Local Government Reorganisation Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
Sean Woodcock
Main Page: Sean Woodcock (Labour - Banbury)Department Debates - View all Sean Woodcock's debates with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
Local Government Reorganisation
Sean Woodcock Excerpts(3 days, 10 hours ago)
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Jim McMahon
From our perspective, we cannot allow the cancellation—or postponement, I would say—of elections to be driven by any political views. We are clear that this is an administrative process and it is about whether areas satisfy criteria that meet our devolution priority programme. Where areas are already in the programme because they have mayoral elections this year, it would be reasonable of me to say that we would need to see where the benefit is of elections being cancelled, given that devolution is taking place. But as I have said, we have only just received the proposals. We are taking time to review them, and we will make sure that is done in a fair way.
Sean Woodcock (Banbury) (Lab)
I refer the House to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests as a serving district councillor for 13 years.
I broadly welcome the thrust of this document. My question is on a matter that the Minister has already referred to—areas that are serviced by a number of different local authorities, which mine is. I have a county council, two district councils, any number of parish councils, and Banbury town council—Labour-run for the first time ever. In those areas, there will be a wide variety of views as to what a local government reorganisation should look like, because different communities have different views. Can the Minister assure me that the fast-tracking and the speed of this process, which I acknowledge the reason for, will not lead to rushed proposals that do not take into account what communities actually feel and look like?