Angela Rayner has been told to repay millions of pounds that Reform UK councils spent on her botched local government reorganisation.

Reform leaders have written to the Communities Secretary demanding that she cover the costs they incurred as a result of the failed shake-up.

A dozen Reform-controlled county councils said they had spent nearly £14m getting ready for the reforms, and demanded Ms Rayner cover the bill.

They said Labour must not “leave councils and local taxpayers to pay for the consequences” of its actions.

Last week, Ms Rayner announced that she was halting her plans to restructure councils after legal threats from some that she intended to abolish. Political opponents accused her of a “shambolic U-turn”.

But many local authorities have racked up costs of millions of pounds preparing for the boundary changes.

‘Local government is broken’

Richard Tice, the party’s deputy leader, said: “Local government is already broken and buckling under massive financial pressure.

“Now Labour has dumped millions more in costs on them for a shambolic reorganisation that looks like it isn’t even going to happen. That’s money that should have gone to keeping taxes down or protecting local services.

“This has been a total shambles from start to finish. Reform has been sounding the alarm for nearly a year. Labour ignored us. Local taxpayers must not be forced to foot the bill for Labour’s incompetence. Councils must be reimbursed.”

Essex county council, which would have been scrapped under the reforms, spent £3.5m preparing for them.

The authority brought a judicial review against the proposed reorganisation, which it described as “unnecessary and financially unhinged”.

Lancashire incurred £2m of costs, while Nottingham, Staffordshire, Lincolnshire, Leicestershire, Kent and Norfolk all spent £1m or more.

Stephen Atkinson, the leader of Lancashire county council, said the money could have been used to repair roads or keep residents’ council tax down.

In a letter to Ms Rayner, Mr Atkinson, who leads the Reform group in the Local Government Association, wrote: “Your decision to review the Labour Government’s local government reorganisation programme was necessary.

“But Labour cannot now leave councils and local taxpayers to pay for the consequences.”

He said ministers should reimburse all authorities for the money they had spent and publish a council-level breakdown of the costs incurred nationwide.

Mr Atkinson said Andy Burnham should not attempt to abolish any councils without first giving residents a referendum.

He wrote: “If the Labour Government means what it says, it should trust local people to decide the future of the councils that serve them and respect the distinct identities of our towns, communities and historic counties.

“Before any council is abolished or fundamentally reorganised, local residents should have the final say through a legally binding referendum.

“Pay back what councils have spent. Account for the decisions that got us here. Then let local people decide what comes next.”

Ms Rayner had planned to scrap the current two-tier county and district councils and merge them into unitary authorities, providing all the services for an area.

It meant a large number of counties would have been carved up into smaller areas, and it would have spelt an end to councils set up 140 years ago based on medieval counties.

Rutland, England’s smallest county, would have been abolished and several cities – including Winchester and Canterbury – faced losing their city status.

Ms Rayner said having to pause the plans was disappointing but necessary after legal advice received on her return to the Cabinet.

A spokesman for the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government said: “We recognise and appreciate the significant work that councils and partners have undertaken to date.

“As part of the pause, we will consider how to support areas through the next stage of the process.”