Three-council plan for Suffolk proposed

A proposal has been made to create three new councils in Suffolk under local government reorganisation.

The government wants the current council structure in the county scrapped and replaced with one layer of administration.

The existing district and borough councils have proposed three unitary authorities, and the BBC understands they could be based around Ipswich, Bury St Edmunds and Lowestoft.

Suffolk County Council wants a sole authority to provide all services across the county.

In June, the county was given nearly £300,000 to help develop plans for council restructuring.

Local government minister Jim McMahon said the funding should be split between councils and he hoped areas would collectively submit final proposals.

The five district and borough councils will now vote on whether to take forward their three-authority idea.

The published proposals do not contain details about boundaries or names for the new councils.

Cliff Waterman believes smaller councils are better at delivering local services

West Suffolk Council will be the first of the authorities to vote on the proposal.

Cliff Waterman, the Labour leader of the council, said: "This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to ensure local government stays local and delivers for the communities and businesses it serves.

"A local unitary authority specifically for the western area of Suffolk would find it far easier than one mega council to concentrate on the unique attributes and needs of our market towns, and on the rural communities that surround them."

The other local authorities will vote on the plans soon, with proposals due to be submitted to the government in September.

Richard Rout wants to see a single council serving Suffolk

Suffolk County Council has accused the district and borough councils of leaving "communities in the dark" over a lack of detail in their proposals.

Richard Rout, the council's cabinet member for local government reform, said: "This detail is important not only for the public, who rightly want to know where their town or village is within the districts' proposals, but also for us as we model the service implications for some of Suffolk's most vulnerable residents if the government chooses to break Suffolk up.

"Are they suggesting Felixstowe is in with east Suffolk or Ipswich? Where is Hadleigh, Woodbridge or the Shotley peninsula?

"We just don't know, and by not coming clean they're keeping the public in the dark and putting service users at potential risk."