Chorley MP says local elections should go ahead, despite council position

By Senior Westminster Producer Lili Donlon-Mansbridge

The Speaker of the House of Commons, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, told a councillor that he thinks the local elections in Chorley this May should go ahead, ITV News can reveal.

Chorley Borough Council, which is run by Labour, is among several councils that have written to the government requesting that their elections in May be postponed. A third of seats on the council were due to be up for election.

But in an email shared exclusively with ITV News, Hoyle, who is also the Chorley MP, said he “personally believe[s] that the local elections on May 2026 should take place”. 

He added he did not “believe in cancelling elections” in principle.

The email was sent on January 12, just days before the deadline for councils to write to the government requesting a delay.

Asked by a Reform Lancashire county councillor if he would “seek assurances” from the chief executive and leader of Chorley Council that elections would not be delayed, Hoyle wrote he had made his views “clearly known to the leader of the Council.”

Hoyle acknowledged that, despite his views, he “understood the arguments made for postponing elections” during local government reorganisation and that it was up to Chorley Council to determine their own position.

“Whilst I understand the arguments made for postponing elections given the fact that wholesale change will be implemented in the next 12 months, I do not believe in cancelling elections and personally believe that the local elections on May 2026 should take place,” he wrote.

“I have made these views clearly known to the Leader of the Council. However, this is not a decision I can make. It is for the council in Chorley to determine its own actions and explain their position accordingly to the public.”

Hoyle has been the MP for Chorley since 1997. He was previously elected as a Labour MP, but has been politically neutral since he took up the role of Speaker of the House of Commons in November 2019.

The Speaker of the House is elected by MPs at the start of every new parliament. The role includes overseeing the debate and rules of the House of Commons. It is a politically impartial role.

In December 2025, ministers wrote to 63 councils that were scheduled to hold elections in May, offering the option to push them back because the restructure is taking longer than expected.

ITV News research has found that 29 councils have written to the council requesting to push back their ballots. 20 of these are run by Labour majority or minority organisations.

The leader of Chorley Council, Cllr Alistair Bradley, told a meeting about the decision in November that proceeding with elections “would throw a huge spanner” into the process of reorganisation.

Chorley Council is expected to be part of a significant restructuring determined by central government, which could see it merge with nearby South Ribble and West Lancashire to form a new council area.

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Commenting on the decision to ask to delay elections, Cllr Bradley said: “If you change the entire cast list a month before you are going to be having a conversation with the government, that just doesn’t make any kind of sense - because the people coming in would quite rightly say, [that they] did not agree to any of this.

He also suggested those opposed to delaying the elections were holding back the process of reorganisation.

“There are certain elements within Lancashire who don't want change and do not want any kind of progression on local government. They tend to be small interest groups…who are doing it for their own political ends - and I include the [Reform UK] county council administration [in that],” he said.

Later in the email, Hoyle pointed to Reform UK supporting the cancellation of elections at a County Council level, which were due to be in 2027. Lancashire County Council does not have any elections currently scheduled for 2026.

He wrote: “I agree with your sentiments about the importance of local democracy and therefore was somewhat confused to learn that you voted in favour of postponing elections to the new shadow authorities, currently proposed for 2027, by one year, until 2028.

“Surely the principle of democracy applies to any newly created authority from day one in the same way it applies to existing councils”.

A Reform UK spokesperson described this as "a fundamental misunderstanding of the council meeting" in question.

They added: "At this meeting, the Reform-led administration passed this motion regarding local election.

“Instruct the Chief Executive to write to the Secretary of State seeking an assurance from him that local elections will not be cancelled, and request that steps are taken to repeal s.87 of the Local Government Act 2000, removing the Secretary of State's power to cancel elections without a debate and vote in Parliament.

“Share that letter with all Lancashire MP's and Council Leaders in Lancashire to ask for them to defend our democracy and write to the Secretary of State to support our position.

“At the same meeting, the council debated Local Government reorganisation. 

“It decided to request that the Chief Executive separately writes to the Secretary of State to request that shadow elections for the new Lancashire unitaries do not take place before May 2028, to ensure stabilisation and improvements to key services i.e. adult social care and SEND.

"Reform UK in Lancashire County Council will never and have never supported cancelling elections."

See Hoyle's email in full:

Many thanks for your e-mail regarding proposals for local government reform and the potential impact this will have on local elections due to be held in May of this year.

I believe the government have asked each district council to make clear whether they believe local elections should be held in May in light of the fact that consultation on new local government structures will be undertaken early in the New Year with the new structures implemented from May 2027. Elections to the new shadow authorities would be conducted in May 2027.

Whilst I understand the arguments made for postponing elections given the fact that wholesale change will be implemented in the next 12 months, I do not believe in cancelling elections and personally believe that the local elections on May 2026 should take place. I have made these views clearly known to the Leader of the Council. However, this is not a decision I can make. It is for the council in Chorley to determine its own actions and explain their position accordingly to the public.

I agree with your sentiments about the importance of local democracy and therefore was somewhat confused to learn that you voted in favour of postponing elections to the new shadow authorities, currently proposed for 2027, by one year, until 2028. Surely the principle of democracy applies to any newly created authority from day one in the same way it applies to existing councils.

RegardsRt Hon Sir Lindsay Hoyle MP

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