Hampshire MPs: ‘Listen to local people’ on local government reform
A group of thirteen Liberal Democrat, Conservative, and Labour MPs have jointly written to Alison McGovern MP, Minister for Local Government and Homelessness, to urge the Government to accept a proposal for five unitary authorities as the Local Government Reorganisation process enters its next stage.
Commenting, Liberal Democrat MP for Eastleigh, Liz Jarvis said:
“I was very pleased that this cross-party group of MPs have joined together to make a clear case for a local government system that fits the way that people in Hampshire live. Decisions on issues that impact our communities should be made by our communities, and fewer layers of local government should make these processes clearer and more responsive to local needs.
“A five-unitary model recognises the natural boundaries and economies in Hampshire. The alternative four-unitary proposal would create councils that are more distant from local people, with huge 700,000 or more populations and unworkably large geographical areas covering hundreds of parishes. Councils on this scale will be so cumbersome and overcentralised that they will be impossible to run efficiently.
“This is a once-in-a-generation chance to renew how local government works in Hampshire and we have a responsibility to get this right. The Government must listen to voices of local people who know their communities.”
The consultation on Proposals for Local Government Reorganisation in Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Portsmouth and Southampton, which considered separate four proposals, closed on 11th January.
11 councils across Hampshire submitted a joint proposal to government as part of Local Government Reorganisation plans in September 2026 to create five new councils in total: built around the four anchor cities and towns in the region - Portsmouth, Southampton, Winchester and Basingstoke, with the Isle of Wight as a separate unitary council.
