Do your views matter?
These changes will set the scene for Local Government for decades to come. Yet the pace of the change to Unitary Authorities has precluded any significant input from residents or key stakeholders in our local communities.
The timescales imposed by the Government mean that residents and key stakeholders in our local communities, such as Parish Councils and Residents' Associations, have not been given any say. The Government is proposing a window for consultation later this year, but this will be after most of the critical decisions have been made.
A survey has been launched by eight of the eleven Districts and Boroughs who support forming 3 Unitary Authorities. This survey to open to all residents across Surrey but has sparked a row with Surrey County Council claiming it is “purposefully biased” (see BBC news item).
Meanwhile on its own web-site Surrey itself asks the question “Will residents get the opportunity to engage with the proposals?” and answers “Yes. We will engage with residents and partners in shaping the business case and provide regular updates on progress.” even though it has already decided its preferred approach without an agreed business case. Its answers to other FAQs present only one side of the argument.
We believe the interests of residents and other stakeholders should be taken into consideration before the critical decisions are made and this is one of our reasons for opposing the unnecessary rush to implement the changes. We therefore would encourage residents to respond to any consultation.
In this series of web-pages, we have published a number of our own views about how this Local Government reorganisation will affect local residents and would be very interested to hear your views – whether you agree with us or not.