At least eight councils have launched legal challenges.
Decisions on flagship local government reorganisation have been withdrawn as the Government launches a review of the plans following new legal advice.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) said the review is to ensure the process is robust and aligns with the new Government’s aim to “rewire the state”, and follows “updated and privileged legal advice”.
At least eight councils have launched legal challenges or were considering to do so due to opposition to the Government’s choice of footprints for new councils.
Reform UK-led Kent County Council is set to consider a judicial review at a meeting on Tuesday after it did not receive a response from the Government to a letter setting out concerns.
Plans for reorganisation in Essex, Hampshire, Norfolk and Suffolk have been withdrawn in the light of new legal advice.
Decisions on 14 further areas will be reviewed and paused alongside the cases of Cambridgeshire & Peterborough and West Sussex, which are yet to have a decision confirmed.
The Government has also confirmed that local elections in May 2027 will go ahead on existing council boundaries, saying it remains committed to effective and sustainable local government and simplifying these structures.
Communities Secretary Angela Rayner is expected to tell Parliament on Monday: “As we are now more determined than ever to devolve power closer to the people we represent, it’s only right that as a new Secretary of State I make sure that everything we do is working towards that plan to change Britain, without delay.
“The Prime Minister told the House last week he was ‘prepared to look at local government reorganisation’ and he asked me as his Communities Secretary to ‘do that’.
“In that context, in light of legal advice, I want to satisfy myself firstly that the right process is in place, that it is robust, and of course complies with the law.
“And, secondly, I want to fully test whether our proposals for local government reorganisation meet the priorities of a new administration and a new Prime Minister, and any additional considerations.
“I do not take this lightly. I recognise the huge amount of work that has already gone into progressing reorganisation in each of these areas and I am very grateful for it.”
MHCLG said reorganisation in Surrey will not be affected by the review and the two new unitary authorities, East and West Surrey, will go live in April 2027.
David Simmonds, shadow local government minister, repeated his party’s claim that reorganisation plans were a Labour attempt at “gerrymandering”.
He said: “This is yet another total humiliation for this Labour Government, who have once again been exposed breaking the law in an attempt to force their top-down programme of local government reorganisation on communities.
“Ministers are only backing off because they have been found out in the face of relentless Conservative opposition to their gerrymandering.
“Their behaviour shows that Burnham and Rayner’s promise to empower local communities is completely hollow: their intention was always to dictate downwards.
“Labour should come clean and put all non-privileged documentation about this process in the public domain. The public have a right to know the truth.”
Reform UK has claimed credit for the Government’s decision to halt the process, with the party leading county councils in Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex which all launched legal challenges to reorganisation.
Reform leader Nigel Farage said: “Reform UK not only argued that this Government’s plans for local government reorganisation were an unmitigated disaster, but we once again put our money where our mouth is.
“Earlier this year we took on the Government and forced them to give the vote back to millions of people after Labour tried to cancel democracy.
“Now, thanks to our judicial reviews in affected Reform-led councils, the Government has backed down on their plans yet again.
“Only Reform had the backbone to stand up to these reckless plans. This is yet another embarrassing defeat for Labour. Only Reform backs real democracy.”
The Local Government Association (LGA) insisted the Government has “no excuse” for the delay to reforms.
A spokesperson said: “Councils across the country will hold different views on the local government reorganisation programme, for what it means for their areas, and the announcement of today’s review. But there is no excuse for the Government’s mishandling of this process.
“Today’s announcement, however, will have caused significant uncertainty, after councils have invested scarce public money and countless hours in the government’s LGR programme.
“People’s jobs, lives and wider commitments have been affected. Staff, councillors and their families cannot be expected to put their lives on hold while ministers undertake a review which is a mess of their own making. Particularly at a time when local services remain under real pressure, this is no way to treat local government.”
Calling on ministers to set a clear timetable for reforms and to work with councils, the LGA said councils should not “pick up the bill”.
Sean Matthews, chair-elect of the County Councils Network (CCN), said many of its member councils had “serious concerns” about the process and felt the Government’s reorganisation decisions would not achieve the required aims, including significant savings.
He added: “The CCN called on the new administration in government to take ownership of the programme – reviewing the decisions made and only proceeding with proposals that can deliver sustainable councils and protect services.
“We pleased they have taken ours, and our councils’ concerns on board by announcing a pause and review of the programme today.
“Many of our members will be relieved that the decisions they viewed as damaging to local services and financially unsustainable have been withdrawn or are being reviewed.
“With the government clearly listening to our concerns, we now stand ready to work with ministers.”
The CCN said it is “vital” that the pause does not mean momentum is lost on devolution and “rewiring the state”.
Unison said pausing the planned overhaul of local government leaves employees in “even greater limbo”.
The trade union’s head of local government, Mike Short, said: “There have been question marks over this process from the outset.
“This pause prolongs the uncertainty felt by local government employees. Their jobs, futures and the services they deliver are in even greater limbo.
“Staff should always be at the heart of a reorganisation of this scale. Stronger authorities are only made possible by a skilled, experienced and motivated workforce.
“The review’s full impact on workers won’t become clear until the results are published, but every effort must be made in the meantime not to cause them further distress.”
