Agenda item

The recommendation from the Cabinet meeting to be held on 19^th March 2025 at 10.00am will follow.

A copy of the Cabinet Report is attached.

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Councillor Beales sought Council’s permission to speak for more than the 5 minutes permitted. Council agreed to the request. 

Councillor Beales gave an update on the process undertaken since the English Devolution White paper was published on the 16 December 2024.   Norfolk and Suffolk were accepted onto the Devolution Priority Programme with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) writing to all Norfolk Leaders on 5 February 2025, inviting them to develop proposal for LGR in Norfolk. The letter set out the criteria and what was expected to be included in the Interim Plan for LGR in their area with the interim plan needing to be submitted by 21 March 2025. External consultants Deloitte were appointed to work alongside the officer working group and conduct a high-level options appraisal for LGR in Norfolk against the criteria set by the Government and to use the data collected to evaluate unitary options, whilst also considering the unique identity of Norfolk

As a result of this work an Interim Plan for Local Government Reorganisation in Norfolk had been developed.

Councillor Beales further explained the work, negotiations and discussion which had taken place between the authorities to reach the point where the proposal could come forward for debate and decision by this council.  To date 6 out of the 8 Norfolk Leaders were supporting the proposal set out in the paper in order to present a strong and unified message to MHCLG on the wishes for the future of local government in Norfolk.

He further drew attention to the fact that he had tried to ensure that all Councillors in the authority were given the chance to hear the proposals and comment on them before coming to the full Council meeting to make a decision on the preferred way forward.  He commended the work of all the Council Leaders and Officers involved in the process which was limited to such a short time scale.

Councillor Ring seconded the proposal and reserved the right to speak.

Councillor Long spoke on the proposal lamenting the loss of a 2 tier system and expressing disappointment that all district leaders weren’t in agreement.  He drew attention to the financial position put forward by the County Council, drew attention to high costs of services such as child social services which he felt there needed to be suitable resources available to fund.  He informed Council that the Conservative Group would have a free vote on the matter.

Councillor Bone spoke in support of the proposal in the report for a three council option and drew attention to the fact devolution was in the Labour manifesto.  He thanked the Leader and officers for the work put into the report to date.

Councillor Kemp spoke against local government review in Norfolk generally, but disagreeing with a 1 unitary as too big, and 3 Councils being the preferred of the options available.

Councillor Dark spoke in favour of a single unitary authority drawing attention to the County Council’s comments on potential savings with a single unitary.

Council debated the options available and generally spoke in favour of the recommendations in the report for a 3 council unitary for Norfolk with manageable sized areas.  The consensus of those speaking was that the proposal needed to work for the best for the residents of Norfolk.  The views expressed generally were that the size of a single unitary Norfolk was too large and that 3 gave the 2 rural areas and the wider urban area of Norwich.  Members also thanked the Leader and the Officers for the work carried out to date.

Councillor Ring as seconder also spoke in support of the recommended 3 authority option.  He drew attention to the fact that only the Cabinet at the County Council had been given the opportunity to vote on the preferred option for the County Council. He commented that he considered that the democratic vote was important in this process. 

In summing up, Councillor Beales drew attention to the Joint Panels meeting held on 18 March which had been well attended with useful questions posed, many of which couldn’t be answered at this stage.  He also drew attention to the fact that the debt currently held by the county council was not new debt but that the finances were in place to cover them through council tax.  He reminded members that in 2016 there was money on the table for devolution which was not available at the moment but some may be further down the line.  He considered that the option for a 3 council Norfolk was the best for the residents of Norfolk. 

On being put to the vote the following recommendation was approved with 1 abstention.

RESOLVED:1)       That the content of the Interim Plan for Local Government Re-organisation in Norfolk report (Appendix B to the report) be noted, alongside the report’s conclusion that the three unitary model option scored best overall against the government criteria and is therefore the preferred option for Norfolk.

2)             That the three unitary model for LGR be endorsed as this Council’s preferred option for submission to MHCLG.

3)             That delegated authority be granted to the Chief Executive, in consultation with the Leader to finalise and submit the Interim Plan to MHCLG on 21^st March 2025 based on the endorsement of recommendation 2 above.

4)             That following the submission of the Interim Plan and subject to the feedback received from MHCLG, the council, continue to work with the Norfolk Districts to conduct resident and stakeholder engagement on the LGR proposals for Norfolk to inform the full business case.

5)             To delegate authority to the Chief Executive, in consultation with the Leader, for the development of the full business case for LGR in Norfolk to be returned to full Council for approval prior to submission.

Reason for Decision

To respond to the Governments request that the council work with other local authorities in Norfolk to submit proposals for Local Government Reform in Norfolk by 21 March 2025.