Watchdog criticises 'unprecedented' government offer to delay local elections

The elections watchdog has criticised the authorities for offering to see delaying 63 section assembly elections adjacent twelvemonth - arsenic 5 authorities confirmed to Sky News that they would inquire for a postponement.

On Thursday, hours earlier parliament began its Christmas recess, the authorities revealed that councils were being sent a missive asking if they thought elections should beryllium delayed successful their areas owed to challenges astir delivering section authorities reorganisation plans.

The main enforcement of the Electoral Commission, Vijay Rangarajan, deed retired astatine the announcement connected Friday, saying helium was "concerned" that immoderate elections could beryllium postponed, with immoderate having already been deferred from 2025.

"We are disappointed by some the timing and substance of the statement. Scheduled elections should, arsenic a rule, spell up arsenic planned, and lone beryllium postponed successful exceptional circumstances," helium said successful a statement.

"Decisions connected immoderate postponements volition not beryllium taken until mid-January, little than 3 months earlier the scheduled May 2026 elections are owed to begin.

"This uncertainty is unprecedented and volition not assistance campaigners and administrators who request clip to hole for their important roles."

Mr Rangarajan added: "We precise overmuch recognise the pressures connected section government, but these precocious changes bash not assistance administrators. Parties and candidates person already been preparing for immoderate time, and volition beryllium understandably concerned."

He said "capacity constraints" were not a "legitimate crushed for delaying agelong planned elections", which risked "affecting the legitimacy of section decision-making and damaging nationalist confidence".

The watchdog main besides said determination was "a wide struggle of involvement successful asking existing councils to determine however agelong it volition beryllium earlier they are answerable to voters".

Sky News contacted the 63 councils that person been sent the missive astir perchance delaying their elections.

At the clip of publication, 17 authorities had replied with their decisions, portion 33 said they would marque up their minds earlier the government's deadline of 15 January.

Many councils told Sky News they were amazed astatine yesterday's announcement, saying that they had been afloat intending to clasp their polls arsenic scheduled.

They said they were present moving to recognize the due antiauthoritarian mechanics for deciding whether to petition a postponement of elections. Some section authorities judge it should beryllium a determination made by their afloat council, portion others volition permission it up to assembly leaders oregon furniture members to decide.

Multiple councils besides emphasised successful statements to Sky News that the eventual determination to hold elections laic with the government.

Reform UK has threatened ineligible enactment against ministers, accusing Labour and the Tories of "colluding" to postpone elections successful bid to fastener different parties retired of powerfulness - a sentiment echoed by Liberal Democrat person Sir Ed Davey.

But shadiness section authorities caput Sir James Cleverly told Sky News this greeting that the Conservative Party "wants these elections to spell ahead". Sky News understands that the nationalist enactment is making that presumption wide to section leaders.

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government, said it was taking a "locally-led approach", and emphasised that "councils are successful the champion presumption to justice the interaction of postponements connected their area".

They added: "These are exceptional circumstances wherever councils person told america they're struggling to hole for resource-intensive elections to councils that volition soon beryllium abolished, portion besides reorganising into much businesslike authorities that tin amended service section residents.

"There is simply a wide precedent for postponing section elections wherever section authorities reorganisation is successful progress, arsenic happened successful 2019 and 2022."

The 5 councils that confirmed they would beryllium seeking postponements were:

• Blackburn with Darwen Council (Labour);
• Chorley Borough Council (Labour);
• East Sussex County Council (Conservative minority);
• Hastings Borough Council (Green minority);
• West Sussex County Council (Conservative).

The councils successful Chorley, and East and West Sussex, had decided anterior to Thursday's authorities announcement that they would petition a delay.

An East Sussex County Council spokesperson told Sky News: "It is invited that the authorities is listening to section leaders and has heard the lawsuit for focussing our resources connected transportation successful East Sussex, peculiarly with devolution and reorganisation of section government, arsenic good arsenic delivering services to residents, specified precocious priorities."

They besides pointed to the outgo of electing councillors for a word of conscionable 1 year, and argued that it would beryllium "more prudent for conscionable 1 acceptable of elections to beryllium held successful 2027".

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West Sussex County Council echoed those reasons and said it would outgo taxpayers crossed the region £9m to clasp elections successful 2026, 2027, and 2028, arsenic presently planned.

Chorley and Blackburn councils besides cited the outgo of delivering elections, and said they would similar that wealth beryllium spent connected delivering the section authorities reorganisation and delivering services to section residents.

Meanwhile, 12 councils confirmed to Sky News that they would not beryllium requesting delays:

• Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council (Liberal Democrat-Independents);
• Broxbourne Borough Council (Conservative);
• Colchester City Council (Labour-Liberal Democrat);
• Eastleigh Borough Council (Liberal Democrat);
• Essex County Council (Conservative);
• Hart District Council (Liberal Democrat-Community Campaign);
• Hastings Borough Council (Green minority);
• Isle of Wight Council (no wide control);
• Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council (Conservative);
• Portsmouth City Council (Liberal Democrat minority);
• Rushmoor Borough Council (Labour minority);
• Southampton City Council (Labour).