MP to take part in all party meeting on unitary council proposal

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Thu 24th May 2007

Local MP Tim Farron will tomorrow take part in an all party meeting on the unitary council proposal organised by South Lakeland District Council. Tomorrow's meeting follows a meeting earlier in the week in Westminister when Tim met with the chief executives from the five district councils in Cumbria who oppose the plan.

Speaking before tomorrow's meeting, Tim said: "We need government which is close to the people, and delivers the services people want on boundaries which they identify with. The Government in London needs to recognise that Cumbria is an amalgamation of four historic counties - Westmorland, Cumberland, Lancashire, and Yorkshire. To fuse this huge area into one unitary authority ignores our local identity.

"The recent poll conducted by the Westmorland Gazette shows that there is little public support for this proposal. We now need to ensure that the Government in London doesn't make the wrong decision once the consultation period has finished."