After a lengthy period of ambiguity, we have finally had important clarity from the Government on what their programme of local government reorganisation will mean for us in Surrey. It has now been confirmed that Surrey County Council, as well as all the district and borough councils in Surrey, will be scrapped and replaced with two new unitary authorities. One covering West Surrey (Waverley, Guildford, Woking, Surrey Heath and Runnymede) and one covering East Surrey (Elmbridge, Epsom & Ewell, Mole Valley, Reigate and Banstead, and Tandridge). How this split will look geographically can be seen on the map above.
In our part of the county we have been extremely well served by Reigate & Banstead Borough Council, which for years has been the model of what a well run, fiscally responsible local authority should look like and their disbandment is truly the end of an era.
As I have written here before, while I recognise that reorganisation has the potential to offer certain benefits, there will also be downsides. Of most concern to me are potential increases in council tax due to powers the Secretary of State will have over our spending and the existing debts that will be inherited - debts that taxpayers in Reigate have absolutely nothing to do with. This is sold by Labour as being all about devolution of power, but in reality it looks like we will find national Government more involved in certain local decisions than has been the case up until now. I am also concerned about the Government’s newfound reluctance to confirm we will be getting a Surrey Mayor.
However, the Government has confirmed their ambition for the new councils to be in place and operating by April 2027, with election of councillors taking place next year in May 2026.
I am aware of some recent reporting which suggested that there had been efforts from council leaders to lobby government into delaying these elections by another year - and want to be really clear that in Surrey no such lobbying has taken place, with Leader Cllr Tim Oliver being explicit that "any decision on whether to postpone elections is ultimately up to the government, but we are absolutely not calling for a delay to Surrey’s elections in May next year”.
Finally, the Government has also announced that, as part of their wider programme of local government reorganisation, all Police and Crime Commissioners will be abolished from 2028, with their functions moving over either to elected mayors or council leaders.
We in Surrey have been extremely fortunate to benefit from the hard work of our excellent Police and Crime Commissioner Lisa Townsend and I was pleased to have the opportunity to thank her in Parliament for all she has done over the years. This was also a further chance to push the question of what will be happening in Surrey with regard to the above mentioned question of an elected mayor. This is prescient given that such a mayor would theoretically take over the PCC's responsibilities yet as of now we are left unsure as to whether Surrey will even be having one.
It’s important we get certainty over the Surrey mayoralty as soon as possible and I will continue to ask this question to Ministers for as long as the uncertainty persists.
