50m, to be borne by local tax-payers (who else?). The County Council considers that whatever the inconveniences of the current two-tier system nothing can justify such expense. The small unitary authorities created in several counties by the last round of reorganisation in 1993 have not proved cost effective. Primary health care was split into five groups in Oxfordshire in 1995, then for all intents and purposes redivided into three, and last year reorganised as one. The County Council thinks that it would be madness for central government to send local government round the same costly and wasteful circuit.

The schedule is that decisions will be taken in March as to which bids will be taken forward for further work. If the Oxford City bid is one of these we can expect a full public consultation during the summer of this year with a decision in the autumn. In areas where the decision is to go ahead there will be shadow elections to the new authorities in 2008 with real elections in 2009. It is possible that the Government might decide to drop the whole thing except for a few cases where the current situation is plainly anomalous, but there is also the possibility that if the January bids are fewer or less realistic than central government hoped the criteria might be changed.