Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to her Department's Devolution White Paper (CP 1218), published on 16 December 2024, who will carry existing debt held by local authorities where a local government restructuring occurs.

It is the responsibility of councils to manage their budgets, and it is standard for councils to borrow and to hold debt, which they will do in the normal course of business. Local government re-organisation does not change this.