Leader o East Cambridgeshire District Council, Anna Bailey, says Cambridgeshire County Council’s Government reorganisation process should concern us all.
Local government reorganisation is no small matter. It reshapes how services are delivered, who makes major decisions, and how almost one million residents are represented.
This is why the circumstances surrounding Cambridgeshire County Council’s decision to submit its preferred Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) proposal - Option A - to the Secretary of State are so troubling.
Shockingly, councillors were asked to vote on the proposal without having seen them They received only a short officer briefing and were expected to approve a document kept entirely out of view until after the vote.
For a decision that could overhaul local government, this is not merely inadequate; it is undemocratic. National expectations for LGR proposals are clear: decisions must be based on evidence, transparency, engagement, and informed scrutiny.
None of these standards were met. The council’s approach departs from the CIPFA/IFAC principles of openness and informed decision-making; asking elected representatives to endorse an unseen proposal fails every test of good governance.
Concerns extend beyond the council chamber. External partners, including NHS bodies, were asked to endorse Option A without access to the proposal. Some statutory consultees gave approval before any detailed documents were published.
How can such endorsements carry weight? And how can NHS organisations now participate in statutory consultation without being pre-determined?
The public was also excluded. The proposal was published just one day before submission, denying residents, parish councils, and community groups any opportunity for meaningful input, despite Government requirements for transparency and local consent.
Equally problematic was the lack of cooperation across councils. While six of the seven authorities worked together on Option B, the county council advanced Option A alone (only agreeing a shared data set), despite the best efforts of East Cambs District Council to collaborate.
Taken together, these failures raise serious questions about democratic legitimacy. Cambridgeshire deserves better than a vote without the facts.
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