New Housing Secretary Angela Rayner will take on the reorganisation of local government in East Sussex after Steve Reed was sacked in Monday’s cabinet re-shuffle.
In one of his final duties he announced the plan for the county on Thursday 16 July. He said the government would be moving ahead with a two-unitary model for East Sussex and Brighton, but also confirmed this plan would include most of the “boundary changes requested by Brighton and Hove City Council.”
Mr Reed said, “Two-tier structures are confusing for residents, divide responsibilities, slow down decisions, duplicate costs and blur accountability. In many areas, existing boundaries no longer match patterns of local economies, public services or local identities. We can’t continue with an outdated and misaligned system that does not serve local people well. We can do better.”
In Rye that means one local authority – East Sussex Council, replacing East Sussex County Council and Rother District Council from 2028. Elections for the new authority will be held in May next year.
East Sussex County Council leader Andy Woolley (Reform UK) said the authority would be calling on the government to “urgently reconsider” the decision to move East Saltdean, Telscombe, and Peacehaven out of East Sussex and into an expanded Brighton and Hove City Council.
“It is wrong,” he said. “This is a significant and far reaching change, and it risks undermining identity, representation and local trust in the communities affected. The question this government needs to answer is simple: if not to the people directly affected, who exactly is it listening to? Stripped of the process and the paperwork, this is a Labour government handing part of East Sussex to a Labour-run council in Brighton, to help it build the homes its own targets require.”
There is no mention of how town and parish councils will work with the new authority. The government is exploring plans for Neighbourhood Area Committees and District Associations.
Rye Town Council’s meeting on Monday 20 July discussed the idea. “Another job creation scheme,” said Councillor Everett. Councillors agreed to ignore the idea until it had more detail.
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