Westmorland and Furness
Westmorland and Furness is a future unitary authority area in north-west England, which (along with Cumberland) will come into being on 1 April 2023 on the abolition of Cumbria County Council. The council will cover the areas currently served by the districts of Barrow-in-Furness, Eden and South Lakeland, which will also cease to function. It will include all of the area of the historic county of Westmorland as well as the Furness district of historic Lancashire. It will also incorporate a very small part of historic Yorkshire together with about a quarter of the area of the historic county of Cumberland.
Westmorland and Furness | |
|---|---|
Future unitary authority area | |
Logo of Westmorland and Furness Council | |
Westmorland and Furness UA within the ceremonial area of Cumbria | |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Constituent country | England |
| Region | North West England |
| Ceremonial county | Cumbria |
| Historic County |
|
| Seat | Kendal[1][2] |
| Government | |
| • Body | Westmorland and Furness Council |
| • Chairman | Matthew Severn[3] |
| • Leader | Jonathan Brook[4] |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1,449 sq mi (3,750 km2) |
| Population (2021) | |
| • Total | 225,390[5] |
| Time zone | UTC+0 (Greenwich Mean Time) |
| Website | Official website |
The district will sit within the ceremonial county of Cumbria, which will no longer have any administrative function.[6][7]
The first elections to the new authority took place in May 2022, with the Westmorland and Furness Council acting as a 'shadow authority' until the abolition of the three former districts and Cumbria County Council on 1 April 2023.[8]
Background
Elections to Cumbria County Council were due to take place in May 2021; however they were postponed for one year by the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government due to a consultation on local government reorganisation in the area.[9] In July 2021, the government announced that the current authorities in Cumbria would be abolished and replaced with two unitary authorities, with an east/west split of the county.[10]
Opponents of the reorganisation claimed that the proposal was being pursued to benefit the electoral prospects of the Conservative Party. Cumbria County Council, which would be abolished under the plans, sought judicial review to prevent the reorganisation from taking place.[11] The judicial review was refused by the High Court in January 2022.[12] Draft statutory instruments to bring about local government reorganisation in Cumbria were subsequently laid before parliament.[7] The Cumbria (Structural Changes) Order 2022 (2022 No. 331) was made on 17 March 2022 and came into force the following day.[13]
Area
The name of the unitary authority derives from the county of Westmorland and the peninsula of Furness.[14] Westmorland was previously an administrative county until it was abolished by the Local Government Act 1972 and became part of the new county of Cumbria. Furness was administered as part of Lancashire until 1974; together with the Cartmel Peninsula it formed an exclave of that county historically known as North Lonsdale.[15] In addition to those areas, the district includes part of the historic county of Cumberland in the Penrith area, and an area centred on Sedbergh which was part of the West Riding of Yorkshire.
Westmorland and Furness, together with neighbouring Cumberland, will continue to constitute a ceremonial county named "Cumbria" for the purpose of lieutenancy and shrievalties, being presided over by a Lord Lieutenant of Cumbria and a High Sheriff of Cumbria. Ceremonial counties do not discharge any administrative function.[16][17] Police services will continue to be provided by Cumbria Constabulary overseen by the Cumbria Police and Crime Commissioner.
Politics
Westmorland and Furness Council will have 65 councillors,[18] and the first election to the local authority was in May 2022. At that election the Liberal Democrats secured a majority on the incoming council with 36 out of 65 councillors. Labour will have 15 councillors, the Conservatives will have 11 councillors, the Green Party will have 1 councillor and 2 councillors were elected as independents.[19][20]
| Affiliation | Members | |
| Liberal Democrats | 36 | |
| Labour Party | 15 | |
| Conservative Party | 11 | |
| Independent | 2 | |
| Green Party of England and Wales | 1 | |
See also
References
- ^ "Westmorland and Furness". www.westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk.
- ^ Colley, Jacob (12 May 2022). "New Cumbria councils to hold inaugural meetings - cumbriacrack.com". Cumbria Crack. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
- ^ "Leader selected for new Westmorland and Furness Council".
- ^ "Liberal Democrats elect new group leader for Westmorland and Furness Council - Cumberland and Westmorland Herald". 8 May 2022.
- ^ "Cumbria: local government re-organisation" (PDF).
- ^ "Next steps for new unitary councils in Cumbria, North Yorkshire and Somerset". Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government. 21 July 2021. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
- ^ a b "The Cumbria (Structural Changes) Order 2022".
- ^ "Names for two controversial Cumbria councils revealed". BBC News. 5 November 2021. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
- ^ "Local elections postponed in three English counties". BBC News. 23 February 2021. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
- ^ "Cumbria councils to be replaced by two authorities". BBC News. 22 July 2021. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
- ^ "Cumbria County Council launches legal action over shake-up". BBC News. October 2021. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
- ^ "Bid to stop local government reorganisation lands county council with £30,000 bill - cumbriacrack.com".
- ^ "The Cumbria (Structural Changes) Order 2022".
- ^ Kenyon, Megan (8 November 2021). "Names of two new Cumbria unitaries confirmed". Local Government Chronicle. Retrieved 4 May 2022.
- ^ "North Lonsdale Lancashire". Vision of Britain.
- ^ "The Cumbria (Structural Changes) Order 2022".
- ^ "The Cumbria (Structural Changes) Order 2022".
- ^ "Elections - May 2022". New Councils for Cumbria.
- ^ "Westmorland and Furness". www.westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk.
- ^ "Westmorland & Furness result - Local Elections 2022". BBC News.
External links
- Westmorland and Furness Shadow Authority
- Westmorland and Furness Joint Committee
- Two New Councils for Cumbria