News

Council votes for three unitaries

Last night’s Extraordinary Full Council meeting considered an interim proposal for local government reorganisation and voted unanimously in favour of the creation of three unitaries in Surrey, rather than two.  

Councillors also expressed a unanimous preference for three councillor wards, instead of two councillor wards, in any new unitary. 

This is in response to the government’s plans to abolish councils where two tiers of government exist and replace them with unitary councils which deliver all local services. This means district and borough councils, including Tandridge, will disappear. 

Councils across Surrey have worked together to develop and agree the interim proposal, which proposes two or three unitaries for the county. The document has been drawn up in line with government criteria. 

In February, the leaders of Surrey’s eleven district and borough councils and the Leader of Surrey County Council ruled out proposing a single unitary. 

The interim proposal must be submitted to government by 21 March and a full proposal by 9 May. The government is expected to make its decision in the autumn. The interim proposal is available on our website. 

The interim proposal is in two parts – part A and part B:   

• Part A sets out how Surrey County Council and the district and borough councils are working together to progress local government reorganisation, following the directive from the government.  

• Part B sets out a reorganisation proposal drawn up by the districts and boroughs and a proposal drawn up by Surrey County Council, which discuss the advantages and disadvantages of different options.  

The Leader of the Council, Councillor Catherine Sayer, said: "We strongly believe any new unitary council must keep a strong local connection to its communities, as well as being democratically accountable, which is why we consider three unitaries, rather than two, is a better option for Surrey.”