South Hams Resistance

07/09/2026

Well, well, well.....

Proposals to merge smaller councils to form larger authorities have been paused or withdrawn in a number of areas.

04/09/2026

This is good progress but don't let warm words distract you. LGR is still happening and Plymouth are still coming to take our land and build their houses.

We must keep on fighting.

Liberal Democrat and Conservative MPs are working together to try to fight the government's plans.

13/08/2026

You have been warned. They don't even care anymore, so they don't even try to pretend this won't happen.

BURNHAM'S BOAT YARD

Andy Burnham has told us that wealthier areas must take their “fair share” of asylum seekers because poorer communities have carried too much of the burden.

WOW

As you may know, Plymouth is already a "City of Sanctuary" so EVERYONE is welcome.

No wonder Plymouth Labour wants to seize 13 South Hams parishes and drag communities including Ivybridge, Wembury, Yealmpton and Sparkwell inside a greatly expanded boundary, giving them more room for more people.

⁉️ Do we seriously believe a fair share and a land grab will remain completely unrelated?

Once those rural communities become part of Greater Plymouth, decisions affecting them will be made by the same city authority, including decisions about housing, asylum dispersal and sanctuary policies.

❗️ LET THAT SINK IN❗️

The land grab will give Plymouth access to a much larger area, more housing and communities currently outside the city boundary. Rural residents could find themselves expected to accommodate the consequences of policies they never voted for and over which their existing councils would have no control.

Now, there is not (yet) a published Plymouth document that says asylum dispersal is the official reason for this land grab. But Burnham has now stated the direction of travel in that wealthier areas must take more asylum seekers. You may not consider where you live a "wealthy" but that's not for you to decide. The only things you can now decide are:

1️⃣ How you feel about this latest revelation from Burnham.
2️⃣ Who you vote for at the next election(s).

So here's the perfectly legitimate question we need to ask.

Will Plymouth City Council rule out using any of the 13 South Hams parishes for asylum accommodation or future dispersal schemes❓

If the answer is yes, the council should put that commitment in writing before the boundary is changed.

If it refuses, people should ask why.

This is not merely an administrative tidy-up hidden behind LGR. Once Plymouth takes these communities, it controls what happens within them. And we've seen how they treat Plympton and Plymstock.

No land grab. No blank cheque. Let Devon decide.

22/07/2026

It's not over until it's over. 💪👊

Councils all over the country pushing back against LGR and planning to take legal action against the government.

Harlow's Conservative leader Dan Swords says Westminster's plans are "deeply flawed".

20/07/2026

100%

LGR: POLITICAL MANIPULATION OR NECESSARY EVIL?

As you'd expect, Plymouth Labour are claiming they have not cancelled the 2027 Plymouth City Council local elections because there will still be shadow elections in 2027 for Greater Plymouth.

FACT 1: They Are NOT The Same!
In May 2027, 19 sitting councillors are up for election. The people of Plymouth should have the opportunity to vote them in/out, and based on the 2026 election results, Reform would become the largest party in Plymouth City Council. Not guaranteed, but possible mathematically.

These elections are NOT taking place, so all 19 councillors will have their tenure extended. There will be no opportunity for anyone to vote them back in or out.

FACT 2: Shadow Elections
The shadow elections are for "Greater Plymouth". Unknown boundaries, wards, cost, etc. They do NOT replace like-for-like councillors.

The sitting councillors are not automatically moved across as every seat has to be elected, so they can, if THEY choose, not if the people choose, keep their existing seat until the new structure is in place.

IS LGR REALLY NEEDED?
I'm not opposed to the idea of a single-tier unitary authority model, but there's a massive cost to change how councils operate, and the typical promise of cost savings rarely materialises. But that's business.

Change costs time and money, but hopefully delivers long-term benefits for customers/residents and, of course, saves the organisation money. As ever, the devil is in the detail and get this wrong, and we all lose. And the risks of a Labour government getting this right are very low IMO. And if we look at local government, Plymouth Labour do not have a great track record of delivering big projects on time, on budget, and on scope.

Why someone thinks Plymouth Labour/Council can absorb 13 rural villages into a debt-ridden, broken city of their making is beyond me. They are either delusional or dishonest. You decide on that one.

✅ I'm all for government efficiency gains, but let the people decide.
✅ Stop forcing decisions from Westminster without proper consultation.
✅ Give the people a referendum on such a major change to their lives and the services they rely on.

WILL BURNHAM STOP LGR?
I don't think he will stop it, but if he is true to his word(!), then he will delay it so the LOCAL people can decide. Not Westminster. But don't hold your breath. But also don't just accept it as a "done deal".

Steve Reed cancelled the 2026 local elections.
Reform fought it and got them reinstated.
We go again.

FIGHT NOT FLIGHT.

19/07/2026

This.....

DEMOCRACY DESTROYED: PLYMOUTH’S 2027 LOCAL ELECTIONS CANCELLED

In May 2026, the people of Plymouth sent Labour a clear message:

We want you gone.

In May 2027, the final nail could have been driven into Labour’s control of Plymouth City Council.

But no.

They have found a way to stop the people of Plymouth having their say.

Under the Government’s local government reorganisation plans, Plymouth’s normal 2027 council elections will not take place.

And do not be fooled by talk of “shadow elections.”

Shadow elections are about choosing councillors for a future authority. They will not remove Labour from control of the existing Plymouth City Council in 2027.

Labour will remain in charge during the transition, without facing the election Plymouth voters were looking forward to.

So let me be absolutely clear:

No normal Plymouth election.
No chance to remove Labour in 2027.
No proper democratic vote.

They know what the people of Plymouth were preparing to do.

So the election has been taken away so you can't finally vote them out.

What do you think? Should Plymouth’s 2027 local elections go ahead as planned, so voters can decide who runs our city?

16/07/2026

Labour got our villages.

Date 16 July 2026 The Government has today confirmed it will adopt the four unitary model put forward by Plymouth and Exeter as the basis for Local Government Reorganisation in Devon.  Currently, services in Devon are split between different types of councils. Most of the county operates un...

08/07/2026

This week is a REALLY important week for the South Hams as it's the Local Government Association’s annual conference.

And a BIG topic is LGR with LGA chair, Eamonn O’Brien, suggesting that with a new incoming PM, it's a good time to revisit LGR proposals.

To quote:

Cllr O’Brien, who is the leader of Bury MBC, said that “the delivery concerns of existing councils need to be heard and acted on”. This includes the “tight timescales and the unprecedented scale of disaggregation” that “pose significant risks to statutory services and core local delivery”.

Who knows what this delusional Labour government will do?

Assuming Burnham is the next PM, will he put devolution ahead of LGR?

Or will Burnham try to do both at the same time?

But let's be very clear about one thing, no one in South Hams wants Tudor Evans and his cronies stomping over our land.

Best case scenario?

Burnham delays Devon LGR, 2027 Plymouth City Council elections go ahead, Labour lose their majority, and the land grab is cancelled. 👊

17/03/2026

Make sure you have your say. Last chance to stop the Plymouth land grab.

https://www.devonlgr.co.uk/

19/12/2025

Well, who would have expected this huh! They can't manage an election, but they think they can steal our villages.

A government letter has put Plymouth on a list of councils whose May 2026 elections could be postponed. If that happens, we won’t get a say until 2027.