Five-district ‘super council’ proposals unveiled after months of talks

Proposals for the potential creation of a new ‘super district council’ in East Kent were finally unveiled to the public last night after months of talks.

Five district councils in East Kent have come up with a proposition of closer cooperation in the form of a merger. Ashford, Canterbury, Dover, Shepway and Thanet councils are considering the merger and the meeting gave the public the first glimpse of what one might expect from the project.

“A change of the way the council works is inevitable,” said Canterbury City Council Chairman Simon Cook.
“Here in East Kent we have shared challenges and opportunities. We can all learn from each other and plan strategically for the whole of East Kent. The merger would allow us to take risks which are more appropriate for large councils rather than small ones,” added Cook.

The plan is a direct reaction to the government’s austerity policies and the cuts in the local government’s funding. According to the leaders, unifying the East Kent district councils would shrink the council’s spending. The project is supposed to unify the core services like waste collection, and tackle the issues of inequality and housing in the region. A joint plan for tourism was also mentioned, aiming at boosting the East Kent economy and building a stronger tourism brand. The super-council-to-be would not become a unitary body, but a big merged district council.

Furthermore the merger is supposed to help adequately distribute power between the district and parish councils in the region. The leaders present at the meeting assured the new super-council would not affect the funding of the parish councils, which are set to receive more executive powers. ‘There’s a strong desire to empower the parish councils as well, and let them make more important decisions independently,’ said lead Councillor for Thanet Christopher T Wells.

The merger is yet to be confirmed however, with a number of processes scheduled to take place before the process itself. The Local Government Association alongside the independent local partnerships will prepare a full report on the possibilities, effects and consequences of a possible merger. Furthermore a number of public consultations are set to be undertaken after the report will have been published.

The proposition did raise a number of questions from the public gallery, and many seemed genuinely worried by the centralisation of local government. A local resident from Ramsgate pointed out that the smaller towns and districts might lose the importance of their representations, with the Ramsgate councillors constituting about 25% of the current council, a percentage that may dramatically drop after the formation of the super-council. Such precedent could weaken the impact and successful involvement of the communities in the local governance, in result undermining the very idea of the local politics.

Ian Driver, a Thanet resident criticized the council for only involving public consultation after the initial report is released in December. Mr Driver, and many with him, felt the need to be involved from the very beginning.

“I don’t think I could stress any more the importance of public engagement. You said you should look at the engagement and due course, but actually it should come first. Brexit showed that people want to be involved and consulted.”

The public consultations are to be carried out after the initial report on the possible merger is delivered, around Christmas. The public will then be consulted and informed by their councils, and it will be the ward councillors’ responsibility to successfully engage the communities in the upcoming change. This also raised concerned of Mr Driver as he gives a benefit of a doubt to the councillors skills in that particular field:

“I’ve met some Ward Councillors in my time and they couldn’t consult on a Legoland, left alone a huge constitutional change affecting 750 thousand people.”

So far there’s not much specific information concerning the merger, besides the planned report and the fact that more talks will be held between the councils themselves and the Kent County Council. As Simon Cook said the merger is likely to happen because “‘there’s a greater appetite to combine services in East Kent than in the rest of the county.” As the western Kent councils are more tied to London the East Kent will be looking forward to creating its own brand and cooperation. The councils now need to prove that the merger will actually benefit the public and not work against the principle of the local governance. In order to achieve that they should consult the local communities as soon as possible.