A SINGLE council for the whole of south Warwickshire looks set to replace Warwick District Council.
Councillors have agreed to a two unitary authority model as WDC’s preferred option for Local Government Reorganisation.
The options considered included a single unitary authority for Warwickshire based on the current county boundary and a two unitary model dividing the county into north and south Warwickshire.
All of Warwickshire’s district and borough councils along with Warwickshire County Council will be affected by the plans set out in the government’s English Devolution White Paper to devolve power from Westminster to local areas and reform local government.
Following a detailed discussion, WDC agreed to proceed with the two unitary model – grouping North Warwickshire, Nuneaton and Bedworth, and Rugby in the north, and Stratford and Warwick in the south – as the basis for public consultation.
Coun Ian Davison said he was very concerned about transitional issues which ever option was chosen and he also felt that government should really be prioritising the huge and escalating costs of social care and education that would have a far bigger gain.
He continued that he was in favour of a two unitary authority on two grounds – firstly that larger bureaucratic organisations tended to be more distant from residents and secondly, social care was more expensive per person in larger unitary authorities.
Several councillors commented that Warwickshire as a whole didn’t have a strong sense of place and the north and the south of the county had very different characters and needs, so therefore were in favour of a two unitary model.
Coun Johnathon Chilvers however said they shouldn’t have to be putting this much energy into changing the heading at the top of the council’s notepaper, taking away from focussing on services.
He added the council would inevitably make a decision this evening but felt it should be stated quite clearly the level of damage that was being done to local government by the way central government had chosen to approach this.
Over in neighbouring Stratford district, councillors also voted for a two unitary authority model.
WDC has until November to submit its final formal submission to government.
