The preferred KCC option will go forward alongside other options from Medway Council and district and borough councils. They will be assessed against the Government’s Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) criteria, with results and feedback provided by advisors KPMG to Kent Leaders in September.
At a meeting of all Kent’s council Leaders yesterday (Wednesday 13 August) the Leader of KCC Linden Kemkaran, and Deputy Cabinet Member for Finance and Cross-Cabinet Activity, Chris Hespe, outlined their concerns about the potential cost and disruption of disaggregating vital county services such as adult social care, children’s social care and highways to new councils in Kent and Medway, with the resulting additional costs likely to be met by increases in council tax for Kent households.
“I’m going to do whatever it takes to make sure Kent achieves the best outcome when it comes to Local Government Reorganisation.”
Linden Kemkaran said: " I am pleased that my fellow Kent Leaders agreed that KCC’s preferred option 1a should be put forward along with the other options, to be considered for the next stage. All the other options will cost an absolute fortune to implement, and no one has yet been able to explain to me how that will be paid for. I think the bill will be picked up by the council taxpayers, something I find unacceptable.
“I am determined to do what’s best for Kent, rather than blindly following the Government’s instructions and attempting to force a square peg into a round hole.
“Kent is a unique county and should be treated as such. We are the gateway to Europe and the gateway to the United Kingdom. We are large, with varied geographical features that includes 350 miles of coastline, and we are special. I’m going to do whatever it takes to make sure Kent achieves the best outcome when it comes to Local Government Reorganisation.”
Chris Hespe added: “ We will always put residents first. Local Government Reorganisation has to ensure that people in our communities across the county can get access to the best services, and that we can maintain the proud and rich heritage of Kent and enhance the profile of the county. Our proposal for reorganisation does that.”
The reorganisation of councils in Kent and Medway will mean all current councils will no longer exist and instead new unitary authorities would be created with responsibility for all services across a wider geographical area. The Government has asked for a comprehensive business case on proposals by 28 November this year.
Further information
A key part of the process will be a public awareness campaign to ensure residents and businesses fully understand the potential changes that LGR will bring. An initial survey has gone live this week. More information can be found here: Your councils – change is coming - Kent Council Leaders
Kent and Medway were not selected as one of the areas to be a part of the Government’s Devolution Priority Programme, which fast tracks the installation of locally-elected mayors and an overarching mayoral authority. However, all of the county’s council Leaders have been asked to work on LGR.
