Unitary Councils

Michael Gove
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what role his Department will play in the assessment of the bids to the Department for Communities and Local Government for unitary local government status.

John Healey
Following stakeholder consultation, all 16 unitary proposals will be assessed against the five criteria the Government set out when we invited local authorities to submit their proposals. Decisions on those bids which will proceed toward implementation will be taken collectively by all Ministers.