Our letter to the Petitions Committee

16th January 2026

Dear Members of the Petitions Committee,

More than 20 councils have asked the government to cancel their elections. Cancelling elections undermines accountability and denies millions of voters the chance to have a say in who runs their area.

A petition has reached over 140,000 signatures, triggering the threshold for Parliament to debate it:

Remove power to cancel local government elections - Petitions

This debate is urgent, as the government is expected to officially cancel these elections in the next few weeks.

Please can you ensure this debate is scheduled to take place before these elections are cancelled, rather than afterwards?

I look forward to your response.

Yours sincerely,

Tom Brake
CEO
Unlock Democracy