"Taxpayers should not foot the bill for shelved council shake-up plans" Councillors seek reorganisation costs reimbursement
Councils have already spent significant amounts of public money and staff time preparing changes requested by the government
Hampshire County Council is being urged to ask the government to repay money spent preparing for council reorganisation after the process was put on hold.
A motion due to be debated on October 1 argues taxpayers should not foot the bill for a process now under review.
The proposal also refers to allegations of “gerrymandering” and claims of “potentially unlawful decision making” raised during the debate over the plans.
It follows the government’s decision to review council reorganisation plans for Hampshire, Portsmouth, Southampton and the Isle of Wight - effectively putting the plans on hold.
Councillors behind the proposal argue councils have already spent significant amounts of public money and staff time preparing changes requested by the government.
The plans would replace Hampshire’s current city, county, district and borough councils, with a smaller number of councils responsible for all local services - with Portsmouth originally planned to have been merged with Havant, Gosport and Fareham.
If approved, the motion would ask senior council officers to calculate how much Hampshire County Council has spent on the reorganisation process so far.
It would also ask council leader Cllr Nick Adams-King to write to the Secretary of State and Hampshire MPs calling on the government to reimburse those costs.
The proposal also calls for greater clarity about the future of the reorganisation plans before councils are asked to spend any more public money.
It says any future proposals involving council boundaries, ward boundaries or council size should be considered by the Local Government Boundary Commission for England.
Councillors will debate the motion at their meeting on October 1.