Local Government Reorganisation: The hidden democratic risks

While the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) and the Local Government Association (LGA) highlight improved accountability as a key benefit of Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) occurring across the UK, discussions with various councils reveal a more complex situation. Many officers and members express increasing concern that reducing the number of elected representatives, coupled with the creation of much larger administrative areas, may lead to unintended consequences. These include lower voter turnout, diminished trust in local institutions, and an overall decline in the health of democratic accountability.

These concerns aren’t simply anecdotal. A paper by Emeritus Professors Steve Leach and Colin Copus (both of De Montfort University), entitled "Reorganisation, Local Government and the Future of English Devolution," draws on more than 50 years of research to test core assumptions about LGR. Their findings show a consistent pattern: as local government units expand in population or geographic size, democratic indicators tend to decline. Voter turnout decreases, citizen trust diminishes, engagement in local decision-making weakens, and public identification with new unitary councils often struggles to establish itself.

These concerns are not theoretical; they are already being voiced in local debates across the country. In Staffordshire, councillors have recently called for abandoning LGR proposals, citing significant public opposition and concerns about reduced accountability. Similarly, a consultation conducted by Cambridgeshire County Council revealed widespread anxiety about the potential loss of local identity and the perceived distancing of democratic decision-making from the communities affected by these decisions.

Although it is too early to assess the experiences of residents under new authorities that are starting to take shape, such as North Yorkshire Council and Somerset Council, the feedback emerging from areas like Westmorland and Furness Council and Cumberland Council serves as a warning signal. Some residents have described the process of merging district councils as top-down and imposed from the outside, which has contributed to scepticism and weakened early identification with the new institutions.

All of these points highlight a significant challenge: ensuring that accountability, and by extension democratic engagement, is not undermined by LGR. As two-tier authorities transition to new, larger unitary councils, the focus on achieving financial savings and operational efficiencies must not overshadow the equally important task of maintaining, and ideally enhancing, local democratic connections.

Reorganisation is often seen primarily as a way to improve efficiency, but its impact on democracy extends far beyond that. As new units are formed, councils must actively create systems that keep residents involved in decision-making, protect local identity, and ensure that elected officials remain accessible and representative - especially as ward sizes and workloads are likely to increase.

Leach and Copus also question the long-held assumption that simply increasing council size guarantees greater efficiency, savings or improved performance - but that's for a different blog post.