As we race towards the first local government reorganisation deadline at the end of this month, it would be easy to forget that devolution is also on the horizon. With the Devolution Priority Programme areas absorbed in their submissions for unitary proposals, little bandwidth remains for anything else. Yet reorganisation is only the opening act.
Devolution is the next phase, and fully joined-up public services are the intended finale – if, of course, the Government makes it that far without being derailed by electoral cycles or political distractions. After all, this is an agenda that demands not only a willing government, but also a Parliamentary majority.
