THE borough’s Labour group has expressed concern after it was announced that a deadline for Hampshire councils to submit proposals for a larger combined authority has been moved forward to September.

As previously reported by The Gazette, councils across Hampshire are in discussions to create a large combined authority to receive more powers and millions of pounds from central Government.

If they were to go ahead, it would see the creation of a “southern powerhouse”, which would make decisions on issues such as health, the environment and transport.

The plan would mean that Hampshire’s existing councils would still carry out their functions but a new layer of Government, made up of a joint-committee of council leaders, would hold the control of millions of pounds of funding each year, currently in the hands of Government ministers.

In addition, borough and district councils could bid to carry out functions which are currently held by Hampshire County Council such as transport.

The move follows the example of Greater Manchester – dubbed the “Northern powerhouse” by Chancellor George Osborne – which now has control over the area’s £6billion health budget, a £300million housing fund and £500m of skills spending.

At a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday evening, council leader Councillor Clive Sanders, who has been leading discussions with other councils, said that the Government has now asked for the proposal to be submitted by September 4.

But the deputy leader of the borough’s Labour group, Cllr Michael Westbrook, has expressed concern that there is a danger of rushing the proposals.

He told the meeting: “Basingstoke mustn’t be sidelined or pushed into something for the sake of the latest Government deadline or antic. Our democratic structures have been in place for many years and we shouldn’t allow them to be torn up in the middle of the holiday season and replaced by a potentially rushed, ill-thought through and unequal proposal without meaningful consultation with our residents that may not be in our wider interest.”

Cllr Sanders said that he would be telling other councils that there would be a number of non-negotiable preconditions for Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council to sign up to the combined authority, including the retention of control of planning, borough assets and existing income streams.

He added: “We have the sixth lowest council tax in the country because of the assets we hold. Therefore we need to make sure we don’t lose control of the assets or the income that comes from those assets.

“I think it is also important to take the opportunity to be really realistic. Are the right functions being done by the right people? It is important that we don’t rush and make any major mistakes now that will come back to bite us in the not too distant future.”

An extraordinary meeting is expected to be arranged for the first week in September to consider proposals before the council agrees to back the plan.