Devolution survey 'misleading', says council

Eight district councils in Surrey are surveying residents about devolution proposals

Surrey County Council has accused eight borough councils of publishing a "purposefully biased" consultation about local government reorganisation.

The county council claims the survey favours creating three unitary authorities from 2026 rather than two, as the county council prefers.

The survey's creators - Epsom & Ewell, Guildford, Reigate & Banstead, Runnymede, Spelthorne, Surrey Heath, Waverley, and Woking borough councils - have all expressed a preference for three new authorities.

Surrey Leaders Group chairperson Hannah Dalton said residents could "see the proposal for both two and three unitary councils, and give an informed steer" using the survey.

The online consultation, launched on Wednesday, provides a link to the district councils' interim proposal for devolution, which favours three unitary authorities, but not to the county council's interim plan.

The proposals for a shake up of Surrey councils were submitted to the government in March after Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner outlined plans for a major redesign of local government in December.

The borough councils' survey describes the two-council option as saving "slightly more" money than the three-council option but says it "could feel distant from local communities".

The consultation describes the three-council option as including "more local decision-making and accountability" and says the smaller councils "can work more closely with businesses to boost economic growth and employment".

'Once-in-a-generation opportunity'

Tim Oliver, leader of Surrey County Council, said the survey was "misleading to the public" and its results would be "unreliable".

The county council supports the need for public engagement, he added, but "we must ensure it's done in a balanced and meaningful way and at the right time".

Ms Dalton, who is also an Epsom & Ewell borough councillor, said the borough councils put out the survey "because we want to listen".

The eight councils "want to hear what residents care about, what they want, and what they need from this once-in-a-generation opportunity" to ensure their views are "reflected in the final proposal", she added.

Local elections in Surrey have been delayed until 2026 to allow time for the reorganisation into single tiers to take place. Surrey currently has a two-tier system: the county council and 11 borough and district councils.

Mole Valley District Council leader Stephen Cooksey said the borough councils' survey "only presents one of the two proposals" and "would not be reflective" of his council's stance.

He said his council was "open-minded" about both options for now but expected to declare support for one option in May, prior to the county submitting its final proposal to the government.

Elmbridge Borough Council has also not committed to a preferred option. Tandridge District Council voted to support the three-council option on 18 March.

Leaders of the opposition Liberal Democrat, Residents' Association and Independent, Labour, and Green groups on Surrey County Council wrote to the local government minister on 21 March to express their support for the three-council option.

Reigate & Banstead Borough Council wrote to the government earlier this week alongside Crawley Borough Council in West Sussex to propose combining their two authorities into one unitary council.