By Carmelo Garcia – Local Democracy Reporter
The pause affecting Gloucestershire’s local government shake-up should be used to look at another option which would keep a council for each of the county’s six “very different” areas.
That is the view of a former council leader after the Government announced earlier this month it has paused the local government reorganisation in the county.
Ministers are conducting a review of the decisions made in July which affect 14 areas including Gloucestershire.
They had chosen a single unitary council as the option for the county, which would see the six district authorities merged with Gloucestershire County Council.
However, the Forest of Dean District Council voted against all the options which were considered, including the single council option and two different proposals to split the county into two unitary authorities.
And its former leader Tim Gwilliam (Progressive Independents, Berry Hill) believes the current pause in the process is an opportunity to re-think the best option for the county.
This could be a combined authority for Gloucestershire, which would see a unitary council for each of the districts work strategically together for the whole county, potentially with an elected mayor, he said.
“Since the Government paused the local government reorganisation (LGR) process, I’ve felt we should use that pause to do something more than simply sit back and wait to be told what happens next,” he said.
“When we went through the original LGR process, councils were effectively given a range of options around devolution and different forms of unitary authority. Forest of Dean District Council was
prepared to say ‘none of the above’ because we didn’t believe the options being put in front of us were right for our communities.
“But what we never really got the chance to properly consider was whether there is another route altogether.
“Could Gloucestershire have a combined or strategic authority which keeps our existing district, borough and city councils, but gives the county a genuine strategic voice, with devolved powers, funding and potentially a mayor, with an executive committee made up of the leaders of each of our district, borough and city council, dealing directly with Government?
“I’ve been convinced for some time that this is something we should at least investigate. We seem to have been so focused on the argument about LGR that we haven’t given enough attention to the other half of the conversation – devolution – which could potentially bring real benefits to the communities we represent.
“The six councils across Gloucestershire are very different. That’s one of our strengths, not a weakness. We don’t necessarily need to lose that local identity and accountability in order to work together strategically on the things that affect the whole county – transport, housing, infrastructure, economic development and investment.
“I’m not saying a combined or strategic authority is definitely the answer. If the Forest of Dean District Council believes it is worth pursuing, then we would have to convince our district and borough colleagues, our MPs and ultimately the Government.
“We would need to show that it is legally deliverable, financially credible and, most importantly, that it actually works for our communities. But surely it is worth looking at.
“I would rather we properly investigated whether Gloucestershire could create a strong, community-conscious strategic authority, potentially one of the smaller authorities of its kind, than simply accept that the answer has to be the biggest possible unitary authority because that happens to be the option currently on the table.
“We can have strong Gloucestershire-wide strategic leadership while still recognising that Forest of Dean, Stroud, Gloucester, Cheltenham, Tewkesbury and the Cotswolds are different places with different priorities.
“We can have a strong Gloucestershire-wide strategic voice without having to throw away the local councils and local accountability that our communities already have.
“It might be difficult. We would have to do the work and we would have to convince people. But that shouldn’t be a reason not to look at it.
“The Government’s review gives us an opportunity to pause, look again at the options and ask a much more fundamental question: what do we actually want for the Forest of Dean and for Gloucestershire?”
A scrutiny group at the district council is expected to discuss this issue later this week. And it’s something former County Council chairman Alan Preest, who is currently a district councillor for Lydney East, supports looking into.
“The decision made by the Forest of Dean District Council needs to be respected,” he said.
“It’s got to be looked at,” he said. “We will debate it.
“We’ve got to represent our constituents and let our voice be known.
“What we’ve decided is to look at the option and get something on the table to preserve democracy in the Forest of Dean rather than be dictated to from Gloucester.”
Elsewhere in the county, former Cheltenham MP Martin Horwood, who opposed the idea of creating a “giant” single council for Gloucestershire, believes an alternative is worth considering.
The Liberal Democrat councillor, who is currently the spa town’s mayor, said if a new option emerges during the pause he believes all seven councils should take it seriously.
“I’m obviously on the record as having opposed a giant unitary council and I’ve expressed real concerns about the loss of local identity and accountability and the threat it would pose to cherished local institutions,” he said.
“So if another option emerges during this pause I think all the seven councils should take this seriously.
“A combined authority that enabled us to preserve countywide services like adult social care and education intact as well as take advantage of devolved powers from government might be a very interesting option to consider.”