Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer speaks during an International Men's Day reception at Downing Street in London, Wednesday Nov. 19, 2025. Labour’s offer for some councils to delay more local elections has sparked concern from the UK’s elections watchdog. The government might postpone elections for some 63 council areas in May 2026 until the following year as they grapple with Labour’s restructuring plans. The government is scrapping two-tier authorities and merging them into single unitary councils by 2028. But some councils say this huge change has left them unable to cope with setting up new voting systems. So Labour has invited councils to raise capacity concerns, and delay their elections if they want to. The Electoral Commission’s chief executive, Vijay Rangarajan, expressed his frustration over the prospect of delaying more elections. He said : “We are disappointed by both the timing and substance of the statement. “Scheduled elections should as a rule go ahead as planned, and only be postponed in exceptional circumstances.” Decisions on postponements will not be taken until mid- January, which is just three months before local elections will go ahead. Rangarajan said: “This uncertainty is unprecedented and will not help campaigners and administrators who need time to prepare for their important roles. “We very much recognise the pressures on local government, but these late changes do not help administrators. Parties and candidates have already been preparing for some time, and will be understandably concerned.” The watchdog chief added that capacity constraints are not a “legitimate reason” to delay such elections, adding: “There is a clear conflict of interest in asking existing councils to decide how long it will be before they are answerable to voters.” Labour already postponed local elections in Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Hampshire, East Sussex and West Sussex meant to take place in 2025 until next year – and they will now be asked if they want to delay until 2027. Four inaugural mayoral elections meant to take place in 2026, Essex, Hampshire and the Solent, Sussex and Brighton, and Norfolk and Suffolk, may also be delayed until 2028. The government’s critics have accused Labour of trying to put off the May elections as a matter of politics, especially as a poor result is expected to be the breaking point for Keir Starmer’s premiership. The party is currently trailing behind Reform UK in the polls and so are widely expected to capitalise on the next bout of elections. Sceptics suggest the government wants to postpone the elections in the hope that Reform dips in popularity before the public hit the ballot box again. Reform leader Nigel Farage fumed over the news, claiming Labour was turning Britain into a “banana republic” and suggested he would draw up plans for a legal challenge to prevent delays in the areas. Shadow local government secretary James Cleverly said Labour was “scared of the voters” and had shown a “disdain for local democracy”. The chair of the District Councils’ Network, councillor Richard Wright, also warned: “The government has fallen into a pattern of failing to anticipate obvious issues with how council reorganisation impacts on local democracy, making promises on the timing of elections that cannot be fulfilled and then changing policy at the last minute. “Electoral officers are operating in a climate of uncertainty, which wastes time and money – for instance when venues have to be booked for election counts that don’t take pace. “Most seriously, the electorate will be understandably confused by the constant shifting of the goalposts and broken promises. This has the potential to undermine faith in our cherished local democracy.” However, Labour’s trade minister Chris Bryant defended the changes when speaking to Times Radio on Friday. He said: “Some people will see a conspiracy in anything anybody does in government. It’s one of the most important reorganisations we’ve done in many, many decades. “And I think it’s clearing up something which I’ve always thought was a bit bonkers, which is in lots of local areas, you’ll have a local district council and then a county council. “Do you want to have another round of elections next year for people who will effectively only be in charge of a local authority for a single year? That seems a bit daft.” Related... 'This Is A Disgrace': Labour Under Fire For Delaying Mayoral Elections 'You Like This Idea': Trump Jokes About Cancelling 2028 Elections To Fight War Starmer's Conference Speech Bought Him Time – But May's Elections Could Still Spell The End For The PM