The Leader of Stafford Borough Council has said he will do everything he can to prevent the Borough being split up as part of local government reorganisation.

Councillor Aidan Godfrey spoke out following comments in a report by Stoke-on- Trent City Council that suggested the town of Stone could potentially come under a new North Staffordshire authority.

The Stafford Borough Council Leader said any attempt to take Stone from the rest of the Borough was a ‘red line’ - and was confident his fellow Borough councillors feel the same way. He also said he was in talks with other council leaders in Staffordshire about their plans for the reorganisation.

A Government White Paper on Devolution at the end of last year has paved the way for all district, borough, small unitary and county councils in Staffordshire to be abolished. They would be replaced by new larger unitary authorities.

The Government has said that they prefer proposals for the new unitary councils to use existing district boundaries as this would make them easier and quicker to establish. The leaders of all the councils in Staffordshire have been looking at putting interim proposals to the Ministry of Housing, Culture and Local Government later this month.

A ‘position statement’ backed by Stoke-on-Trent City Council’s Cabinet revealed a proposed ‘North Staffordshire Unitary Authority’ - which would see the City merge with Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council and Staffordshire Moorlands District Council.

In the document it says: “Where North Staffordshire starts and ends is a matter of interpretation. Certainly, there are parts of the district of Stafford, such as the townships of Stone and in East Staffordshire, Uttoxeter, that would at least see themselves as part of the northern area of the ceremonial county of Staffordshire.”

Councillor Godfrey said: “From the outset I have made it clear that we must do the best for our communities regarding any local government reorganisation - and that would suggest keeping Stafford Borough together.

“I am sure I speak for the whole Council when I say that any proposal to split our Stafford and Stone would be a red line for this authority. We have a strong track record as one borough, with two major towns, and we are proud of what we have delivered for the area and I will do everything I can to ensure we stay together.”

He added that Borough and District Council leaders from Cannock Chase, East Staffordshire, Lichfield, South Staffordshire, Stafford and Tamworth had been having informal discussions regarding the option of a Southern Staffordshire unitary council.

Councillor Godfrey continued: “We are all agreed that the benefits to our communities must be paramount in any proposals for local government reorganisation - and for me this would work best if the six southern councils came together to form a new unitary authority.

“Our councils have worked together for many years on various projects, or sharing functions, to help deliver more efficient services for our residents and businesses. Importantly it will be a unitary of the population specified in the Government White Paper and created from existing authority boundaries - which will therefore result in a smoother, and more cost effective, process of reorganisation.

“I believe that together we have the geography and a joint economic ambition that can create a cohesive new unitary authority for Staffordshire.”

Stafford Borough Council and Cannock Chase District Council have been sharing services for more than a decade for a combined population of more than 240,000. The Government White paper states all new unitary authorities should be 500,000 in size.

Press Release No 6196