Leaders react to delay in major council overhaul

Council leaders in Lincolnshire have given their reactions after plans to redraw the county's local authority map were put on hold.

An expanded City of Lincoln Council and a Lincolnshire unitary authority had been planned as replacements for the seven existing district councils and Lincolnshire County Council.

But Lincolnshire is among 14 areas where local government reorganisation (LGR) has been halted.

Some council leaders said the news was disappointing but others said it would allow more time for the proposals to be looked at.

The government said on Thursday that other major shake-ups in Derbyshire, Devon, Hertfordshire, Kent, Lancashire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Staffordshire had also been sent back for further review.

The plans had previously been paused in September after the government launched a review in light of new legal advice.

In a Commons statement, Local Government Minister Jim McMahon said the government was "withdrawing the decisions announced in July" for the nine areas.

LGR was due to be the biggest change to the local political scene for a generation, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Grantham Independent councillor Paul Stokes, deputy leader of South Kesteven District Council, said: "This latest announcement does, at least, allow more time to get LGR right for South Kesteven and Greater Lincolnshire, and will allow the original proposals and the evidence they contained to be looked at again."

But East Lindsey District Council leader Craig Leyland, a Conservative, said: "This unfortunately adds confusion from the disastrous way that LGR has been dealt with by this particular Labour government."

Reform UK's Lincolnshire County Council leader Sean Matthews added: "I'm not surprised if residents are confused about what is happening.

"But while the uncertainty continues in Whitehall, rest assured we're focused on getting on with the day job and delivering services that support our residents, our communities and our county."

Richard Wright, the Conservative leader of North Kesteven District Council, said the announcement was "disappointing".

However, City of Lincoln Council leader Naomi Tweddle, a Labour member, said: "It is encouraging that ministers now want to look again at housing growth, travel-to-work patterns, potential boundary changes and financial sustainability – all areas that our proposal was designed to address in detail."

North and North East Lincolnshire would not have been affected under the LGR shake-up.

Reconfirming local elections in May next year would go ahead based on existing council boundaries, McMahon said plans for elections to shadow councils – set to run for a year before taking over from the current authorities – would now be held in May 2028.

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