Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Written Ministerial Statement of 16 December 2024 on English Devolution, HCWS316, how many areas will be in the first wave of local government restructuring.

On 16th December, I wrote to all councils in two-tier areas and to neighbouring small unitaries alongside the White Paper, to set out our plans. I intend to write soon to formally invite unitary proposals from all these councils. As set out in the White Paper we will deliver an ambitious first wave of reorganisation in this Parliament.