Plans to establish two new unitary councils in Cumbria is a bad day for local government in Cumbria, the leader of the county council said.
It was revealed earlier this week that the six district councils and county council are set to be scrapped and replaced with two authorities – one for the east and one for the west.
It was one of four options put forward by political leaders in the county. The county council submitted its proposal for a single authority for the whole of the county.
Stewart Young, the Labour leader of Cumbria County Council, said: “I am bitterly disappointed that the county council is going to be split into two with all the disruption that will cause, at a time when we are leading on the recovery from the pandemic.
“Our proposal for a single unitary was clearly the best proposal.
“It met all three of the Government’s tests; it would have improved local services, it would have delivered the most savings and it could have been delivered with the least disruption.
“Now, thanks to our Conservative MPs, we face years of chaos and damage to our key services.
“This is a bad day for local government in Cumbria.”
The East Cumbria authority will stretch from Walney in the south to Alston in the north, and the West Cumbria authority will stretch from Millom in the south to Gilsland in the north.
Read more about the new-look authorities and reaction from other political leaders here.
