The business community in Buckinghamshire drew attention to the need for local government restructure back in 2014 when it crowdfunded a report by Ernst & Young to evidence-base the benefits of a review.

A decision of any kind on Buckinghamshire’s future local government structure has been a long time coming, and it is good that we now have a decision to move forward from.

Some will be happy, some will not. A second proposal had been submitted to government whereby one new unitary authority would be created to cover Aylesbury Vale, with another created to cover Chiltern, South Bucks and Wycombe. What all parties had agreed upon from the outset was that in these difficult financial times for the public sector a change of some kind was needed, and that no change was not an option.

In announcing his decision, Sajid Javid said that he was “satisfied that this new single council, if established, is likely to improve local government and service delivery in the county, generating savings, increasing financial resilience, facilitating a more strategic and holistic approach to planning and housing challenges, and sustaining good local services.”

Where could savings come from?

According to the Ernst & Young report, annual savings of £20million could be made by replacing the five current councils with one unitary authority. These savings could break down as follows:

• £3million from having 30 fewer senior managers
• £7.7million by removing duplicate roles across the county
• £1million from reducing accommodation required
• £6.9million from service optimisation through having less duplication and more coordinated delivery
• £2.1million by having 168 fewer members

Download our handy infographic – Local Government Reform in Buckinghamshire: what you need to know >  

Your view is crucial

A period of consultation is running until 25th May and if we as a business community want change, we will need to respond in support of the Secretary of State’s “minded to” decision.

You can add your voice to the Buckinghamshire Business First response that will support the Secretary of State’s “minded to” decision by clicking here before 16th May 2018.