Why did Reform tell officers to down tools on Local Government Reorganisation? Here’s the maths Labour didn’t want you to see. 
Norfolk County Council manages £2.2 billion of your money every year. So when the Labour government ordered a restructure, you’d think they’d pick the option that saves the most. Wouldn’t you?
You’d be wrong!
Three options were on the table:
One council — saves £39.8m a year. Pays for itself in 12 months.
Two councils — saves £1.5m a year. Takes 42 years to break even.
Three councils — costs £33.8m a year MORE than what we have now. Never breaks even. Ever.
Labour chose option three.
The transformation bill? Up to £90 million. That’s roughly 16% of everything Norfolk raises in council tax in a single year. To run a restructure that makes things permanently more expensive.
Want that in plain English? That £90m could run our entire Fire Service and Communities budget combined — for nearly two years. Instead, we’re spending it to end up worse off.
Now here’s where it gets spicy. 
Apparently, our officers couldn’t write the business case themselves — so six Norfolk district councils hired a London consultancy, Inner Circle, to write it for them. Then NCC hired the same firm again — for up to £6.3m — to implement the plan they’d just recommended. Funny how that works.
Oh, and it was signed off five weeks before the County elections. Without going to scrutiny. You couldn’t make it up. Although apparently, someone did.
When Reform said “down tools” — this is why. Not ideology. Not obstruction. Basic maths.
In 30 years of business, I never once hired a consultant to tell me which option lost the most money — and then paid them again to lose it.
Norfolk deserves better than this. That’s why I stood as a councillor.
If this surprises you — share it. People need to know what’s been decided in their name.
