Councillors James Hutchcraft and Aisha Rashid

Local Government Reorganisation Delayed

The Government has delayed its decision on Local Government Reorganisation in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, despite councils across the area having invested significant time and resources preparing for it. This latest announcement prolongs uncertainty for local services, staff and communities, at a time when residents deserve certainty rather than further delay.

Had the Government been serious about its stated aims of reducing costs and bureaucracy and improving public services, this ought to have been a straightforward decision. Instead, a long delay has followed with no clear explanation. It is difficult to avoid the conclusion that Ministers require more time to justify pushing through the leaked “Option D” proposal, reportedly favoured by two backbench Peterborough Labour MPs, which would be damaging for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough as a whole.

This is especially disappointing given that Cambridgeshire is one of the highest-performing areas in the country, yet appears to be having its future shaped by the interests of a small number of backbench Labour MPs from Peterborough. Concerns have also been raised that the business case underpinning ‘Option D’ remains incomplete and would be unlikely to withstand legal challenge in its current form. There are further concerns that the proposal, as reported, would create a central unitary authority out of what remains of Huntingdonshire, East Cambridgeshire and Fenland with little prospect of financial stability.

Taken alongside similarly questionable decisions on local government boundaries elsewhere in the country, this delay is difficult to characterise as anything other than politically motivated gerrymandering.

Please see the speech of Council Leader Councillor Bridget Smith at full council on 16th July here: https://www.facebook.com/reel/1406601381521215.

Council leaders from across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, representing all political parties, have since issued a joint call for the Government to reach an early decision on LGR, after we were among only two decisions nationally to be deferred. A final decision is expected by October, but leaders say all necessary evidence has already been submitted, and argue that an earlier outcome would provide greater certainty as new councils are set up to the required timetable.

Greater Cambridge Local Plan

The Proposed Submission Greater Cambridge Local Plan, prepared jointly by Cambridge City Council and South Cambridgeshire District Council, is soon moving into its final stage of public consultation, running from 3rd August to 25th September.

The Plan will shape how Greater Cambridge grows over the next 20 years, setting out where new homes, jobs and infrastructure should be located, and includes policies on climate change, biodiversity, wellbeing and sustainable transport. It confirms a need for more than 50,000 new homes across the area between 2024 and 2045, of which around 37,000 are already accounted for through existing permissions and current Local Plan allocations.

The latest version follows extensive earlier engagement, including a consultation which ran from December 2025 into January 2026 and drew more than 1,280 respondents and over 8,400 comments.

Residents, businesses, landowners and organisations wishing to comment should do so before the consultation closes on 25th September 2026.