Council merger with Shropshire, Telford and Staffordshire discussed by local politicians
County councillors in Staffordshire have raised the possibility of creating a huge new regional authority which would include Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin.
The issue of local government reorganisation was also raised at a meeting of Shropshire & Wrekin Fire Authority on Wednesday when the chairman said such a move would make the councillor body ‘redundant’.
Chiefs at Shropshire Fire & Rescue Service are keeping an eye on the developing situation.
A cabinet meeting in Staffordshire a few hours before on Wednesday approved a report which is looking into the creation of a new council including Staffordshire County Council and Stoke-on-Trent.
Councillors in Staffs said that it is not something they would want to do but they would work to make the best of it for residents.
Councillors considered a report that states that the Government’s White Paper on devolution calls for new areas to have a minimum population size of 1.5 million.
Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent has a combined population of 1.1million.
Although it acknowledges that exceptions could be considered, the 1.1 million combined population of Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent ‘clearly falls short of this target size’.
The report says: “At this stage it is understood that Shropshire has not stated a preference regarding devolution.
“Indeed, it is not clear if that area will submit a proposal by the 21st March deadline.
“With a combined population of approximately 500,000 (Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin) it can be seen that the wider Shropshire area, when coupled with the Staffordshire and Stoke area aligns well to the government’s 1.5million population target size.”
The report states that Staffordshire remains “open to this option although we would look to test this with regard to the best interests of our residents and businesses.”
It adds that Staffordshire County Council “would work alongside the existing Stoke City Council in supporting the work of the Strategic Authority of either the recommended Staffordshire and Stoke or the Staffordshire and plus Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin composition.”
It concludes that they will “make the case strongly for a Mayoral Strategic Authority for the Staffordshire and Stoke area, we recognise our neighbours in Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin.
“We remain open to a wider conversation whilst reserving the preferred Staffordshire position highlighted in this plan.”
Councillor David Minnery (Liberal Democrats, Market Drayton West) who chairs Shropshire & Wrekin Fire Authority, told a meeting in Shrewsbury on Wednesday that the issue is under consideration in Staffordshire.
He said: “We may well find ourselves redundant. But devolution is not going to happen this year or even the year after but the Government has made it clear that they want it working before the end of their term..
“There will be interesting discussions over the next four years and this is going to be the next critical challenge. It is something that we will need to address.”
Chief Fire Officer Simon Hardiman told the Local Democracy Reporting Service after the meeting that the authority is “keeping a watchful eye on devolution.
“We are alive to it and considering what it means for the authority.
“But we are keeping our eye on the ball of providing an excellent service to the people of Shropshire.”
Recently Telford and Wrekin Council’s leader, Councillor Lee Carter, and Telford MP Shaun Davies have both spoken out against reunification with Shropshire Council.
