Elections will go ahead as planned for Lincolnshire County Council, as well as a new Mayor for Greater Lincolnshire, on 1 May 2025.
Cllr Martin Hill, leader of Lincolnshire County Council, has reacted to the government’s announcement that some councils will be postponing their elections while they pursue local government reorganisation.
Cllr Hill, said: “We have been planning for our elections to go ahead as usual, and it is not a surprise that we are not included in the list of councils that are postponing theirs. We expressed an interest in Greater Lincolnshire being part of the first wave of local government reorganisation, and had said we would be open to deferring our elections if needed. We did not request specifically to defer our elections.
“Although it’s disappointing that we won’t be in the first phase of reorganisation, we will keep pushing for more straight-forward local government across Greater Lincolnshire. I believe we must look at what is best for residents and what will offer the best value for money, and develop proposals that deliver this.”
The new Greater Lincolnshire Combined County Authority, (GLCCA), is now an official body, following final communication from the Government.
The Leaders of Lincolnshire County Council and North and North East Lincolnshire unitary authorities have received an official letter from the Minister of State for Local Government and English Devolution, Jim McMahon OBE MP
This confirms he has signed the Greater Lincolnshire Combined County Authority Regulations 2025, which created the GLCCA and devolves functions to it.
In the correspondence, the Minister adds: “I would like to thank you and your officers for your hard work in enabling us to deliver this landmark agreement for the people of Greater Lincolnshire.”
Following this, the first meeting of the new authority’s board will be in early March, with the election for a Mayor going ahead as planned on Thursday 1 May.
Reacting to the news, Cllr Martin Hill OBE, the Leader of Lincolnshire County Council said: “There has been a lot of hard work to get to this point, and much more still to do. I firmly believe that decisions that affect local people should be taken locally, and the benefits of devolution mean that we will be in charge of our own future in Greater Lincolnshire. These issues are really important to residents’ everyday lives, when it comes to the housing available, how we all get about the county and the jobs and training that are available.
“We’ll also be able to deal more directly with government in representing the needs of our area, and have a clearer voice to attract more investment.”
As reported, the Government confirmed its support for the GLCCA in the autumn of last year, following a two-month public consultation last January and February.
The deal brings with it an investment package of £720m over 30 years with a one-off capital investment of £28.4m to invest in priority schemes across the Greater Lincolnshire footprint. With it also comes an elected Mayor to chair the new authority and give our region a greater voice in Westminster.
Currently announced candidates for the Greater Lincolnshire Mayor are Dame Andrea Jenkyns (Reform UK), Jason Stockwood (Labour) and Rob Waltham (Conservative).
