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7.00am 7th day of the 7th month. So this is it then ….my third go at trying to get Ipswich to have a new unitary council.

This time it is the Boundary Committee who have been reviewing the various options and for all of us in Devon, Norfolk and Suffolk this announcement is a key moment on the road to unitary local government.

I must give credit to the Boundary Committee. At this time on Monday morning, they have kept the lid on their views so as I await the e-mail  I am completely unaware of the recommendations.  Obviously these recommendations still have to be consulted upon and the secretary of state's final decision will be made in February 2009 but this is a major hurdle which must be jumped.

Unitary local government is the best way of delivering services and two tier authorities both districts and counties are becoming increasingly marginalised and hindered in service delivery. 

It is an extremely serious time for all councillors and staff across these three Counties and the time is very limited with the new authorities to be operational from April 2010 ie: 21 months, which means that whatever the outcome work on setting up the proposed Local Authorities needs to start now.  We must work together for the benefit of our communities.

Well it's 7.00am and the email has come through – press announcement at 12.00 noon.  The recommendation is to replace the seven districts and county council with an Ipswich and Felixstowe unitary authority and a Suffolk unitary authority covering the rest of the County (except Lowestoft).

This results in a unitary of over 200,000 for Ipswich and Felixstowe and another of 400,000 for the remainder of Suffolk.

Ipswich is at the Southern part of the county of Suffolk and has strong economic links with the surrounding areas as a key player in the Haven Gateway Partnership.

These proposals are now open for consultation until 26th September.

It is extremely important, given the tight timetable, to move now to set up the new unitary authorities. Ipswich BC and Suffolk CC are the lead authorities for each of the two options respectively and of course we need to work closely with all other local authorities, town and parish councils and partner agencies. 

It's going to be an exciting and challenging few months but the opportunities for improved services are immense.  We must take them.

James Hehir is chief executive of Ipswich BC