Currently the delivery of local council services in Surrey is split between Surrey County Council (SCC) and 11 Borough and District Councils and is known as a two-tier model.
Borough and District councils organise your refuse collection, planning, meals at home, social housing, parks and open spaces, environmental health and licensing, whilst SCC provide adults and children’s services, highway maintenance, education, libraries and the community recycling centre.
76% of your council tax payment goes to SCC, only 10% goes to local authorities with 14% funding Surrey Police.
In the autumn, Central Government is expected to publish a White Paper which will set out plans for devolving more responsibilities to local government, creating more elected Mayors in England and more unitary authorities (ending the two-tier system).
In July, and following a news report, Surrey County Council confirmed that, ahead of the Government’s White Paper, it has been developing plans to abolish Surrey’s Borough and District councils and develop the County Council as a single Unitary Council managing all services for Surrey’s 1.2 million residents. Private conversations had been held with Government Ministers and Surrey’s 11 MPs, but no Borough or District Councils were advised of SCC’s plans to see their abolition.
Runnymede Borough Council is playing a leading role with the other district and borough councils in forming an alternative suggestion for how council services in Surrey could be delivered. This would be in a way that simplifies and improves local government, supports local democracy, uses local knowledge and allows for effective accountability and value for money. The final decision will be made by ministers in Whitehall, and Runnymede has called for a level playing field from government, where more than one proposal could be considered.
Cllr Nick Prescot, Leader of Runnymede Borough Council, has said: “This is not just a question for people interested in the local politics bubble. The way councils are run, the priorities they choose and their local accountability affects the lives of everyone living in Surrey, including people in Chertsey.
“We know some form of change is likely and there will be considerable debate; we welcome all the discussions so people can have their say. What we’re asking for from Government is a level playing field so all proposals can be assessed equally and fairly.”
SCC’S CASE FOR CHANGE
SCC’s leaders believe that creation of a single unitary authority can create economies of scale as well as cost savings in the region of £135 million (though this figure has not been tested). It also argues that a unitary council will be financially more resilient, provide improved joined up services as well as strong, accountable leadership. The Government has also hinted that new Unitary Councils may be given new freedoms and responsibilities, although the Government has also said that it is looking at these unitary authorities to be run by elected Mayors.
LOCAL & DEMOCRATIC RESPONSE
However, it would be strange if the Government’s plans to devolve power ended up by taking it further away from residents.
Professor Colin Copus of Montfort University, Local Governance Research Unit has noted that England already has the biggest units of local government anywhere in Europe, and that councillors in England already represent a much higher number of people on average than seen across Europe. He further argues that there is no consistent evidence to suggest that bigger local government is automatically better, cheaper, more efficient and more effective than smaller units, and the larger local government gets, the more damage is done to democratic criteria, such as trust in councillors and officers and loss of community cohesion.
But a single Surrey Unitary Authority could see:
– All Boroughs in Surrey swallowed up into a one large, unitary council
– A council where a Cabinet of 12 elected representatives or a single Mayor make decisions for 1.2 million people
– Decision makers with scant knowledge of the area, let alone any real concerns or interests in the impact of their decision making. For example, in Planning, where applications would be considered by a group of councillors who in all likelihood do not live locally and possibly have never visited the site.
The response of your Borough Council to the Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted how critical it is to have in place a local authority which has a strong relationship with both the community it serves and the local voluntary groups that support them. Through this in-depth knowledge and partnership working it was able to act decisively and effectively, creating a Community Hub which made over 7000 telephone calls to vulnerable and shielding residents, introduce new shopping a prescription services and rapidly expand key services such as meals at home.
WHAT’S NEXT?
SCC is continuing to develop its case for a single Unitary for Surrey. It has already spent £71,000 on initial research and financial analysis and has agreed a sum of £97,500 to support a business case to be submitted to the Government. It is also spending £5,000 per month up to the end of September for Public Affairs support during this period.
The 11 Borough’s and Districts in Surrey, none of which support a single Unitary Authority , are looking at other options for local Government in Surrey based on:
– devolving decision making to the lowest level commensurate with effective delivery
– efficient and cost-effective service delivery
– a local authority’s knowledge of people and place
– councils that are closer to, and not further from, our residents
Residents will want to have their say too. It is believed that the Government White Paper will require any local authority seeking unitary status to show that it has local support. How that will be done is not yet clear, but please ensure that you have your say.
We are sure that residents will be concerned by what is being proposed by and there has been a campaign set up to fight this proposal, #Residents Against Surrey Single Unitary. We urge you to take an active part in the and you can find out more at www.RASSU.org.uk.
#RASSU has also set up a petition which we would encourage you to sign: https://petitions.surreycc.gov.uk/unitary/
Also if you are concerned about what is being proposed then please share the details of the petition and #RASSU campaign with your family, friends, neighbours and work colleagues as well as local society’s or community groups you are part of; a critical part of the campaign’s success will be down to people like you making sure that as many people as possible fight this once in a lifetime battle to keep local decisions in the hands of local people.
This was the case for the unitary council at the time for print of Chertsey Life (21st September). This is a fast moving issue and subject to change at anytime.