Cllr Ben Crystall, Leader of East Herts District Council, reacts to a report in The Sunday Times that district councils in Hertfordshire could be abolished in the biggest reform of local government in over 50 years.
“We all want efficient, cost-effective and properly democratic local government. But the truth is size really does matter, and moving key decisions away from smaller District Councils and the communities they serve, to a huge, distant unitary authority, may not deliver the change we need.
“I understand why the Labour government is looking for quick fixes – sadly a decade of Conservative-government cuts has created a legacy of broken services, and local authorities on the edge of bankruptcy.
“But, it’s not clear that the proposed changes will save us any money – in fact there’s evidence that larger councils are not always more efficient.
“Moving services like planning to a unitary for example, takes them even further from where the impact is felt, and could end up being more expensive. Ensuring better shared services between districts would be a far more effective way to reduce costs.
“Just as importantly, how can moving decision-making away from towns, parishes and districts (which already work directly with communities) and passing it to a unitary authority be more democratic? Surely residents should be able to create and shape the places where they live? Local decision-making is the most effective way to do that and to keep residents engaged in the democratic process.
“If these plans do go ahead, Greens want to see:
- Increased power devolved to East Hertfordshire’s town and parish councils, alongside more resources, to ensure that residents can actively, directly impact decisions that affect them
- Solutions to address the health and social care crisis in Hertfordshire: genuinely new local health and social care partnerships that pool resources and include the power to bring private services back into the public sector
- Investment in integrated public transport and active travel across our county, especially in our areas which are currently under-served yet where people regularly travel
- Accelerated biodiversity and green spaces protection, ensuring that less power is in the hands of developers who have little interest in striking the right balance between building homes and protecting the environment
“Whatever the outcome of the devolution process, as Greens we expect to gain multiple seats in the County Council elections in May 2025 because we know from talking to residents that they’ve had enough of the chaos the Conservatives have caused.
“The Greens are the strongest opposition party in East Herts and have proved we can hold the Conservatives to account and fight for better. Like many residents, we want reduced problems with flooding, fewer potholes, better bus services, better access to SEN services and safer, cleaner streets.”