Plans to replace Norfolk’s councils with three unitary authorities are being reconsidered following new legal advice.

A major reorganisation of local government in Norfolk has been withdrawn while the Government reviews the plans.

County, district and borough councils had been due to be replaced by three unitary authorities with greater powers. The decision was among the last major moves made by Keir Starmer’s administration before he was replaced by Andy Burnham.

Following new legal advice, Angela Rayner, Secretary of State for Local Government, has withdrawn the decision. The move will also affect Essex, Hampshire and Suffolk.

In a statement expected in Parliament today, September 7th, Ms Rayner will say she wants to ensure the process is “robust” and complies with the law. She also intends to consider whether the proposals meet the priorities of the new administration and Prime Minister.

The Government announced in March that three new authorities would cover West Norfolk, East Norfolk and Greater Norwich. A single unitary council was among the other options considered during consultation.

The new councils were expected to begin operating in April 2028. Elections to shadow authorities were planned for May 2027, allowing a year for the transition from the existing structure.

The changes were due to take place alongside plans for a combined mayor covering Norfolk and Suffolk.

Reform UK-led Norfolk County Council had sought a judicial review of the reorganisation. Deputy leader Cllr Robin Hunter-Clarke submitted the challenge in a letter to the then-Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, Steve Reed, in June.

Cllr Hunter-Clarke welcomed the withdrawal as a “great day for Norfolk”. He said the proposed changes would have raised costs, disrupted services and lacked residents’ support, and called on ministers to abandon local government reorganisation altogether.

North West Norfolk MP James Wild criticised the cost of the process and said the Government should reimburse West Norfolk taxpayers. He also claimed Norfolk was losing tens of millions of pounds in investment after mayoral elections were delayed until 2028.

Jonathan Carr-West, chief executive of the Local Government Information Unit, warned that the reorganisation risked becoming a “colossal white elephant”. He said councils had devoted thousands of hours to meeting challenging Government deadlines and called for lessons to be learned quickly.