Published: Thursday, 29th October 2026
Councillor Alistair Beales, the Council Leader, has made a statement in response to the Government’s update today on its review of Local Government Reorganisation (LGR).
For Norfolk, today’s announcement will mean:
▪️The Government will made a new decision – either one, two or three unitary councils for Norfolk (the three options put forward previously)
▪️Initially, the Government will make a “minded-to” decision, setting out its intended way forward (this will be made by early 2027 at the latest)
▪️There will be a 3-week window for councils to make representations on the new “minded-to” decision before a final decision is made.
Cllr Beales said: “The Government announcement on Local Government Reorganisation, which includes ‘minded-to’ decisions to proceed with LGR in five other areas of England, clearly reaffirms what Ministers said (and what I said) back in September when it announced its review: notably that Ministers remain committed to proceeding with the LGR programme.
“This review is a pause to reflect, not a cancellation of LGR, that message has been received loud and clear. For Norfolk, this means Ministers reconsidering all three unitary proposals originally submitted (one council, two councils or three councils) before making a final decision based on the criteria used previously.
“It was also helpful to receive the Government’s updated timetable – ‘minded to’ decisions by early 2027 for the areas in the LGR review, including Norfolk, followed by local elections on existing council boundaries in May 2027, then elections to shadow councils in May 2028 and new councils established in 2029.
“While we await the final decision, we of course remain focused on delivering excellent services for our communities.”