§ Lord Bradshawasked Her Majesty's Government:
What representations they have received from professional bodies about the size of local authority necessary to sustain efficient and effective local government as a result of the structural review carried out by the Boundary Commission; and to what extent the size depends on effective joint working between local authorities. [HL3827]
§ The Minister of State, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (Lord Rooker)Some respondents to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's consultation on the guidance issued to the Boundary Committee before the local government reviews began gave their views on the optimal size of local authorities. We had regard to these, and all other representations, in finalising the guidance that was published on 6 June 2003. The guidance suggests that the Boundary Committee will need to consider the impact on the organisational and managerial capacity of authorities of any increase in joint arrangements that exist in the area concerned. The guidance also states that in the Government's view, the committee should consider the evidence that smaller authorities rely more heavily on joint arrangements to deliver quality public services and that these serve to confuse lines of accountability.
In its final reports the Boundary Committee state that "they have tended towards a preference that any unitary authorities … should be capable of providing or procuring, without recourse to formal joint arrangements, the full range of local government services" and that "they have sought to recommend unitary authorities of such a capacity to ensure that they have the maximum flexibility in deciding how local government services will be provided, whether directly by the council concerned or through some other arrangement".