Cabinet members met today (Monday 12 January) and agreed a response to Government’s request for a view on whether postponing city council elections in May until 2027 would release essential capacity to deliver Local Government Reorganisation.
The Leader will now write to Minister of State for Local Government and Homelessness, Alison McGovern MP, on behalf of the Council indicating that it is the Council’s view that postponement of the May 2026 local elections for one year would release essential capacity to deliver Local Government Reorganisation in our area.
The response follows a letter from the Minister to Council Leader, Councillor Shabina Qayyum, on 18 December, inviting her to set out the council’s views on the matter.
The Secretary of State will now decide whether to make an order to postpone elections for one year for those councils who raise capacity concerns. Regardless of the outcome, Town and Parish council elections would continue as normal.
During the Extraordinary Cabinet meeting, which can be watched back on YouTube, ward councillors John Howard, Mark Ormston and Heather Skibsted addressed the meeting on behalf of their constituents where they spoke in favour of the local elections going ahead as planned in May this year.
Cabinet members then debated the matter. Some members spoke about the challenges in their departments, both in terms of current service demands and the pressures faced by Officers as the Council navigates the Local Government Reorganisation timetable.
Cabinet members were then asked to vote and unanimously agreed that the council’s response to the Minister should indicate a view that the local elections in May 2026 should be postponed as postponement would release essential capacity to deliver Local Government Reorganisation.
Speaking after the meeting, Councillor Qayyum said: “There has been much commentary in recent days from fellow city councillors about their desire to see elections take place this year, with some omitting the important fact that the Council is being asked to express a view on postponement for 12 months, not cancellation of the elections. Let me be clear, expressing this view to Government is not about taking democracy away or cancelling elections, Council is being asked for its views on postponement for one year, meaning local elections would instead take place in 2027.
“Elections are an essential part of the democratic process and many members, like myself, welcome the chance to go to the ballot box to give residents the chance to decide who they want to represent them. Therefore, Cabinet members have not taken this response to the question from Government lightly. We are looking after services that really do look after life and death scenarios as they attempt to navigate a path through Local Government Reorganisation.
“In my mind, the most important consideration here is Peterborough City Council’s capacity to deliver Local Government Reorganisation for our residents, whilst maintaining service delivery for every resident of our city who relies on the services that we provide. Local Government Reorganisation is not just a boundary tweak, but a complete rebuild of the council system.
“Getting Peterborough City Council into a position to transfer statutory services to a new authority safely and legally is not without its challenges, with financial challenges remaining in the new financial year, huge demands for service in some areas, ongoing focus on the improvement and development of Children’s Services, and a desire to make progress on hugely important projects including plans for a new swimming pool and leisure centre and the transformation of the station quarter.
“If postponing local elections for one year means we are able to release the essential capacity needed to achieve those aims and deliver Local Government Reorganisation successfully, then we must support it. It is now the Secretary of State’s decision on whether the elections in May proceed as planned or not.”