Lincolnshire sends pre-action letter to Secretary of State over local government reorganisation

In July then Secretary of State Steve Reed announced his preference for a four-unitary proposal submitted by the City of Lincoln Council covering Lincolnshire, North Lincolnshire and Northeast Lincolnshire, with the latter authorities remaining as they are.

Reed said that as part of this he would exercise the power to modify the proposal to achieve the boundary change requested by City of Lincoln.

The county council said its pre-action protocol letter was seeking “further information and clarification on aspects of the process, including how the different proposals were assessed against the Government’s own criteria, and how consultation responses from the public and other organisations were taken into account”. 

Cllr Sean Matthews, Leader of Lincolnshire County Council, said: "Local Government Reorganisation will shape how council services are delivered across Lincolnshire for decades to come, so it is important that there is complete confidence in the process that led to the Government’s decision. 

"While we will continue working with the other councils across Lincolnshire to prepare for reorganisation, we still have a number of legitimate questions about how the proposals were assessed, how the consultation responses were used, and ultimately how the preferred option was chosen.”

Cllr Matthews added: "We believe those questions deserve clear answers, and this Pre-Action Protocol letter gives the Government an opportunity to provide the clarity we have requested. 

"I want to be absolutely clear that this is not a decision to pursue a judicial review. No such decision has been taken. We will carefully consider the Government's response and then decide what, if any, further action we might take.”

Earlier this month members at Leicestershire County Council backed a motion to consider a claim over LGR once the authority had received legal advice, while Devon County Council sent a pre-action letter this month.

In July Hertfordshire County Council backed a motion calling on its leader to support a judicial review challenge over the Government's local government reorganisation plans for the county, should legal advice indicate arguable grounds.

Other councils to have launched legal proceedings include Harlow Council, Essex County Council, Portsmouth City Council, Hampshire County Council, Norfolk County Council and Suffolk County Council.