The government has announced major changes to the way local services will be provided in the future. Find out more.
Devolution in Hampshire
Hampshire County Council, Portsmouth and Southampton City Councils and the Isle of Wight are included in the government’s priority programme for devolution.
The proposed changes will create one large strategic authority for the whole of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, led by an elected mayor.
This would mean a transfer of powers and funding from national to local government. There would be greater control over important areas for our region, such as:
- Economic growth
- Transport planning
- Infrastructure investment
- Skills development
The government has decided that the Hampshire County Council elections scheduled for this May are postponed. Instead, there will be mayoral elections in May 2026.
Our council leader, Councillor Gareth Williams has welcomed the government’s proposals on devolution, and you can read more about this on our statement on devolution. He is continuing to meet with leaders of other Hampshire councils to discuss devolution and local government reorganisation.
A public consultation has now been launched on proposals to form a Mayoral Combined Authority for Hampshire, Portsmouth, the Isle of Wight, and Southampton.
The consultation runs until 13 April. For more information and to give your thoughts please visit the government website.
Local government reorganisation
The government has said it wants wider local government reorganisation over time.
This would mean that district councils, such as ourselves, joining together with other councils to create larger, unitary councils.
This new unitary council would provide our current services and look after services currently provided by county councils, such as:
- Highway maintenance
- Adult social care
- Children’s services
The government has written a letter to all councils in Hampshire explaining the process in more detail about how we should develop proposals for reorganisation.
We will share more details when we get them.
You can also visit the Local Government Association website for more information about the proposals.
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