Elections for city councils in Exeter and Plymouth due to take place in 2026 may be cancelled following a government announcement.

Ministers have indicated they will agree to postpone elections due next May until 2027, if authorities request it by mid-January.

The Liberal Democrat leader of Devon County Council described the move as “double dealing and dishonesty”.

The government has said any postponement of elections will have to be requested by individual authorities. It said the decision to offer the choice was based on concerns about holding elections while councils are in the middle of a massive reorganisation of local government.

All district councils and county councils are being abolished as part of local government reorganisation with various plans for how Devon should be organised currently being considered by the government.

In a statement on Thursday, Local Government Minister Alison McGovern said several authorities in England had asked for a postponement, after expressing concerns about their ability to run “resource-intensive” elections alongside the transition.

Julian Brazil, Liberal Democrat leader of Devon County Council, said to “cancel the opportunity for people to have their say” was “an incredibly dangerous thing to do”.

He said: “We all know what they’re doing. Government ministers are putting political self-interest first, rather than democracy.

“The prime minister is trying to save his political life. He talks about putting the country first, but you can see it for what it is – a complete load of tosh. Everything else is smoke and mirrors.”

The announcement of further potential delays was made on the last day before Parliament’s Christmas break.

Elections in Plymouth and Exeter are due to be held for one third of the seats.

Both councils are currently run by Labour.

Phil Bialyk, the leader of Exeter City Council, said he would be discussing the issue with the council’s chief executive ahead of making a decision on whether to request a postponement.

Jacqi Hodgson, leader of the Green Party on Devon County Council, said she was “deeply shocked that anybody would want to do this, it’s undemocratic and it’s not for any obvious purpose except for maybe to distort our politics as we know it”.

Devon County Council’s leader of the Conservative Party Andrew Leadbetter said he was “completely and utterly against” the move.

“We’ve got some rights in this country and one is to have elections, if people are unhappy with the government they need the option to go to the polls and show how they feel.”

Deputy leader of Reform on Devon County Council Neil Stevens said the notion was “a disgrace” after being informed on Thursday via email.

He said: “We live in a democratic society, our fundamental principles of this country are built on democracy, we have elections for a reason, we need to hold people to account.

“Why are they postponing them? They’re scared Reform is coming, we’re going to take those seats and they don’t want to lose power, that’s my view.”

Plymouth City Council has not yet responded to a request for comment.

Councils due to hold elections in May 2026 have until 15 January to respond to government on the issue.