16 January 2025The government has published an update on its plans for a joint programme of devolution and local government reorganisation. The update contains a letter written by the Minister of State for Local Government and English Devolution Jim McMahon, issued on 16 December 2024 following the publication of the English Devolution White Paper to all leaders of two-tier councils and neighbouring unitary authorities.
The letter acknowledges that the timing of upcoming May 2025 elections may affect councils’ planning for devolution, particularly alongside reorganisation, and states that to help manage demands, the government would consider requests to postpone local elections where it is ‘clear that postponement will help the area to deliver both reorganisation and devolution to the most ambitious timeframe.’
The update also contains a list of county and unitary councils with requests that involve postponing their election from 2025 to 2026.
