Local Government Reorganisation

Steve Race Excerpts

Thursday 29th October 2026 Commons Chamber

[Jim McMahon]

I understand that all MPs were invited to the meeting at No. 10 North about devolution, which is good news. That shows just how importantly we are taking this; it is a Government-wide priority and we are working across our different teams to ensure that it lands.

I hope the hon. Gentleman also recognises that, for Cornwall, we are working as hard as we can to recognise that different places are in different positions on devolution, but, ultimately, we want to complete the map, either through a foundation authority or through an MSA.

[Steve Race (Exeter) (Lab)]

I welcome yesterday’s announcement of a mayoral strategic authority for the geography of Devon. However, as the Minister is aware, cities that currently have district councils are the drivers of economic growth, jobs growth, house building and much else in their areas, but are currently locked out of sitting as full constituent members of mayoral strategic authorities. As we are looking at potential legislation regarding cities, can the Minister give some commitment to looking at whether cities, in advance of local government reorganisation, could sit as full constituent members of MSAs?

[Jim McMahon]

First, I thank my hon. Friend for the representations he has made on behalf of Exeter over a long period of time on this, both regarding reorganisation and devolution. He raises a very fair point, which is that we were trying to align reorganisation to be in place before devolution, but the fact is that those are now going to run to slightly different timetables. It raises a question: if this is about an economic project—which it is—the city economic drivers and the travel-to-work areas ought to have a voice in that. I cannot make commitments today, other than to say that I acknowledge the point my hon. Friend makes and will take it away.

Rough Sleeping and Good Growth Funds

Steve Race Excerpts

Monday 26th October 2026 Commons Chamber

[Florence Eshalomi]

It is always a pleasure to take a question from the hon. Gentleman, and I thank him for raising the vital work in his constituency and across Northern Ireland. This funding is new money, and an additional part of it will be agreed in the Budget process with the Treasury. He will be aware that, as part of the normal Barnett consequentials, this will apply to all the devolved Administrations, so they will also receive the additional funding.

[Steve Race (Exeter) (Lab)]

I draw the attention of the House to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests, as I am very proud patron of Exeter’s local homelessness charity, St Petrock’s. I was very grateful for the opportunity to join the Minister this morning at the No. 10 rough sleeping summit to set out Exeter’s experiences, as we have one of the highest and increasing levels of rough sleeping in the country. The Prime Minister made the point that we need to treat people as people, not as numbers. That is absolutely the way of local charities, like CoLab and St Petrock’s, which know these people individually, and they should lead the way. Does the Minister agree that statutory services, like the NHS and the Prison Service, really need to step up and come on this journey with us, too?

[Florence Eshalomi]

It is good to see that many local areas are sharing their experience of dealing with this matter. We have to be honest: a person sleeping rough costs the taxpayer on average about £14,000 a year in public service use, so it is really important that we are working across different Departments. This is not just an issue for MHCLG. There has to be a whole-of-Government approach, and I am really pleased that we have a strong interministerial group to address this.

Local Government Reorganisation

Steve Race Excerpts

Monday 7th September 2026 Commons Chamber

[Angela Rayner]

I have said that the review is on and the elections are on, and I am ready to get on with it. I am sure that the right hon. Member will work with me to make sure we get it sorted—and it is on.

[Steve Race (Exeter) (Lab)]

One of the policy goals of LGR is to encourage economically important cities like Exeter to better play their role in generating jobs, growth, housing and better place-based services. In our case, devolution does not work if Exeter is not in the strategic authority, as it is one of the two big economic drivers of the region. Can the Secretary of State confirm that this remains the case, and that after the rapid review, should it have a positive outcome, we can move forward with both LGR and devolution in Devon quickly?

[Angela Rayner]

I reassure my hon. Friend that I have said that this review should be rapid, and that we should get on as quickly as possible with engagement, but also that the timetable for devolution should not be affected. We need to make sure that we make the right decisions on local government reform, but we want to take forward devolution at pace.

Local Government Reorganisation

Steve Race Excerpts

Thursday 16th July 2026 Commons Chamber

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Caroline Nokes)]

Order. Can I make another exhortation for short questions, please?

[Steve Race (Exeter) (Lab)]

I welcome the four-unitary model for Devon, as I think it best serves the interests of everyone across Devon. This has been a long time in the making for Exeter. It has been increasingly unsustainable to retain Exeter—an economic driver of the region—as a district council. Does the Minister agree that this proposal will allow Exeter to better drive sustainable economic growth, jobs and opportunity, and will mean that decision making is better represented by the people in my city?

[Steve Reed]

I have visited Exeter and know what a great champion my hon. Friend is for his constituents, who live in what is surely one of the most beautiful cities in the country. It has such growth potential, and this proposal will benefit the people living there. The proposal that we have accepted for Devon will allow Exeter to achieve its true potential, as part of a Devon that can also achieve its wider potential. We cannot allow the south-west to continue to be one of the poorest regions of the country. People living there deserve the same opportunities as people who live in wealthier parts of the country.

Local Government Reorganisation

Steve Race Excerpts

Monday 13th July 2026 Commons Chamber

[Alison McGovern]

I am now aware of the opinion poll because the right hon. Member mentioned it to me a few moments ago, for which I am grateful. He has mentioned a meeting, which I certainly did not attend. I am sure that if he forwards the details, the Department will be able to look at them, but I certainly was not present at any such meeting.

[Steve Race (Exeter) (Lab)]

Two-tier government may have worked in the past, but it is not working today, and it is certainly not working for cities like Exeter. We have a two-tier waste authority, and Devon county council is cutting homelessness funding while we are experiencing an acute homelessness issue in Exeter itself; I could mention many other areas as well. Will the Minister confirm that we will be moving ahead with unitary local government across the country, including Devon and Exeter—I realise that she will not be able to comment on the specifics of any proposal—in order to ensure that cities like Exeter can grow economically, and that local government does serve local people?

[Alison McGovern]

As I mentioned earlier, there is evidence from the Milburn review of child poverty that fragmented services are very bad for vulnerable people living in poverty. There are other examples as well, and I have heard from my hon. Friend about his worries for his city. Dealing with that is the real purpose behind these reforms.

Local Government Reorganisation

Steve Race Excerpts

Thursday 26th March 2026 Commons Chamber

[Steve Race (Exeter) (Lab)]

I welcome the Government’s move to reorganisation, which will benefit cities such as Exeter. Yesterday, the Minister may have seen official communications from Devon county council that said that reorganisation will

“put the lives of vulnerable people at risk”.

Notwithstanding the fact that, according to Ofsted, children’s services and SEND services in Devon have been failing for many years, does the Minister agree that such comments are irresponsible and not true? Should reorganisation happen in Devon—I hope that it will—will it not be up to authorities to ensure that services are safely and effectively moved to new structures?

[Alison McGovern]

I agree wholeheartedly with my hon. Friend. I have been working closely with the Under-Secretary of State for Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Whitehaven and Workington (Josh MacAlister), and other Ministers in the Department for Education to improve our children’s services. We will ensure that we do that through this reorganisation process. Nothing matters more than the fortunes of our kids, and it is up to us in central Government and local government to work together to deliver good childhoods for all of them.

Local Government Reorganisation

Steve Race Excerpts

Monday 23rd February 2026 Commons Chamber

[Steve Reed]

The hon. Gentleman will be aware that I am unable to discuss the detail of the legal advice, although he will know the decision that we took after considering that legal advice. His earlier point is absolutely right; we should all be motivated by the interests of local people. It is in the interests of local people that we should get rid of the confusion of having two councils in the same area, so that people know which council to contact, and that we should eliminate the wasteful duplication of jobs such as chief executives, finance directors and so on, so that we can spend the savings on improving the local services that make a difference to local people and the communities that they care about so much.

[Steve Race (Exeter) (Lab)]

The reorganisation of local government is very welcome in Exeter, as we are being held back by our county council on numerous fronts. Can the Secretary of State confirm that reorganisation and devolution will enable cities such as Exeter to pull away with our economic development, housing and strategic planning, and will benefit local residents across the city?

[Steve Reed]

I completely agree with what my hon. Friend says. It is very important that we move ahead with local government reorganisation, not just because of the savings it generates, which can be ploughed into frontline services, but because of the boost it can give to local economies. That puts more money into people’s pockets, provides more jobs in the locality and helps those communities to thrive.

Commonhold and Leasehold Reform

Steve Race Excerpts

Tuesday 27th January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Matthew Pennycook]

I always thank the hon. Member for his constructive contributions. As he knows, England and Wales can learn lots from Northern Ireland, but, as ever—particularly in relation to our reforms to housing and planning, as well as to leasehold—there are many things that Northern Ireland can learn from our reforms. I can give him the undertaking that the devolved Administrations will be kept up to date with what we are doing.

[Steve Race (Exeter) (Lab)]

I am delighted that we are moving forward on capping ground rents and abolishing the feudal leasehold system. I have been supporting hundreds of residents across Exeter in fighting terrible practices by management companies, and I know that these measures will put money back into people’s pockets. Does the Minister agree that the age of the exploitative leasehold system—and the ripping off of residents—is finally over, and that it is thanks to a Labour Government?

[Matthew Pennycook]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. We are calling time on the abusive practices of unscrupulous property agents and on the leasehold system as a whole. That is down to a Labour Government finishing the job that the previous Government were unable to complete.

Local Government Reorganisation

Steve Race Excerpts

Thursday 22nd January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Steve Reed]

As the right hon. Gentleman will be aware, his party fiddled funding to councils so that areas voting Labour were less likely to get funded. He does not have to take my word for it: the former Prime Minister was captured on video standing in a garden in Tunbridge Wells and boasting about how he was ripping money away from poorer communities to give it to wealthier communities. Perhaps it has something to do with that.

[Steve Race (Exeter) (Lab)]

As the Secretary of State knows, I am a very strong supporter of local government reform, especially for cities such as Exeter. It is not just about waste; it is about being held back within a two-tier system. It is also worth pointing out that all parties represented on Exeter city council are in favour of unitary status for Exeter. Can the Secretary of State confirm that we are moving full speed ahead with local government reform and that unitary status for places like Exeter will improve services, reduce waste and deliver the sustainable jobs and growth in living standards that we desperately want in our city?

[Steve Reed]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. We are proceeding with this reorganisation in order to eliminate duplication and the cost of that waste, so that the money can be spent on frontline services instead. I have asked councils for their views on whether postponement would speed up their ability to carry out the reorganisation and get the new, streamlined councils off the ground, and I have responded to their representations.

Local Government Reorganisation

Steve Race Excerpts

Thursday 18th December 2025 Commons Chamber

[Alison McGovern]

I thank the hon. Lady for her questions. I will not respond again to those to which I have already responded. As I mentioned, the majority of the English electorate will get to vote in the elections in 2026 that are not affected by reorganisation. There are other elections going on and, as I said, this does not apply to the majority of councils undergoing reorganisation, either.

A number of councils have raised capacity issues, demand on limited resources and the challenge of getting the transition process right. They have shared details with us, which is why we are writing to them to ask their view formally. We will get on with this process as quickly as we can.

[Steve Race (Exeter) (Lab)]

I thank the Minister not just for her statement, but for moving at pace with the local government reorganisation programme. Contrary to what we heard from the shadow Minister, for whom I have great respect, we want local government reorganisation in Exeter and across Devon. I have lost count over the past 18 months of the list of places and topics for which two-tier government is simply not working for a diverse and dynamic city such as Exeter. I will not list them today, Madam Deputy Speaker, but does the Minister agree that streamlining councils and allowing cities such as Exeter to take control of their own economy, destiny and services will deliver real benefits—not just for the economy and for services, but for local people?