Monthly report from County Cllr Jonathan Glen

The latest report from County Councillor Jonathan Glen can be found below:

“As flies to wanton boys/are we to the gods…”
– ‘King Lear, Act 4, Scene 1

Modern Translation:
Prepare for Local Government Reorganisation!

I am sure you have heard a few things about mayors, devolution of power, local government reorganisation and the fact that the May county council elections have been postponed.
I thought you might like to know what’s going on, from the horse’s mouth.
For years, successive governments have offered unitary status to any councils who were prepared to apply. The time had come for Hampshire to make its bid. Why? In a nutshell, our country can no longer financially sustain two-tier local government.
Currently, at Hampshire County Council, 85% of our TOTAL budget provides support for our most vulnerable residents, specifically special needs children and the elderly. This is a statutory obligation, enshrined in law. Therefore the remaining 15% of our budget pays for everything else, such as roads, pavements, potholes, street lights, libraries, etc. Despite these figures, it is generally acknowledged that Hampshire County Council is still one of the best-run authorities in the country. We are not bankrupt but are using up our reserves. We know we cannot continue as we are and changes must take place.
Just before Christmas, the Government produced a White Paper offering a fast-track opportunity to all councils to apply for elected mayors, devolution and re-organisation.
All bids had to be in by January 10th.
Immediately the Leader of Hampshire County Council had meetings with the leaders of all the Hampshire district and borough councils, including the Isle of Wight. Across the board there was unanimous approval, to keep control of our future, and apply for the fast-track approach.
An emergency county council meeting took place on the 9th of January, and this was all agreed. On the morning of the 10th the Cabinet ratified the County Council decision and our bid was sent in to the Secretary of State for Housing & Local Government. This included a request for 1 year’s postponement of the county elections.
In the first week of February a phone call from Westminster came in during our Cabinet meeting, agreeing to all aspects of our proposal.
In addition to Hampshire, 17 other English county councils had applied for the election postponement. We were not alone.
All existing county councillors will now be intimately involved with planning the re-organisation of Hampshire’s local government structure. A report will be sent to Westminster by the end of Autumn 2025.
What does this mean for all of us?
In two years’ time there will no longer be district, borough or county councils. In their place will be a Pan-Hampshire Unity Authority. This will mean a huge reduction in councillor representation and most of the current local government work will be organised from Winchester.
Therefore, in this brave new world we are now entering, I would like to hear from anybody who would be interested in becoming a Pan-Hampshire representative. We are going to need lots of new blood and fresh ideas to make this work. Please contact me at jonathan.glen@hants.gov.uk.
It continues to be my great honour and privilege to represent our area during this exciting period of transition.

Councillor Jonathan K. Glen
Hampshire County Council
Member for Hook, Odiham & The Western Parishes
Email: jonathan.glen@hants.gov.uk