Local Government Act 1992

14 Changes that may be recommended

(1) For the purposes of this Part—

(a) a structural change is the replacement, in any non-metropolitan area, of the two principal tiers of local government with a single tier;

(b) a boundary change is any of the changes specified in subsection (3) below, whether made for the purpose of facilitating a structural change or independently of any such change; and

(c) an electoral change is a change of electoral arrangements for any local government area, whether made in consequence of any structural or boundary change or independently of any such change;

and recommendations by the Local Government Commission for any structural or boundary changes shall include such recommendations as to the matters mentioned in subsection (5) below as the Commission thinks appropriate in connection with the recommended changes.

(2) In subsection (1)(a) above—

(a) the reference to a non-metropolitan area is a reference to any area which is or, as a result of any recommended boundary change would be, a non-metropolitan county or a non-metropolitan district; and

(b) the reference to the replacement, in any such area, of the two principal tiers of local government with a single tier is a reference to either—

(i) the transfer to a council for a county consisting of that area of the functions in relation to that area of district councils; or

(ii) the transfer to a district council for that area of the functions in relation to that area of a county council.

(3) The changes mentioned in subsection (1)(b) above are—

(a) the alteration of a local government area, including the alteration of so much of the boundary of any such area as lies below the high-water mark of medium tides, but excluding the extension of any local government area into Wales;

(b) the constitution of a new local government area of any description outside Greater London by the amalgamation of two or more such areas of the like description or by the aggregation of parts of such areas of the like description or by the separation of part of any local government area;

(c) the abolition of a principal area of any description outside Greater London, or of a metropolitan county, and its distribution among other areas of the like description;

(d) the constitution of a new London borough by the amalgamation of two or more London boroughs or by the aggregation of parts of London boroughs or by the separation of part of a London borough;

(e) the abolition of a London borough and the distribution of its area among other London boroughs;

(f) the constitution of a new parish by—

(i) the establishment as a parish of any area which is not a parish or part of one; or

(ii) the aggregation of the whole or any part of any such area with one or more parishes or parts of parishes; and

(g) the abolition of a parish, with or without the distribution of its area among other parishes.

(4) In subsection (1)(c) above “electoral arrangements” means—

(a) in relation to a principal area—

(i) the number of councillors of the council for that area;

(ii) the number and boundaries of the electoral areas into which that area is for the time being divided for the purposes of the election of councillors;

(iii) the number of councillors to be elected for any electoral area in that principal area and the years in which they are to be so elected; and

(iv) the name of any electoral area;

(b) in relation to a parish council—

(i) the number of councillors;

(ii) the question whether or not the parish or (in the case of a common parish council) any of the parishes should be divided into wards for the purposes of the election of councillors;

(iii) the number and boundaries of any such wards;

(iv) the number of councillors to be elected for any such ward or, in the case of a common parish, for each parish; and

(v) the name of any such ward.

(5) The matters mentioned in subsection (1) above are—

(a) the abolition of any local authority whose functions would all vest in another as a result of any recommended structural change or whose area would be abolished or otherwise substantially affected by any recommended boundary change;

(b) the establishment, as a county or district council, of a new authority for any area which would result from any recommended boundary change involving the amalgamation or aggregation of areas or parts of areas or involving other substantial alterations of areas;

(c) the extent to which a structural or boundary change requires (whether because functions become vested in an authority for a smaller area or for any other reason connected with the change) that joint arrangements should be made in relation to functions affected by the change; and

(d) whether, in connection with any recommended structural change, any authority should, for the purpose of the vesting of functions under Part II of the [1990 c. 8.] Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (development plans) in that authority—

(i) be treated as an authority to whose area Chapter I of that Part (unitary plans) applies, instead of Chapter II (structure and local plans); or

(ii) be authorised to include any of the policies mentioned in section 37 or 38 of that Act (mineral and waste plans) in their local plan.

(6) For the purposes of this Part the establishment of a new authority as the county or district council for any area shall be taken to include provision, subject to any necessary electoral changes—

(a) for an existing county council to become the district council for any area comprising a part of a county or for any two or more such areas; or

(b) for an existing district council to become the county council for an area comprising any one or more districts.

(7) For the purposes of this section—

(a) a metropolitan district and a non-metropolitan district shall be regarded as local government areas of a like description and so shall a metropolitan county and a non-metropolitan county; and

(b) any county or district resulting from the amalgamation or aggregation of the whole or any part of a metropolitan area with the whole or any part of a non-metropolitan area shall be regarded as a non-metropolitan county or, as the case may be, district.