In September 2020, Surrey County Council announced its plans to submit a proposal to Central Government, to amalgamate its 11 District and Borough Councils into one single, Unitary Authority. The proposed move would be part of its new 'Putting Residents First' strategy, which, it claimed, would bring decision making and services closer to local communities.

Spelthorne Borough Council wholeheartedly rejects this proposal of creating the UK's largest single Unitary authority encompassing a population of 1.2 million and on the 24 September 2020, Members of Spelthorne Borough Council voted unanimously to agree motions to oppose a single Surrey-wide Unitary Authority.

Depending on one's point of view, the move by SCC was intended in part to introduce economies of scale or, more cynically, represented a blatant political land-grab.

To see the whole press release, click here