The Independent reports that the government plans to radically alter local government in England, replacing it with a mayoral-style single-tier system, according to a leaked draft of the government leveling white paper.
The document states that the government is establishing a “new devolution framework for England” based on a model of a directly elected leader “on a well-defined economic geography.”
The ambition is to remove layers of local government and replace them with a single-tier system, as in Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland, but the government is already prepared for a backlash to the plans, according to a senior official.
The plans proposed in the draft document would mean a major overhaul of local government and eliminating or merging England’s 181 district councils and 24 county councils.
Complete article:
The Independent: Ministers Plan Radical Changes in Local Government as Part of Leveling Agenda, Leaked Document Reveals
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