PEOPLE are being urged to vote in dozens of new councillors as moves to create a new North Yorkshire authority start to take shape.

North Yorkshire Council will replace the eight authorities which currently provide public services, including Ryedale, Selby, Hambleton, Craven and Richmondshire district councils, and the borough councils of Harrogate and Scarborough.

A draft Structural Changes Order is before Parliament and paves the way for elections on May 5 for 90 councillors who will represent 89 new divisions.

Cllr Carl Les, leader of North Yorkshire County Council and chair of the senior councillor group, overseeing the planning for the new unitary’ authority, said: “This is an exciting moment for North Yorkshire and one which I hope people will look back on in the future as a game-changer for the county’s economic fortunes.

"The new single council will give our county a much stronger voice regionally and nationally.

“These are very important elections, because the councillors voted in this May will serve the final year of the county council and then they will be the voice of the people for the first four years of the new single council.

“This continuity is important and means that decisions on what public services will look like in the future and matters like council tax can start being made ahead of North Yorkshire Council’s first day on 1 April 2023. They will make decisions on services that affect you, your families and communities, so make sure you have a vote."

Existing councillors of districts and boroughs will remain in place until April 2023, after which those positions will cease to exist.

The county council's chief executive and chair of the officer team leading the planning, Richard Flinton, said: “This is an historic moment for North Yorkshire.

"To drive strong and lasting economic recovery post pandemic for the county and wider region we will need the devolution of powers and money from national government. This will allow us to focus on our own priorities and will give us the resources to deliver them.

“The new council will also ensure crucial public services are fit for the future at a time when there are real pressures on budgets for a number of key areas, including adult social care and services for children with additional needs.

"This is a large-scale change programme, but all eight councils are already working effectively together to build a single organisation, and a single team, committed to delivering the very best for residents, businesses and communities here.”

Planning for the new council’s function has been overseen since last year following the Government’s decision to end the two-tier system of county, district or borough councils in North Yorkshire.