Last night, South Hams District Council and West Devon Borough Council voted on the proposal to create one new council. The results are as follows:
- In South Hams 19 councillors voted to submit a proposal to the secretary of state, 8 voted against and 3 councillors abstained
- In West Devon 13 councillors voted to submit a proposal to the secretary of state and 18 voted against the proposal
This means that the proposal to create one new council for South Hams and West Devon will not be submitted to the Secretary of State.
Councillors from both authorities now need some time to regroup and talk to their members before making any further statements about what this outcome means.