FROM COMMUNITIES.GOV WEBSITE
| Published | 6 March 2008 |
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Local Government Minister John Healey today announced decisions on the Bedfordshire unitary proposals. Having considered all the available evidence, he announced that the proposals from Bedford Borough Council and Mid and South Beds District Councils would proceed to implementation. From 1 April 2009, therefore, there will be two unitary authorities for Bedfordshire - one for Bedford and a second for the rest of the County area.
On Tuesday, two new unitary councils in East and West Cheshire received Parliamentary approval giving them the go ahead to pioneer new ways to empower local communities, to radically improve services, and to promote prosperity across the county.
The new councils will save over £16m each year in Cheshire and £18m in Bedfordshire that can be directly invested into improving frontline services or used to reduce council tax bill pressures for over 1 million people. The number of councils in these areas will be reduced from 11 to just 4.
Local Government Minister John Healey said:
"Today's announcement means that the people of Cheshire and Bedfordshire now have a clear vision for the future of local government in their area. Like the people of Cornwall, Durham, Northumberland, Shropshire and Wiltshire they can now look forward to new flagship councils that will deliver better services, stronger leadership, savings and greater involvement of the public.
"I recognise that this is inevitably a difficult time for the councils involved but I encourage all authorities going through restructuring to work constructively together to ensure that the new unitary councils can fulfil their potential."
Bedford Borough and the new Central Bedfordshire Council will become unitary authorities on 1 April 2009. Elections to these new authorities will take place in May 2009.
Ahead of these elections, preparations in Bedford will be led by an appointed 'Implementation Executive' led by Bedford's directly elected mayor and comprising Bedford Borough and Bedfordshire County councillors.
In advance of elections in Central Bedfordshire there will be a shadow council comprising of all of the existing councillors of South and Mid Beds district councils and the county councillors for the Mid and South Beds electoral divisions. Preparations in Central Bedfordshire will be led by an appointed 'shadow executive' drawn from the shadow council comprising of councillors from Mid and South Beds district councils and the County Council. As requested by the proposing authorities this shadow executive will be led by the Leader of Mid Beds District Council, and the deputy leader will be the Leader of South Beds District Council.
The Order also provides for the cancellation of district council elections due in Bedford Borough and South Beds District Council in 2008 and of parish council elections due in 2008 (pending the elections to the new councils in 2009).
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