A proposal to retain North East Lincolnshire Council as a unitary authority within its current boundaries has won cross-party backing.
The council’s Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) proposal received full support at both cabinet and full council meetings, following a presentation of the financial, economic, and community reasons for keeping the borough intact.
The announcement comes amid government plans to redraw local authority boundaries as part of a wider effort to abolish two-tier council structures, where areas are governed by both a district or borough council—like North East Lincolnshire—and an upper-tier authority such as Lincolnshire County Council.
North East Lincolnshire Council has argued there is a “compelling case” for maintaining the existing boundaries, highlighting concerns that merging with a larger authority would not benefit the area and warning of the estimated £35–£47 million cost and potential disruption to council services and operations.
Leader of the council, Councillor Philip Jackson, said after the council meetings: “Whatever the political make-up of the council now and in the future, it is the ability to take advantage of our size and close links to our communities that is important here. This has been recognised by us all here tonight, and I applaud the way we have come together to embark on our ambition to see North East Lincolnshire remain as a place where we can continue our work to build a stronger economy and stronger communities.”
The proposal will now be taken forward to be submitted to Government.
Part of the Gi Grimsby News team since 2020.