Local Government Review for Suffolk - the shambles continues...

The third deadline for the report of the Boundary Commission into the structural review of local government in Suffolk was originally due on 31 December, then mid-February, and then 15 July. Money has been spent by the district and borough councils, as well as by the County Council, planning for what might be to come, and contesting the process thus far, with all the inefficiency and dislocation that comes with an uncertain future.

And today, another blow to good governance comes with Justice Foskett's ruling (CO/4722/2009 Forest Heath DC vs Electoral Commission Boundary Committee for England) published this morning, in which he states that "the Boundary Committee should have discussed with the Claimants any reservations it had about whether the concepts advanced met the Secretary of State’s criteria before publishing the Draft proposals in July 2008 and also in March this year.".

Naturally, the Electoral Commission will now retreat into a huddle to work out what they do next. And even more naturally, the seven district and borough councils and the county council will wonder what to do in the interim...