Many readers of this column will be familiar with the recent return of the TV series The Bay, a crime drama set in and around Morecambe Bay in North West England.
You may also be familiar with my updates over the years on the opportunities that exist across a similar geography and the increased collaboration of the three local authorities that cover Barrow, Lancaster and South Lakeland, also known as The Bay in many circles.
It’s no coincidence the two are so congruent; the connections are undeniable. Economic ties have been longstanding. Our joint ambitions to tackling inequalities and the climate emergency, established community links, heritage and cultural assets, and a co-terminus health boundary sit among other associations.
Enter stage left, the prospect of local government reorganisation (LGR), for three areas of England. Whatever your thoughts may be on LGR, it has brought together our three councils like nothing before.
The narrative we had to develop our growth plans has been cemented by the ability to rationally and comprehensively put forward a proposal for a unitary council for our three local authority areas, straddling two county boundaries, that draws on the best districts, counties and the wider public sector deliver and can provide more effectively with our proposal.
This is not about simplicity for Government, but about creating fundamental change in public sector reform that is not hidebound by the current fragmentation of reforms that continue to hinder the UK’s prospects into the future.
It is a local place-based approach that taken further afield opens the doors to many other opportunities we are yet to encounter. It brings alive the ambitions, determination and aspiration we share.
Our proposals meet with significant support from our communities, and those communities must play a significant part in any future consultations should our proposals go forward, for it is for them that we serve.
It would be a lost opportunity for future generations and central/local government if our only memory is a 9pm slot on Wednesday night television to reflect on what could have been.
Lawrence Conway is chief executive of South Lakeland DC