In December 2024, the Government published a White Paper proposing significant reform to how local government is structured in England.

The programme includes two main initiatives: Devolution and Local Government Reorganisation (LGR).

Devolution

Devolution is where power and funding that sits with national government in Whitehall is transferred to local areas so that decision making takes place locally. It already exists in some parts of the UK where regional Strategic Authorities with an elected Mayor have been set up.

Strategic Authorities usually cover a population of around 1.5 million people, so in our case, we would be part of the Hampshire and The Solent Strategic Authority. This new authority would include the areas currently covered by Hampshire County Council, Portsmouth City Council, Southampton City Council and Isle of Wight Council.

The Strategic Authority and regional Mayor would be responsible for planning, housing, transport, infrastructure, jobs, skills and other critical services for their area. They will be given the power and funding to do this by central government.

Local Government Reorganisation (LGR)

Alongside devolution, the government has said it wants to simplify the current two-tier county and district council system and instead have new, unitary local authorities that cover populations of at least 500,000.

At the moment, residents in Havant receive some services such as planning and waste collection from Havant Borough Council, and other services such as social care, education and highways from Hampshire County Council.

Under the new structure, residents would receive all these services from one new, unitary authority. The government has asked existing councils to look at how they might combine to form new councils of the appropriate size to sit within the overarching Strategic Authority.

The Devolution Priority Programme

The Devolution Priority Programme (DPP) was set up by government so that some areas could be fast tracked through the process. Areas that joined the DPP were guaranteed financial support to set up Strategic Authorities and be more closely involved in developing the approach to devolution and LGR.

In January 2025, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Portsmouth and Southampton Councils submitted a joint expression of interest in joining the DPP.

On 5 February 2025, the government announced that the Hampshire and the Solent area had been selected to join the DPP.

Following the announcement, each council within Hampshire and the Isle of Wight received a letter outlining the next steps, including the postponement of local elections due to be held in May, 2025 to May 2026.

Havant Borough Council is working closely with colleagues at our neighbouring authorities to prepare an initial proposal to submit to government by 21 March.

Government consultation on devolution – have your say

On 17 February, the government launched an online consultation in areas in the DPP to give residents an opportunity to have their say. We issued a press release and social media messages with a message from the council’s leader, Councillor Phil Munday, encouraging residents to take part.

The consultation is open until 13 April, and you can find out more information and access it via the below links:

Timelines and next steps 

This is a complex and ambitious programme of change and we will update this part of our website regularly with information and decisions.

Key dates and events:

21 March 2025 – initial proposal from Hampshire and The Solent area to be submitted to government

13 April 2025 – government consultation on devolution closed

26 September 2025 – final proposal from Hampshire and The Solent area to be submitted to government

May 2026 – Mayoral election in Hampshire and The Solent expected to take place

2027 – 2028 – New unitary council arrangements likely to take effect

For more information, go to the GOV.UK website: Devolution - GOV.UK