2019–2023 structural changes to local government in England

Some of these changes continue the trend of new unitary authorities being created from other types of local government districts, which was a policy of Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick from 2019.

[1] Ceremonial counties have not seen any changes to their boundaries, as the Lieutenancies Act 1997 was amended to reflect the new local government areas that comprise them.

This change was proposed by Martin Tett, leader of the county council, and backed by then-Communities Secretary James Brokenshire.

The district councils opposed the single unitary Buckinghamshire plan, and considered legal action against it.

On 1 April 2021, the non-metropolitan county of Northamptonshire and its seven districts were abolished, and two new unitary authorities were created:[7] The Conservative national government proposed the changes in Northamptonshire as a cost saving measure, as the Conservative-led county council had been experiencing financial difficulty.

The joint committee for West Northamptonshire claimed that the changes would save 85 million pounds per year.

In July 2021, local government minister Robert Jenrick approved plans for two new unitary authorities, Westmorland and Furness and Cumberland.

Around the same time, the districts of Craven, Harrogate, Richmondshire, Ryedale, Scarborough and Selby submitted a proposal for an "East & West model" of two unitary councils in North Yorkshire, including the City of York.

The two new councils would cover Ryedale, Scarborough, Selby and York in the east, and Craven, Hambleton, Harrogate and Richmondshire in the west.

[22] In July 2021, local government minister Robert Jenrick approved plans for a single unitary authority, to be known as North Yorkshire Council.

The district councils argued that a single authority would be too far removed from the citizens, and said that forming two instead of one would help save £204 million.

In February 2021, it was reported that Basildon and Thurrock councils were in talks to form a new unitary authority with a population of over 350,000.

[34] In December 2024, Basildon councillors proposed five unitary districts, namely South West (from Basildon and Thurrock), South East (from Southend-on-Sea, Castle Point and Rochford), Mid (from Chelmsford, Brentwood and Maldon), North West (from Epping Forest, Harlow and Uttlesford) and North East (Braintree, Colchester and Tendring).

It was suggested that there could be two new unitary authorities: one in the west of the county (Gloucester, Stroud and Forest of Dean) and another in the east (Tewkesbury, Cheltenham and Cotswold).

[38] Following the withdrawal of interest from Shepway (later renamed Folkestone and Hythe) and Ashford councils, the remaining authorities decided not to take matters further.

In place of these districts and boroughs, they proposed creating three new unitary authorities which would also include Blackburn with Darwen and Blackpool.

Another authority called "North West Lancashire" would cover the City of Lancaster, Fylde, Wyre, Blackpool, and Ribble Valley, while "East Pennine Lancashire" would cover the Borough of Burnley, Pendle, Hyndburn, Rossendale and Blackburn with Darwen.

[40][41][42] In 2021, the government and Lancashire County Council rejected a proposal put forward by the councils of the Borough of Barrow-in-Furness, South Lakeland and City of Lancaster to form a new unitary authority covering part of the historical county of Lancashire which included the Borough of Barrow-in-Furness and parts of South Lakeland.

[56] The districts of Lichfield, South Staffordshire and Tamworth would become full members of the West Midlands Combined Authority as part of the wider West Midlands county, although it is unclear if they would remain separate districts or form a new unitary authority.

[62] In 2019, Bromsgrove independent councillor Steve Colella suggested that Worcestershire should be merged with other councils in the local region.

He also said that he was open to either cross-border authorities or a two-authority model for Worcestershire, and praised neighbouring Warwickshire for following the government's proposals.

[64] The Labour Party returned to power following the 2024 general election, and in her Autumn budget statement, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves outlined that a forthcoming English Devolution Bill would include plans for "working with councils to move to simpler structures that make sense for their local areas", suggesting that a new round of local government reorganisation could be likely.