That principle has guided my approach throughout the national discussions on local government reorganisation and the Government’s suggestion that councils might request a postponement of the May 2026 local elections. I am pleased that ministers have now confirmed elections will proceed across Hampshire as planned - even as they are being delayed in other parts of the country. Hampshire residents deserve the opportunity to vote at the time promised, not at a moment that better suits a bureaucratic timetable. The 2025 elections were delayed to allow the Government’s fast-track devolution process to proceed. If capacity is genuinely the issue, then it is reorganisation - not elections - that should be delayed.