Local elections could be delayed again as councils reorganise

Local elections could be delayed again as merging councils lack the capacity for reorganisation, the government has announced, triggering criticism from opposition parties that Labour is "scared of the voters".

Sixty-three council areas could opt to postpone elections until 2027 after some were already delayed until May 2026 as two-tier authorities are being combined into single unitary councils.

Elections for new mayors in four parts of England are already being postponed, it was announced earlier this month, with newly created mayoralties in Greater Essex, Norfolk and Suffolk, Hampshire and the Solent, and Sussex and Brighton to be first contested in 2028 under the plans.

On Thursday, the local government minister, Alison McGovern, told the Commons she and colleagues have heard from councils which said they do not have the capacity required for the reorganisation during the current timeframe.

She said: "In recent weeks, as final proposals have been submitted, the number of councils voicing such concerns have grown.

"Many councils across the country, and of all stripes, have expressed anxiety about their capacity to deliver a smooth and safe transition to new councils, alongside running resource-intensive elections to councils proposed to be shortly abolished.

"They have expressed concerns about the time and energy spent managing elections to bodies that won't shortly exist, only to run an election a year later."

The Conservative shadow local government minister, Paul Holmes, compared the government's approach to the fictional Christmas figure the Grinch.

He said: "While many people gather around their screens to watch movies like How the Grinch Stole Christmas, we're sitting here discussing how Labour is trying to steal the elections."

Holmes continued: "Earlier this month Labour cancelled mayoral elections because they were worried they wouldn't win them.

"Now they are doing the same with local elections, pausing the democratic process to serve their own political interests, creating for themselves a true nightmare before Christmas.

"This process has been a mess from start to finish, not wanted, not in their manifesto and centrally dictated."

James Cleverly, the shadow local government secretary, wrote on X: "Labour promised council elections would go ahead as planned as recently as last week. Now they're saying they won't. Another broken promise."

Cleverly told the Daily Mail: "Labour are scared of the voters. They thought they could completely overhaul local government and stack the deck in their favour. They were wrong."

Ed Davey, the Liberal Democrat leader, said: "This is looking like yet another Labour and Conservative stitch-up to deny people their votes in May.

"Kemi Badenoch must stop her Conservative council leaders from delaying elections yet again just because they are running scared of the Liberal Democrats."

McGovern also told the Commons that Whitehall does not wish to dictate local decisions without consultation and they will "listen to local leaders" on what is right for each area.

"To be clear, should a council say that they have no reason to delay their elections, there will be no delay.

"If a council voices genuine concerns, we'll take these issues seriously, and would be minded to grant a delay in those areas."

Ministers have invited 63 areas to set out their views, with a deadline of 15 January.