The government published a white paper on English Devolution and reform to local government on 16 December 2024.
The white paper is the Government's statement of its plans to reform local government.
This includes a wide range of proposals on devolution of powers and funding, but also wider plans for local government reorganisation and changes to local audit.
What is devolution
Devolution is a process that aims to transfer more power and decision-making from the highest levels of national government down to local areas.
The current government has made devolution a priority and set out plans to create a new network of Strategic Authorities that will cover the whole of England by 2029. The new authorities will be led by elected mayors and will cover a number of local council areas.
These Strategic Authorities will have populations of at least 1.5million people and responsibilities linked to transport and local infrastructure; skills and employment; housing and strategic planning (not determining planning applications); economic development and regeneration; environment and climate change; health and wellbeing; and public safety.
What is local government reorganisation
As part of its plans for devolution, the Government has announced a programme of local government reorganisation that will replace all two-tier county and district councils and small or failing unitaries with new unitary councils that have populations of at least 500,000 people.
These much larger unitary structures would then join together in groups to form Strategic Authorities (those with the elected mayors).
The Government believes that local government reorganisation, together with devolution over a big strategic area, will improve public services and support economic growth.
Leicestershire is a two-tier area as there are seven district and borough councils, and the county council.
