CCN Statement: Government pre-action letter of response to Essex County Council on reorganisation decision

Today, Essex County Council has published a Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government pre-action letter of response in relation to a proposed claim for judicial review of the local government reorganisation decision in Essex. Separately, there are media reports regarding the advice received on the reorganisation decision in Norfolk.

You can view the letter to Essex County Council here, and their press release here. You can read the media reports regarding the decision on Norfolk here. The CCN joint letter on reorganisation from the 4^th June 2026 referenced below can be found here.

Responding to the information contained in the letter on the ministerial advice provided to the Secretary of State on the decision in Essex, Chair-Elect of the County Councils Network (CCN), Cllr Sean Matthews, said:

“In our recent letter to the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State, CCN warned that there was a growing perception that decisions on local government reorganisation were being driven by short-term political expediency, rather than a coherent or consistent application of the government’s own criteria and an objective evaluation of the evidence around financial sustainability and service delivery.

"The extracts of the ministerial advice published today in Essex, and media reports of the advice received on the decision in Norfolk, are deeply alarming and validate CCN’s warnings.

“The document in Essex reveals that officials across Whitehall warned ministers over the credibility of the evidence-base underpinning the five unitary proposal. They raised concerns about whether the new councils would be financially sustainable, capable of delivering vital local services, and resilient enough to cope with growing demand. The letter to Essex confirms that officials advised ministers that alternative proposals were stronger on financial viability, service resilience, delivery of public services and community engagement.

“Despite those warnings, ministers pressed ahead with an option they were told was unlikely to be financially viable within five years and which carried significant risks for adult social care, children's SEND provision.

“The concerns raised by Whitehall officials are not abstract. They present a direct threat to vulnerable residents who rely on councils every day. If these reforms fail, it is local people who will pay the price through reduced services, greater financial instability and councils struggling to meet rising need.

“While we await the disclosure of further information regarding the decisions in Norfolk, Suffolk and Hampshire, the information provided to Essex alone raises profound questions about how these decisions are being made. When officials are warning of serious financial and operational risks, ministers cannot simply ignore the evidence and hope for the best. Getting local government structures wrong can have consequences that last for decades.

“These revelations now demand an urgent reassessment of the decisions already taken and the government must now fully disclosure all the underpinning evidence and ministerial advice. At a time when government is planning to make further announcements on the remaining areas in the coming weeks, today’s information will further erode trust in the process, and it is in conceivable that the government should make further decisions at pace when the integrity of the process is in serious doubt.”