Remaining Tranches
Reviews continued throughout 1994, with draft proposals published for consultation, outlining the Commission's preferred option and other options. The Commission made extensive usage of MORI polling in each of the local areas affected to determine which options were more popular locally. For example, in Cambridgeshire, the Commission outlined three options for a split of the county into unitary authorities, the preferred option being a three-way split between the "City & County of Cambridge" (consisting of Cambridge, South Cambridgeshire, East Cambridgeshire), Huntingdonshire and Peterborough & The Fens.
In final reports delivered in October 1994, the Commission recommended Buckinghamshire and Bedfordshire county councils be abolished and replaced with four and three unitary authorities respectively. In other counties, it backed down from more radical draft proposals, and it recommended no change in Cambridgeshire, Cheshire, Cumbria, Lancashire, Kent and Oxfordshire. In Hampshire it recommended that Southampton, Portsmouth and New Forest become unitary authorities.
A further batch of reports was delivered in December, recommending that Norfolk, Northamptonshire, Northumberland, Suffolk, Surrey, Warwickshire, West Sussex should remained unchanged. In Hereford and Worcester, Worcestershire would become a two-tier county whilst Herefordshire become a unitary authority. In Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland would become unitary authorities, with the rest of the county remaining two-tier – a pattern followed also in County Durham (Darlington), Devon (Plymouth and Torbay), East Sussex (Brighton & Hove), Essex (Southend-on-Sea), Nottinghamshire (Nottingham), Staffordshire (Stoke-on-Trent) and Wiltshire (Thamesdown). The Commission recommended the abolition of two county councils – Berkshire (which was to have five unitary authorities) and Dorset (which was to have four).
The final batch of recommendations was published in January 1995, slightly missing the deadline, and recommended no change for Cornwall, Gloucestershire, Hertfordshire and Shropshire. In Derbyshire it recommended the creation of a unitary city of Derby with the remainder of the county remaining two-tier.
In a January 1995 interview, Banham explained the decision-making process of the Commission was based strongly on local opinion, noting that although a fully unitary solution for much of the country would commend all-party support in the House of Commons, he thought it would cause "mayhem" when implemented. He also advocated the creation of more parish councils in unparished areas. In a letter to The Times in March 1994, he noted he had the attitude that "if it ain't broke, don't fix it".
Read more about this topic: Local Government Commission For England (1992)
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