Do you care if your local Council cancels their/your local election in May?

[IwantToRetire]

Twenty-nine councils have requested a delay to their local elections which are due to take place in May. Of these, 21 are led by Labour, four are Conservative, two are Liberal, one is Green, and one is Independent.

It comes as Labour’s plans to scrap two-tier authorities and merge them into single unitary councils by 2028 are implemented.

The councils said a lack of resources needed to deliver local government reorganisation (LGR), and the cost of holding elections has led to the need for a delay.

The councils that have asked for a delay:

• Basildon Borough Council (Labour)
• Blackburn with Darwen Council (Labour)
• Burnley Borough Council (Burnley Independent Group)
• Cannock Chase District Council (Labour)
• Cheltenham Borough Council (Lib Dem)
• Chorley Borough Council (Labour)
• City of Lincoln Council (Labour)
• Crawley Borough Council (Labour)
• East Sussex County Council (Tory)
• Exeter City Council (Labour)
• Harlow District Council (Tory)
• Hastings Borough Council (Green)
• Hyndburn Borough Council (Labour)
• Ipswich Borough Council (Labour)
• Norwich City Council (Labour)
• Pendle Borough Council (Lib Dem)
• Peterborough City Council (Labour)
• Preston City Council (Labour)
• Redditch Borough Council (Labour)
• Rugby Borough Council (Labour)
• Stevenage Borough Council (Labour)
• Tamworth Borough Council (Labour)
• Thurrock Council (Labour)
• Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council (Labour)
• West Lancashire Borough Council (Labour)
• West Sussex County Council (Tory)
• Worthing Borough Council (Labour)

Or maybe you think local councils / councillors aren't that relevant or important?

Full article https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/local-elections-delay-councils-list-reform-b2902417.html

That on top of the costs of reorganisation which is a whole pile of money in itself. I worked in local govt during two reorganisations and it isn't something with low costs. Still never mind if the elderly and vulnerable miss out because there's no money left.

Did anyone ask the electorate if we wanted boundary changes? No. And then they were used as an excuse to cancel democratic elections......

Surely you can see the issue. Those are the actions of a tin pot dictator.

This year (or next) we will have a vote for our first mayor, we had no say in whether we wanted one or not (it's another waste of money). There is talk about merging my financially sound council with the two bordering councils that are billions in debt, again no say in it.

@CapacityBrown £billions? I doubt that. Councils avoid debt by making cuts. They have long term debts for big projects of course but that’s not the same thing. It’s also eventually cost saving to merge. If also means locals have one port of call. It was ludicrous to split up Berkshire years ago into around 5 small councils. You need scale to be fiscally effective.

"Every political party will benefit".

This is nonsense, where I am it is clear that the smaller councils (that are Lib Dem or Conservative run) are being lined up to be consumed by the larger neighbouring Labour councils. In my area Labour don't even bother standing a candidate, so it's clear Labour are looking at controlling areas where they've never had any support.

Yes billions:

"Thurrock Council in Essex faces a severe financial crisis with debt expected to rise to approximately £1.1 billion by the end of 2025/26, stemming from failed investments in solar farms and other business deals."

Our council postponed elections for a year when having them would have been pointless as we were becoming a unitary authority.

Seems a waste of money to have them if that's happening.

Yesterday I posted about do Councils have to cover the cost of local elections.

Well yes they do. Only Parish Council elections are eligible for central Government funding.

Whilst I agree that for some having an election when a new structure will be in place within a short time, this again points to hopelessly bad planning.

Local council election are on a known rotation of years unlike a GE which can in theory be called at any time.

So why when planning these new larger councils didn't they take that timetable into account.

This just seesm yet another example (and not saying the Tories would have been any better) of lack of joined up thinking.

Local elections aren't that straightforward, depends on council, some every four years, some vote a third of councillors having elections three out of four years. Just one example my local council isn't due to have elections this year, we have whole council elections every four years but not due till 2027..

I am sure some maths genius or even AI could still have worked out an optimum time.

It just isn't credible that no one saw the problem in setting the timetable for the amalgamations so close to this set of Council Elections.

They vary too much. This year is no problem where I live, for other authorities it will be. I bet you can't find a year where no authority would be affected.

There's been an argument locally for fewer councillors.
We could just pay them less.

They get £1000 for being chair of a local forum that they effectively stopped the public attending.

Well I've got the point that I dont understand why we have them.

In my area they certainly block the democratic process. When they are not banning their own Party member they are rigging the question system so that Councillors from other parties can never ask a question in public.

I almost feel we need to elect a board of directors, and get monthly accounts or something. And at the end of the year see which areas of council work still need improving.

eg in my area there is loads of stunning, new, breakthrough (non essential) service has been created, and yet year after year the housing department has some of the worst council housing.

How is this right?

No one got to have a say in the restructuring. The local councils near me want it to wipe out their debt and use neighbouring councils to fulfil their housebuilding targets, whilst not developing on their own areas.

We are getting our elections back. Great for democracy.

@CapacityBrownSome councils cannot find land to develop if it’s AONB (has a new name I’ve forgotten!) or green belt. There’s been horse trading in this for a long time now.

If you are a carer dont expect the council to have any money to support carers.

Slightly off topic but related. In a couple of papers and I think one tv news a Reform Councillor elected on the Reform mantra that when we get into power we will do away with wasted spending etc., etc.. But now this council is having to raise council tax in the next financial years because they could not find any waste. But worst of admitted they never thought there would be. It was just that Farage thought it would be a good election hook.

I despair sometimes about us the voters.

Just like Brexit which may or may not have had potential, and Reform doing a mini Maga, why are so many taken in. ie believing obvious poriies. Its like being in your teens and still believing Father Christmas is real. And then we blame the politicians when we were the idiots who took at face value what they said.