The Government today announced Shropshire’s five remaining district councils will be scrapped and replaced by an all-purpose county council.
The decision means that from April 2009, the county will be split into two unitary authorities – Telford & Wrekin and Shropshire County – and new council elections will be held the following month in May.
John Healy, local government minister, said the Shropshire County Council-led bid for unitary status had been approved.
The decision will be a blow to Shrewsbury and Atcham Borough Council (SABC), which has been at the forefront of legal attempts in the High Court to block the move.
It recently decided to mount a fresh challenge at the Court of Appeal in January. However, that may be thrown into disarray as it was only on the basis it was joined by another council affected, Congleton Borough Council in Cheshire, which may now reconsider its position in light of the Government’s announcement this afternoon to defer its decision on that particular proposal.
The unitary plan still has to be approved by MPs in the House of Commons and peers in the House of Lords, which means there is still scope for campaigners to bring the unitary drive to a halt – as they did controversial proposals for police force mergers, but it is unlikely the move will be scrapped.
Tory MPs Daniel Kawczynski, for Shrewsbury & Atcham, and Philip Dunne, for Ludlow, opposed the abolition of their district councils after opinion polls showed a majority of voters were against being governed from Shrewsbury’s Shirehall.
Mr Kawczynski said: “A group of councils are taking this to the wire by taking the case to the Court of Appeal on January 28.”
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10 Comments
How much will this cost us?
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I understood that the cost of reorganisation was estimated at £9.8m and that this will be a once-only cost, which can be paid for within three years of a new council being created. It should save £7.8m a year, every year, from administration and governance, and a further £2m each year from joining up direct services. £9.8m savings every year for four years amounts to £39.2m…
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About time too!! Lets hope they can now get rid of deadwood and hopeless duplication,but hang on a minute this is Local Government, so who knows….
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It won’t cost you anything if you live in Dawley.
In theory it should be cheaper because a whole layer of local govenrment has been swept away. But we all know how these things turn out in real life.
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Great News! This will stop parasites from sitting on two councils and claiming two lots of expenses.
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Bemused – You’re in Dawley (Telford & Wrekin), so zilch.
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Bemused of Dawley, I think it’s somewhere in the region of £2.74.
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Don’t worry, bemused!
It will save LOTS of money! And in order to celebrate this feat of magic, the pigs with their noses in the trough will arrange a fly past by the Three Little Piggies Aeronautical Display Team!
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Common sense would dictate an overall saving but of course, it will cost an arm and a leg, just like any other change. Any excuse!!
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The reason why many of us are opposed to Unitary is that we want local councillors from Shrewsbury accountable to local Shrewsbury people to make decisions about Shrewsbury. Under Unitary councillors from 30- 40 miles away in remote parts of Shropshire will be able to vote on matters affecting Shrewsbury. Very easy for them to vote for unpopular proposals like congestion charging for Shrewsbury as they are not accountable to local people through the ballot box!
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