Selby District Council has ceased to exist as control over local services were transferred to the new North Yorkshire Council, over the weekend.
The change is the biggest shake up in how the area is governed since 1974 and sees the former council areas of Scarborough, Hambleton, Harrogate, Ryedale and Selby brought under control of a new single authority.
New council top brass say the merged super-council will achieve millions of pounds in annual savings, thus protecting local services at a time of unprecedented strain on public finances.
Meanwhile, critics of the move have said the new council's patch, stretching from Whitby to the Moors and from Richmond in the north and Selby in the south, is simple to big and varied to manage effectively.
The new council will retain a main office in each former district area, supported by additional customer access points in the places people go, such as libraries.
Cllr Les, who will assume the leadership of the new council, said: “The launch of the new North Yorkshire Council represents a major milestone for the county, and will bring benefits for hundreds of thousands of people.
“It is a watershed for North Yorkshire, bringing together vital public services in a way that will just make sense to people. Highways repairs and street cleaning, waste collection and disposal, economic regeneration, housing, planning and children’s and adult services – all these will be delivered with a shared countywide ambition and drive.
“So much work has already been undertaken across all eight councils to prepare for the launch of the new authority, and I would like to pay tribute to the commitment and professionalism of all officers and members who have been instrumental in making sure we are ready for 1 April.”
While uniting council services has been a long term aim for the former North Yorkshire Council - having failed in an earlier bid to assume control of its districts in 2007 - it has been the current government's desire to roll-out 'regional mayors', that has enabled Northallerton's eventual success.
The new council is being launched to pave the way for a devolution deal, which is set to provide more decision-making powers to local political leaders and unlocks millions of pounds in additional funding from the Government.
Westminster has made local government reorganisation a key requirement for devolution to take place, forcing the replacement of the two-tier system local government in North Yorkshire, in favour of the new unitary authority.
