Letter: Unitary Authorities Will Allow More Coherent Planning

Published on: 27 Dec, 2024
Updated on: 27 Dec, 2024

From Sue Hackman

chair of Burpham Community Association

In response to: Two Unitary Authorities, One Elected Mayor – Most Likely Devolution Outcome for Surrey

Unitary authorities will be better at planning in a coherent way. At the moment, responsibilities are spread unevenly across two councils to the detriment of local residents.

For example, the borough is currently planning to build homes in Guildford, but can’t commit the county to service its new estates with infrastructure, notably roads and schools. This makes existing residents anxious about the knock-on effects on their own community. Unitary authorities will be better able to plan strategically and comprehensively across all services.

I don’t disagree with [former Conservative MP for Guildford] Angela Richardson’s enthusiasm for very local engagement, but small units don’t carry enough clout or budget to get things done.

The new unitaries will be more local than the county council and less constrained than the borough council. Here in Burpham, we don’t really need more layers of bureaucracy, but we do need better methods of allowing local people to participate in the decisions being made for it.