Plans to shake up local government in Cumbria has been given final approval by the House of Lords.
Local government reorganisation will be complete in Cumbria by 2023, seeing the county council and six district councils replaced by two new unitary authorities – carrying the decision-making powers of both county and borough councils.
Two new authorities will be created in the process, Carlisle, Allerdale and Copeland will make-up the new Cumberland Council, with Eden, South Lakeland and Barrow-in-Furness forming the new Westmorland & Furness Council.
The Structural Change Order, which gives central government the legal authority to make these changes, reached the House of Lords on Monday.
It was approved but not without concerns from Cumbrian peer Lord Liddle, who also serves as a county councillor.
Lord Liddle said: “I’d like to put on record that I believe the decision that we’re implementing in this House which was taken by the Secretary of State Robert Jenrick last summer to split Cumbria into two unitary authorities, I’d like to put on record my view that this is unsustainable, possibly in the short term and certainly in the medium term.
“In the short term it involves splitting services which are of vital importance yet fragile, such as social care and child protection, it involves splitting them in the space of 12 months and I fear the consequences for the most vulnerable in our society as a result of that.
“These are unnatural communities that the Government is imposing on Cumbria and I cannot believe that these new authorities will sustain public support in the longer term.”
The Wigton county councillor also raised concerns about the reorganisation at the Grand Committee stage, telling Lords that industrial Barrow-in-Furness clashes with its rural council partner Eden.
Lord Stephen Greenhalgh, who proposed the motion, told peers: “We debated this at some length in Grand Committee and the points were made by Lord Liddle very eloquently and I’ve actually since then agreed to meet with Lord Liddle and the current Cumbria County Council leader.
“I will also say that it doesn’t need to be that you split the commissioning of adult social care or social services – there are ways, even if you split into two county councils, of commissioning together.
“Where there is a will there is a way and I’m sure the two new leaders of the two new local authorities will seek to build bridges rather than erect walls.”
The SCO for Cumbria was approved alongside changes to the local government make-up of North Yorkshire and Somerset.
Conservative leaders believe that unitary authorities provide continuity of services and more effective leadership.
The process is designed to devolve powers from Whitehall to local leaders and proposals for local government reorganisation in many of regions were set out in the Levelling-Up White Paper.
Elections on May 5 will appoint councillors to shadow authorities who will serve alongside existing councils for one year before fully taking over on April 1 2023.
