Written questions by McMurdock.

Communities and Local Government, with refence to his Department's oral statement of 18 December 2025 on Local Government Reorganisation, Official Report col 1130, what analysis his Department has carried out regarding the potential savings to Greater Essex residents from merging local councils.

Councils were invited to submit proposals for unitary local government and for those proposals to include estimated costs and benefits. Exact costs and savings will vary, depending on proposals received and which proposals are implemented. The Government has consulted on four proposals from councils in Essex, Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock. Decisions on the most appropriate option for each area will be judgements in the round, having regard to the guidance and the available evidence, including the responses to the consultation. As such, we will analyse and assess proposals against the criteria we have set out, which includes sustainability and withstanding financial shocks.

Communities and Local Government, with refence to his Department's oral statement of 18 December 2025 on Local Government Reorganisation, Official Report col 1130, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues regarding cancelling 2026’s council elections.

On 18 December councils undergoing local government reorganisation were invited to set out their views on the postponement of their local election and if they consider this could release essential capacity to deliver local government reorganisation. As is standard for decisions of this nature, the Secretary of State had discussions with relevant colleagues in Government. We will consider all the representations we receive, including any from the Electoral Commission. Nine local elections in 2025 were postponed and the rationale for that decision has been set out to the House, including in the Explanatory Memorandum that accompanies the Order that changed the year of elections.

Communities and Local Government, with refence to his Department's oral statement of 18 December 2025 on Local Government Reorganisation, Official Report col 1130, which councils have expressed anxiety about their capacity to deliver a transition to new councils.

Local government reorganisation is complex and we have listened to councils telling us about the constraints they are operating within, and the work that reorganisation introduces on top of existing challenges. On 18 December I invited councils undergoing local government reorganisation with local elections in May 2026 to set out their views on the postponement of their local election and if they consider this could release essential capacity to deliver local government reorganisation. Councils are in the best position to judge the impact of potential postponements on their area and in the spirit of devolution and trusting local leaders, this government will listen to them. They have been asked to make any request for a postponement explicit, as this will of course be relevant in deciding whether postponement is necessary for a particular council. If a Council does not make an explicit request or provide clear views and evidence in respect of their judgment on capacity, then the Secretary of State will take that into account and consider relevant evidence – but it will clearly make the decision making process more difficult and the Secretary of State will be less likely to decide to delay, given the locally-led approach taken. The Secretary of State is only minded to make an Order to postpone elections for one year for those councils who raise capacity concerns. It is ultimately up to councils how or whether they respond. We have been transparent about this process and will consider all the representations we receive. The Secretary of State will consider the position of each council individually, weighing up the evidence received. The deadline for responses is 15 January and after this the Secretary of State will decide whether to make an Order to change the year of council elections and the House will be updated.

Communities and Local Government, what representations he has received from Southend Council regarding the preferred restructuring of Essex councils.

Basildon Borough Council, Castle Point Council, Essex County Council, Rochford Council, Southend-on-Sea Council and Thurrock Council, together with 9 other councils in Essex, submitted four proposals for unitary local government in Essex, Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock.Southend-on-Sea City Council, Chelmsford City Council, Basildon Borough Council, Brentwood Borough Council, Castle Point Borough Council, Colchester City Council, Harlow District Council, Maldon District Council, Tendring District Council and Uttlesford District Council proposed 5 unitary councils.Essex County Council, Braintree District Council and Epping Forest District Council proposed 3 unitary councils.Rochford District Council proposed 4 unitary councils.Thurrock Council proposed a different 4 unitary councils.The 15 principal councils collectively wrote to the department to state that whilst there was no consensus on one proposal, there was collective agreement that regardless of the final decision, all partners are committed to working together to ensure that whichever model is selected is delivered in the best possible way.The 15 principal councils in the area were invited to respond to the statutory consultation on the four proposals, which closed on 11 January. The House will be updated in due course on the outcome of the consultation.

Communities and Local Government, with refence to his Department's oral statement of 18 December 2025 on Local Government Reorganisation, Official Report col 1130, whether he expects election officials to be made redundant if elections are cancelled in May 2026.

The majority of 2026 council elections are unaffected by local government reorganisation and are going ahead. While staffing decisions are for individual councils who employ electoral services staff, if the Government decides to postpone any elections it does not expect election officials to be made redundant as a result. These officials have responsibilities beyond running elections, including maintaining the electoral register and supporting other council related duties throughout the year.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's oral statement of 18 December 2025 on Local Government Reorganisation, whether borough and district councils will be permitted to provide opinions on the cancellation of elections for upper-tier authorities.

Local government reorganisation is complex and we have listened to councils telling us about the constraints they are operating within, and the work that reorganisation introduces on top of existing challenges. On 18 December I invited councils undergoing local government reorganisation with local elections in May 2026 to set out their views on the postponement of their local election and if they consider this could release essential capacity to deliver local government reorganisation. Councils are in the best position to judge the impact of potential postponements on their area and in the spirit of devolution and trusting local leaders, this government will listen to them. They have been asked to make any request for a postponement explicit, as this will of course be relevant in deciding whether postponement is necessary for a particular council. If a Council does not make an explicit request or provide clear views and evidence in respect of their judgment on capacity, then the Secretary of State will take that into account and consider relevant evidence – but it will clearly make the decision making process more difficult and the Secretary of State will be less likely to decide to delay, given the locally-led approach taken. The Secretary of State is only minded to make an Order to postpone elections for one year for those councils who raise capacity concerns. It is ultimately up to councils how or whether they respond. We have been transparent about this process and will consider all the representations we receive. The Secretary of State will consider the position of each council individually, weighing up the evidence received. The deadline for responses is 15 January and after this the Secretary of State will decide whether to make an Order to change the year of council elections and the House will be updated.

Communities and Local Government, with refence to his Department's oral statement of 18 December 2025 on Local Government Reorganisation, Official Report col 1130, at what time and date did he make the decision to ask local councils if they wanted to cancel their 2026 local elections.

On 18 December councils undergoing local government reorganisation were invited to set out their views on the postponement of their local election and if they consider this could release essential capacity to deliver local government reorganisation. As is standard for decisions of this nature, the Secretary of State had discussions with relevant colleagues in Government. We will consider all the representations we receive, including any from the Electoral Commission. Nine local elections in 2025 were postponed and the rationale for that decision has been set out to the House, including in the Explanatory Memorandum that accompanies the Order that changed the year of elections.

Communities and Local Government, what representations he has received from Basildon Council regarding the preferred restructuring of Essex councils.

Basildon Borough Council, Castle Point Council, Essex County Council, Rochford Council, Southend-on-Sea Council and Thurrock Council, together with 9 other councils in Essex, submitted four proposals for unitary local government in Essex, Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock.Southend-on-Sea City Council, Chelmsford City Council, Basildon Borough Council, Brentwood Borough Council, Castle Point Borough Council, Colchester City Council, Harlow District Council, Maldon District Council, Tendring District Council and Uttlesford District Council proposed 5 unitary councils.Essex County Council, Braintree District Council and Epping Forest District Council proposed 3 unitary councils.Rochford District Council proposed 4 unitary councils.Thurrock Council proposed a different 4 unitary councils.The 15 principal councils collectively wrote to the department to state that whilst there was no consensus on one proposal, there was collective agreement that regardless of the final decision, all partners are committed to working together to ensure that whichever model is selected is delivered in the best possible way.The 15 principal councils in the area were invited to respond to the statutory consultation on the four proposals, which closed on 11 January. The House will be updated in due course on the outcome of the consultation.

Communities and Local Government, what representations he has received from Thurrock Council regarding the preferred restructuring of Essex councils.

Basildon Borough Council, Castle Point Council, Essex County Council, Rochford Council, Southend-on-Sea Council and Thurrock Council, together with 9 other councils in Essex, submitted four proposals for unitary local government in Essex, Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock.Southend-on-Sea City Council, Chelmsford City Council, Basildon Borough Council, Brentwood Borough Council, Castle Point Borough Council, Colchester City Council, Harlow District Council, Maldon District Council, Tendring District Council and Uttlesford District Council proposed 5 unitary councils.Essex County Council, Braintree District Council and Epping Forest District Council proposed 3 unitary councils.Rochford District Council proposed 4 unitary councils.Thurrock Council proposed a different 4 unitary councils.The 15 principal councils collectively wrote to the department to state that whilst there was no consensus on one proposal, there was collective agreement that regardless of the final decision, all partners are committed to working together to ensure that whichever model is selected is delivered in the best possible way.The 15 principal councils in the area were invited to respond to the statutory consultation on the four proposals, which closed on 11 January. The House will be updated in due course on the outcome of the consultation.

Communities and Local Government, with refence to his Department's oral statement of 18 December 2025 on Local Government Reorganisation, Official Report col 1130, what safeguards his Department has in place to ensure that councils cannot request election cancellations due to perceived partisan benefit.

Local government reorganisation is complex and we have listened to councils telling us about the constraints they are operating within, and the work that reorganisation introduces on top of existing challenges. On 18 December I invited councils undergoing local government reorganisation with local elections in May 2026 to set out their views on the postponement of their local election and if they consider this could release essential capacity to deliver local government reorganisation. Councils are in the best position to judge the impact of potential postponements on their area and in the spirit of devolution and trusting local leaders, this government will listen to them. They have been asked to make any request for a postponement explicit, as this will of course be relevant in deciding whether postponement is necessary for a particular council. If a Council does not make an explicit request or provide clear views and evidence in respect of their judgment on capacity, then the Secretary of State will take that into account and consider relevant evidence – but it will clearly make the decision making process more difficult and the Secretary of State will be less likely to decide to delay, given the locally-led approach taken. The Secretary of State is only minded to make an Order to postpone elections for one year for those councils who raise capacity concerns. It is ultimately up to councils how or whether they respond. We have been transparent about this process and will consider all the representations we receive. The Secretary of State will consider the position of each council individually, weighing up the evidence received. The deadline for responses is 15 January and after this the Secretary of State will decide whether to make an Order to change the year of council elections and the House will be updated.

Communities and Local Government, with refence to his Department's oral statement of 18 December 2025 on Local Government Reorganisation, Official Report col 1130, what communications he has received from Basildon Council regarding the cancellation of the May 2026 (a) local elections and (b) mayoral election.

On 18 December 2025 I invited Basildon Borough Council, Essex County Council and Thurrock Council and other councils undergoing local government reorganisation to set out their views on the postponement of their local election and if they consider this could release essential capacity to deliver local government reorganisation. We have been transparent about this process and will consider all the representations we receive, including any from members of the public. The deadline for responses is 15 January and after this the Secretary of State will decide whether to make an Order to change the year of council elections and the House will be updated. Minister Fahnbulleh also announced on 5 December 2025 that we are minded to hold the inaugural mayoral elections in Greater Essex in May 2028 so that the reorganisation process is complete before a Mayor is elected for Greater Essex. This is because I believe devolution works best when it is built on strong foundations so, moving forward, we want to aim for strong unitary structures being in place before areas access mayoral devolution. To ensure the benefits of devolution are not delayed, we will still establish the Greater Essex Mayoral Strategic Authority and lay the necessary statutory instrument to do so as soon as possible in 2026, subject to council consent. My colleague Miatta Fahnbulleh MP, the Minister for Devolution, Faith and Communities, spoke to leaders in Greater Essex following the announcement of funding and next steps for the devolution agreements that are being developed through the Devolution Priority Programme. The Department has continued to engage closely with them since the announcement, jointly discussing the benefits devolution will bring to these areas.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's oral statement of 18 December 2025 on Local Government Reorganisation, whether Essex County Council will be permitted to express an opinion on the cancellation of lower tier authorities such as Basildon.

Local government reorganisation is complex and we have listened to councils telling us about the constraints they are operating within, and the work that reorganisation introduces on top of existing challenges. On 18 December I invited councils undergoing local government reorganisation with local elections in May 2026 to set out their views on the postponement of their local election and if they consider this could release essential capacity to deliver local government reorganisation. Councils are in the best position to judge the impact of potential postponements on their area and in the spirit of devolution and trusting local leaders, this government will listen to them. They have been asked to make any request for a postponement explicit, as this will of course be relevant in deciding whether postponement is necessary for a particular council. If a Council does not make an explicit request or provide clear views and evidence in respect of their judgment on capacity, then the Secretary of State will take that into account and consider relevant evidence – but it will clearly make the decision making process more difficult and the Secretary of State will be less likely to decide to delay, given the locally-led approach taken. The Secretary of State is only minded to make an Order to postpone elections for one year for those councils who raise capacity concerns. It is ultimately up to councils how or whether they respond. We have been transparent about this process and will consider all the representations we receive. The Secretary of State will consider the position of each council individually, weighing up the evidence received. The deadline for responses is 15 January and after this the Secretary of State will decide whether to make an Order to change the year of council elections and the House will be updated.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the letter from the Minister for Local Government and Homelessness to Leaders of councils with elections in May 2026 where proposals for reorganisation have been submitted and decisions not yet taken, dated 18 December 2025, whether he consulted the Electoral Commission before his Department wrote to council leaders asking if they wanted their elections in May 2026 to be cancelled.

On 18 December councils undergoing local government reorganisation were invited to set out their views on the postponement of their local election and if they consider this could release essential capacity to deliver local government reorganisation. As is standard for decisions of this nature, the Secretary of State had discussions with relevant colleagues in Government. We will consider all the representations we receive, including any from the Electoral Commission. Nine local elections in 2025 were postponed and the rationale for that decision has been set out to the House, including in the Explanatory Memorandum that accompanies the Order that changed the year of elections.

Communities and Local Government, with refence to his Department's oral statement of 18 December 2025 on Local Government Reorganisation, Official Report col 1132, what information his Department holds comparing the rate of housebuilding in reorganised council areas compared to before they were reorganised.

The requested information is not held by my Department. Housebuilding data is collected on current local authority district boundaries only, in accordance with the single data list which can be found on gov.uk here. My Department publishes an annual release entitled ‘Housing supply: net additional dwellings, England’, which is the primary and most comprehensive measure of housing supply. This includes estimates of net additional homes in each local authority, in each financial year, from 2012-13 to 2024-25. This data can be found in Live Table 123 on gov.uk here.

Communities and Local Government, with refence to his Department's oral statement of 18 December 2025 on Local Government Reorganisation, Official Report col 1130, if he will publish any financial analysis his Department holds demonstrating that single-tier authorities are more (a) efficient and (b) effective than two-tier authorities.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 77631 on 13 October 2025.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the letter from the Minister for Local Government and Homelessness to Leaders of councils with elections in May 2026 where proposals for reorganisation have been submitted and decisions not yet taken, dated 18 December 2025, for what reason only council leaders have been invited to comment without first requiring a vote to be held at a full council meeting.

We have been clear that how local councils respond is up to them to decide locally with a view to their local processes and governance. The Secretary of State will consider all views provided, together with any other representations received, before final decisions are made. Where an election is postponed for one year, provision to extend existing councillors’ terms of office would be made. The Government has no plans to amend governance requirements for these councils.

Communities and Local Government, with refence to his Department's oral statement of 18 December 2025 on Local Government Reorganisation, Official Report col 1132, what information his Department holds on a council’s effectiveness of SEND provision in reorganised council areas compared to before they were reorganised.

We invited councils to develop proposals for unitary local government that prioritised the delivery of high quality and sustainable public services to citizens and for those proposals to set out the impacts on crucial public services, such as SEND. We will take final decisions on which proposal, if any, to implement having regard to all the criteria, including delivery of high quality public services, as well as any relevant evidence.

Communities and Local Government, with refence to his Department's oral statement of 18 December 2025 on Local Government Reorganisation, Official Report col 1130, what analysis his Department has conducted on the viability of restructured Essex councils who are inheriting significant debts.

Councils were invited to submit proposals for unitary local government and for those proposals to include estimated costs and benefits. Exact costs and savings will vary, depending on proposals received and which proposals are implemented. The Government has consulted on four proposals from councils in Essex, Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock. Decisions on the most appropriate option for each area will be judgements in the round, having regard to the guidance and the available evidence, including the responses to the consultation. As such, we will analyse and assess proposals against the criteria we have set out, which includes sustainability and withstanding financial shocks.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the letter from the Minister for Local Government and Homelessness to Leaders of councils with elections in May 2026 where proposals for reorganisation have been submitted and decisions not yet taken, dated 18 December 2025, whether a request from council leaders to postpone their local election can be nullified by (a) a vote at a full council, or (b) a letter signed by a majority of councillors.

We have been clear that how local councils respond is up to them to decide locally with a view to their local processes and governance. The Secretary of State will consider all views provided, together with any other representations received, before final decisions are made. Where an election is postponed for one year, provision to extend existing councillors’ terms of office would be made. The Government has no plans to amend governance requirements for these councils.

Communities and Local Government, what representations he has received from Castle Point Council regarding the preferred restructuring of Essex councils.

Basildon Borough Council, Castle Point Council, Essex County Council, Rochford Council, Southend-on-Sea Council and Thurrock Council, together with 9 other councils in Essex, submitted four proposals for unitary local government in Essex, Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock.Southend-on-Sea City Council, Chelmsford City Council, Basildon Borough Council, Brentwood Borough Council, Castle Point Borough Council, Colchester City Council, Harlow District Council, Maldon District Council, Tendring District Council and Uttlesford District Council proposed 5 unitary councils.Essex County Council, Braintree District Council and Epping Forest District Council proposed 3 unitary councils.Rochford District Council proposed 4 unitary councils.Thurrock Council proposed a different 4 unitary councils.The 15 principal councils collectively wrote to the department to state that whilst there was no consensus on one proposal, there was collective agreement that regardless of the final decision, all partners are committed to working together to ensure that whichever model is selected is delivered in the best possible way.The 15 principal councils in the area were invited to respond to the statutory consultation on the four proposals, which closed on 11 January. The House will be updated in due course on the outcome of the consultation.