#2026/482Transitional Rules for English Devolution and Community Empowerment Changes
AI-generated summary for informational purposes only. Not legal advice. See the original source for the authoritative text.
These regulations keep certain local government reforms on their existing track while the new English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act 2026 takes effect. If the government had already consulted on creating a combined county authority for areas including Essex, Hampshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, the Isle of Wight, Portsmouth, Southampton, Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock, the older 2023 rules continue to apply for that process. They also preserve existing definitions for some Greater London Authority-related bodies when applying local audit and local government finance rules. The practical effect is administrative continuity: councils and officials can continue work already underway without restarting or reshaping it because of the new 2026 Act.
AI-generated summary. May contain errors. Refer to official sources for legal decisions.
Key Changes
- Allows already-consulted combined county authority proposals in listed council areas to continue under the 2023 framework
- Prevents specific 2026 Act amendments from disrupting those ongoing local government processes
- Preserves existing functional body definitions for local audit and local government finance purposes
Obligations
What this law requires
When making regulations under Chapter 1 of Part 2 of the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 to establish a combined county authority in the area of Essex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Norfolk, Portsmouth City, Southampton City, Southend-on-Sea City, Suffolk or Thurrock, where the Secretary of State consulted under section 46(3) before the 2026 Act passed, the process must continue under the unamended 2023 Act provisions rather than applying the amendments made by section 4 and Part 2 of Schedule 1 to the 2026 Act.
For qualifying 2023 Act regulations establishing a combined county authority in a relevant council area after a pre-2026 Act consultation, sections 102 and 103 of the 2026 Act must be applied as though those regulations had already come into force before sections 102 and 103 commenced.
When applying section 44 of the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014 or section 23 of the Local Government Act 2003, officials must not apply the amendments made to the definition of functional bodies in section 424(1) of the Greater London Authority Act 1999 by paragraph 20(7) of Part 2 of Schedule 18 to the 2026 Act.